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Holy water is never used to > baptise. ?? In my (admittedly Anglican) experience, the water used for baptism is always blessed by the officiating clergyman at the beginning of the service. I have always assumed / presumed that this was a general Christian church practice that the Church of England had NOT discarded at the reformation. Should one make a distinction between "Holy Water" and "Water that has been Blessed by a Priest" ? Between the water used for baptism in the font and the water in the stoup at the entrance to a church ? If so, what kind of distinction ? Additionally, I had always understood that part of the mediaeval dislike and mistrust of midwives - apart from their obvious role in "women's mysteries" - (and their vulnerability to charges of witchcraft) sprang from the fact that they had access as part of their professional duties to holy water which might then be perverted to unlawful purposes. This may not be strictly mediaeval but I would appreciate clarification. Brenda.