Holy Drinking Water, Batman!

I'm not feeling very well today. I don't feel downright evil or anything, just achy. Still, some liquid holiness might well be just what Dr. Jesus ordered.

From Newsweek (h/t Russ):

[I]t's not surprising that a few savvy marketers would seize on this universal symbol of purity for financial gain. Inspired, perhaps, by vitamin and energy waters, a number of new companies have begun making more explicit claims: their water doesn't just promote good health, it actually makes you good. Holy Drinking Water, produced by a California-based company called Wayne Enterprises, is blessed in the warehouse by an Anglican or Roman Catholic priest (after a thorough background check). Like a crucifix or a rosary, a bottle of Holy Drinking Water is a daily reminder to be kind to others, says Brian Germann, Wayne's CEO. Another company makes Liquid OM, superpurified bottled water containing vibrations that promote a positive outlook. Invented by Kenny Mazursky, a sound therapist in Chicago, the water purportedly possesses an energy field that Mazursky makes by striking a giant gong and Tibetan bowls in its vicinity. He says the good energy can be felt not just after you drink the water but before, when you're holding the bottle.

The most recent entry in this niche is Spiritual Water. It's purified municipal water, sold with 10 different Christian labels. The Virgin Mary bottle, for example, has the Hail Mary prayer printed on the back in English and Spanish. Spiritual Water helps people to "stay focused, believe in yourself and believe in God," says Elicko Taieb, the Florida-based company's founder who was formerly in the pest-control business. All three companies give a portion of their profits to charity.

(more)

I've heard stories about Catholics using holy water for all sorts of practical applications. Your car's hanging on for dear life and you need to squeeze twenty or thirty thousand miles more out of it, pour a little bit of that holy water in the carburetor and you're riding with the Lord.

Putting a price tag on it, that's priceless.

Cross-posted from Ice Station Tango

TAGS: Religion, Holy Water, Commodification of Religion, Marketing