O Thou sanctifier of all by the power of Thy word and spirit, Lord of all, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
With Thy blessing, Lord, may Thy servants be blessed, and through the care of Thy providence may Thy worshippers be kept, and may the eternal security of Thy Godhead, and the endless peace of Thy sovereignty reign among Thy people and in Thy Church all the days of the world, O Lord of all, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
¶ Then the priest shall say as follows:
By that sovereign and divine command wherewith the waters of Jordan were sanctified when our Saviour was baptized therein by the hands of His servant John, may this water be cleansed from all uncleanness of dead and drowned [corpses], and be to the life and health of all who shall drink thereof or wash therewith, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
¶ Here the priest shall sign the water with the sign of the cross, and shall afterwards say:
We beseech Thee, Thou holy One, who by Thy baptism, didst sanctify all seas, rivers, streams, springs, and fountains, to sanctify by Thy grace this water; let Thy Holy Spirit rest upon it that it may be to the help and health of body and soul, in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
¶ Here the priest shall again sign the water, and say:
May the sovereign and divine power hidden in the sign of the cross rest upon this water, that it may be to the health of body and soul, and in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
¶ Here the priest shall conclude by signing the water a third time."
The object, then, of this office is not to remove any personal contamination derived from touching a dead body, for no such idea is entertained by the Nestorians; but to purify the water in which any animal has been drowned, or into which any corpse has been thrown. On my first arrival at Amedia I had an opportunity of witnessing the performance of this service: a cow had fallen into a cistern in one of the adjacent villages, and a messenger was sent to Kasha Mendu with a bowl of the water,
