The first thing you do when you attend church is dab holy water on your forehead, right? You'll want to refrain from doing so next time because you may not realize it, but you're rubbing yourself with poop. Yes, you read that right–fecal matter.
So much for it being pure and having healing powers. Instead it can make you incredibly sick!
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It turns out that 86 percent of holy water is contaminated with POOP. This gross piece of information was released after scientists analyzed 21 holy springs in Austria and 18 holy fountains in Vienna throughout the year. The shocking discovery revealed that for every milliliter of water found in the fountains, there were 62 MILLIONbacteria.
The other mind boggling findings were that the springs themselves were not clean. These waters contain nitrates plus e. coli, enterococci bacteria, and Campylobacter, which make it unsafe to drink. During the middle ages, holy water was thought to have healing powers which is why everyone would drink it, but in fact it contributed to their already bad health. Dr. Alexander Kirschner of the Medical University of Vienna urges churches to warn people about the dangers lurking in their holy water.
He also suggests that churches should add salt to their holy water fountains to keep bacteria from developing and to change their water regularly. Although these findings might raise backlash from the church, this information is being put out there to keep the public safe.
Studies often tell us that our desks, purses, even snacks at bars are probably dirtier than our toilet seats. But holy crap! It's disturbing that you can't even go to church without leaving with your hands being dirty. Remember the next time you're there to confess or pray away your sins, that you're probably leaving physically tainted anyway.
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