St John's Wine

In the Christian calendar the third day of Christmas is given over to St. John, the beloved disciple. Throughout Germany and Austria, it is still customary to have the priest bless the wine on this day. The resulting "St John's wine" is considered very lucky and is believed to have healing properties. It is preserved throughout the year, and even ordinary bottles placed next to it are said to taste better!

Here's the traditional blessing:

Priest: Our help is in the name of the Lord.
All: Who made heaven and earth.
Priest: The Lord be with you.
All: May He also be with you.

Let us pray. If it please you, Lord God, bless + and consecrate + this vessel of wine (or any other beverage) by the power of ...

I am so sorry to do this to you, but this post has been moved to my new website The Book of Shadows (hosted at shirleytwofeathers.com) and can be found in its entirety here: St John's Wine.