Questions & Answers

Bathing Prayer

Faith Q&A › Metropolitan Youssef › Prayer, Fasting and Worship › Bathing Prayer

The question

I have several questions regarding the "Tesht Prayer" (bathing prayer?). From my understanding, it is a prayer on the seventh/eighth day of the child’s birth and our Church made it to replace some pagan traditions that are common in Egypt and instead used this opportunity to have the priest bless the newborn baby and give thanks to God.

Is that something that is required to happen even though those traditions are not as common in the U.S.? Would the blessing of the priest during one of the Church’s normal Liturgical prayers serve the same purpose? Does it have to be seven days after birth or could it be at a convenient time for the priest and the family (e.g., when the mother has sufficiently recovered, or when we are not in a special Church season, such as Passion Week, etc.)?

The answer

The Bathing Prayer is not a rite, but a tradition for receiving a special blessing for a newborn. It is performed on the seventh day, or the first possible day after the seventh, if for example, the child was delayed in the hospital or there were special circumstances that made it necessary to delay this occasion. It is the child's first bathing, so it is merely a blessing until the anticipated rite of the Holy Mystery of Baptism can take place. Many families in Egypt live in close proximity, so it may seem as though it is a custom practiced there more than in the West. The custom is the same, but the convenience varies. The same custom is also practiced in Coptic communities in the West. Not performing this tradition does not impose any restrictions on the child or the parents. It is a tradition of blessing, celebration, and welcoming the infant into the world in the care of Christian parents. As an aside, no Liturgical prayers take place during Holy Week other than the Divine Liturgy on Maundy (Covenant) Thursday.

Answered by His Eminence Metropolitan Youssef (opens in a new tab)

Questions answered by His Eminence Metropolitan Youssef (opens in a new tab) of the Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States. Question 2176 on the Diocese’s Q&A site. Questions and answers © Coptic Orthodox Diocese of the Southern United States. All rights reserved.