Thinking of bells often evoke memories of little kids with bells tied to their shoe laces, bells that are rung by the Santa standing by the Salvation Army donation bucket, or bells that sound loudly as a newly married couple exits the church to the cheering of their loving family and friends.
But if there is anything that people do remember about Mass, or about their parish, in general, it is the bells. Parishioners hear bells when they enter the church, during the consecration of the Eucharist during Mass, and sometimes even after Mass.
Smaller bells came into use in Christian churches around 400 A.D. when Paulinus of Nola introduced them. Or so the legend says. He was a Roman poet and statesman who became a consul near Barcelona, Spain, under the Emperor Gratian. After the latter man died, Paulinus converted to Christianity, moved to Italy with his saintly wife, lived like a monk and corresponded with St. Jerome, among others, and eventually became the bishop of Nola. He rebuilt the basilica cathedral there and built new churches. He began using small bells to signify the beginning and ending of Masses, and to signify the consecration of the Eucharist.
Sometime in the Middle Ages, bigger bells began to be used in churches. They were used for secular and religious purposes. Secular purposes included telling time – to have a standard time helped some people in their work. If a baker had to bake a cake and it took thirty minutes, and if a bell in the church tower rang every half hour, that made baking that cake a little easier for the baker. Knowing that it takes a few hours for your clothes to dry on the clothes lines (there were no electric dryers back then), then paying attention to the bells could organize your housework and help in your tasks. Of course, not every occupation or trade needed bells, but as our villages became towns and towns became cities, knowing time became more a necessity to the townsfolk. And a church bell could help that. The bells could also warn of danger – when a building was on fire, or when a nasty storm was on the horizon.
During the Catholic Reformation (sometimes called the Counter-Reformation) in sixteenth century in Rome, it was recorded that people usually did not receive Communion. Instead, they liked to go from church to church (in Rome there were hundreds of churches) and go inside the door, see the sacred Body of Christ lifted high by the priest, then rush off to the next church. Of course, this is not recommended, and it was not then, either. But one way they knew to leave and join the stampede to the next church was the ringing of the bells. Saint Philip Neri was known to frustrate these stampeders by taking an exceedingly long time – sometimes as long as fifteen minutes – to carry out the consecration and raise the sacred Host in his hands. He felt that these people should just come inside and receive Communion instead of denying themselves the graces they could otherwise receive by being good Catholics.
Of course, small bells come in many sizes. Some parishes have a single bell that is standing near the rear of the main aisle that is run one time as Mass begins, followed either by a silent procession or by one accompanied by music. There are also small bells that are mainly used during the Liturgy of the Eucharist. These can also be just one single bell, or a set of bells attached to a handle that can be rung at the same time. This is called an “altar bell” or a “sacryn bell” or a “sacring bell” or a “sanctus bell.” These bells are also rung at special times in the congregational singing of the “Gloria,” like during Holy Thursday, Easter Vigil, or Christmas Midnight Mass.
In times past in the United States, the large tower bells of a church were rung out at the consecration of the Eucharist. But this practice has fallen into disuse all around the country, though many influential Catholics are trying to revive the practice, and are succeeding in large numbers.
Bells are very important in our churches, though, especially the big bells. There is actually a Blessing of Bells that takes place every time there is a new bell that is to be hung in a church, whether it be in a new church or an old church. And this blessing is actually called a baptism.
Baptizing a bell is a big ceremony. First, the bishop has to do the baptism, which like in people, is done with water. The bishop uses an aspergillum (that thing he holds in his hand and dips into the bucket of water) and sprinkles water inside and outside the bell, usually making darn sure the bell is wet all over. Then the consecration of the bell takes place.
The holy chrism the bishop blesses during Lent in his cathedral that is put in little bottles and given to each parish is used for the consecration of the bell. This holy chrism is usually used by deacons and priests at baptisms, and priests and bishops at confirmations. But when blessing a bell, the bishop uses a copious amount of holy chrism, sometimes as much as a gallon, to seal the baptism of the bell.
And every big bell hung in every church for centuries actually has a name. Yes, a name. Usually, the bells are named for a saint or for a particular bishop, priest, deacon, or parishioner. One parish in Pensacola, Florida, for instance, has three tower bells, and they are named for the three priests who were serving at the parish at the time the bells were hung.
Bells and bell ringing are age old practices in our parishes with a long history of use. Next time you are at Mass, count both the number of bells in the church and the number of times the bells are rung. Does your church have any special practices in using its bells? They play such an important part of who we are as Catholics, in both our history and in our contemporary lives.
