Prince Charles taking Holy water home from Middle East tour
Prince Charles is flying "five or six dozen bottles" of Holy water taken from the River Jordan back to the UK for royal baptisms.
The Prince of Wales and his wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, were given the opportunity to dip their fingers in the water where Jesus was baptised as they embarked on their whirlwind tour to the Middle East.
Charles, 73, will be taking home a consignment of vials full of water on the return flight later this week and that water will eventually be used at the Chapel Royal at St James's Palace, where his youngest grandson Prince Louis was christened.
Royal babies are traditionally welcomed into the church with water taken from the spot where Jesus was baptised but Charles' decision to bring the water back himself is seen as unique.
The Director General of the Baptism Site, Rustom Mkhjian, told the Daily Mail newspaper: "You are absolutely right. This time the Embassy people asked for a few (bottles) of Holy water and we provided them with five dozen, six dozen, prior to this trip."
Mkhjian is not completely aware of who the water would be used for, but did suggest it could be used for royal baptism in the future.
He explained: "I didn't know, I didn't want to ask. But they said we wanted it for children to be baptised later on. Future baptisms, yes.
"It is pure water blessed from the spot where Jesus was baptised. It is holy and blessed from this particular spot in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan."
A senior royal aide confirmed that the water had been collected and will be flown back to the UK on the royal flight.
