If you have just bought a new icon or a baptismal cross, sooner or later you will ask how to bless an icon in the Orthodox Church and whether a cross needs the same. The short answer: a priest blesses it, using prayers set out in the service book of the Church. You bring the item to your parish and ask. The rest of this article covers the questions that usually follow.

A blessing does not give an object power of its own, and a blessed icon is no charm against misfortune. The Church prays that the icon or cross will serve the prayer of the person who owns it, and sets it apart for that purpose. What matters afterwards is that the icon is prayed before and the cross is worn with faith.

Do icons need to be blessed?

In the early Church there was no separate rite for blessing icons. An icon was holy because of whom it showed and because it bore the name of Christ or the saint. Later the service book came to include prayers for blessing icons and crosses, and today blessing a new icon is ordinary Orthodox practice in almost every parish.

So most priests will tell you: yes, bring a new icon to church, especially one bought from a general shop or online where nothing is known about it. Customs vary between jurisdictions. Some priests bless every icon brought to them; others say that an icon already blessed in a monastery may simply be placed in the home with prayer. Your own priest knows the practice of your parish.

Does a cross need to be blessed?

A pectoral cross, the small cross an Orthodox Christian wears from baptism, is normally blessed before it is first worn. At a baptism the priest blesses the cross himself during the service, so the godparent only needs to bring it.

A cross bought later, as a replacement or a gift, is taken to church to be blessed. People often ask whether they may wear it in the meantime. Priests usually answer that the Cross is holy in itself and may be worn, but the blessing should not be put off for long.

The same applies to a chain or cord, a saint's medallion and a prayer ring. They can all be brought together with the cross.

How to ask your priest for a blessing

Speak to the priest after a service, or ask at the candle desk when the parish blesses icons and crosses. Many priests do it straight after the Liturgy; others will name a time. There is rarely a set charge. Most people leave a donation for the church if they are able.

Before you go:

  • take the icon out of its shipping wrap and remove any price labels;
  • make sure it is clean and dry, with no polish or spray on the surface;
  • bring the chain or cord if you want it blessed with the cross;
  • carry a large or fragile icon in its case or wrapped in a clean cloth.

There is no special formula for the request. "Father, would you bless this icon for our home?" is enough. If the icon is a gift for a baptism, a wedding or a name day, mention it.

What happens during the blessing

The priest reads the prayers for the blessing of an icon or a cross and sprinkles it with holy water. A cross has its own short order of blessing, distinct from that for an icon. Sometimes the priest blesses the item on the spot; sometimes he asks you to leave it in church until a service. Either way, accept his direction calmly.

Afterwards, make the sign of the Cross, venerate the icon or kiss the cross, and thank the priest.

Can I bless an icon myself?

No. Blessing is given by a bishop or a priest. A layperson can sprinkle an icon with holy water and pray before it, and both are good things to do, but this is a private act of devotion and does not replace the blessing of the Church.

If your church is far away and the icon is already in your home, you need not wait to pray before it. Put it in your icon corner, read the Trisagion prayers or the Lord's Prayer, and ask Christ, His Mother or the saint shown to pray for your household. Take the icon to be blessed when you next can.

Worn, inherited or second-hand crosses

A cross that has been worn before, or an inherited one, can be brought to church if no one knows whether it was blessed. If it certainly was, it is not blessed a second time.

Crosses without the figure of Christ are blessed too. Crosses set with stones are blessed by most priests as long as the shape is a proper Orthodox cross and the decoration does not hide it. A priest may suggest a simpler cross for daily wear if the stones make it look more like jewellery than a cross.

When an icon or cross is already blessed

An icon blessed in a monastery or a church does not need a second blessing. What matters is knowing this for certain rather than assuming it.

On our site every product page states where the item was consecrated:

  • all silver crosses, pendants and rings are consecrated on particles of the relics of St George the Victorious;
  • icons from the Pskov-Caves monastery workshops are consecrated in that monastery, with a certificate on the back signed by the senior master and sealed by the monastery;
  • icons from the Danilov monastery workshops are consecrated there, with the workshop certificate on the back;
  • items from the St Gabriel series are consecrated in Samtavro monastery in Mtskheta, most of them at the relics of the saint.

The letter from Samtavro monastery and the workshop certificates are published on our consecration page. For what "consecrated on relics" means and how to check it, see our guide to consecrated Orthodox items.

If a product page does not name a place of consecration, take the item to your own parish to be blessed in the usual way.

After the blessing

Place a blessed icon in your icon corner or on a clean shelf, and wear a blessed cross under your clothing every day. If a blessed cross is lost or broken, a new one is bought and blessed in turn. A damaged icon is never thrown away; it is taken to church.

If you are still choosing an icon for your home, browse the icons from monastery workshops: they arrive already consecrated. You are always welcome to show a new icon to your own priest and ask his blessing to pray before it.