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glk
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| Joined: | Sun Feb 10th, 2008 |
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| First Name: | Gary | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | baptist, pentecostal, catholic |
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Posted: Mon Feb 11th, 2008 01:13 am |
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| Can someone explain the practice of lighting candles for loved ones. Came into the church 10/16/06. Still have a lot of questions.
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CajunRick
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| Joined: | Fri Sep 29th, 2006 |
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| First Name: | Rick (& Kermie) | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Lifetime Catholic, Latin Rite |
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Posted: Mon Feb 11th, 2008 02:38 am |
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glk wrote: Can someone explain the practice of lighting candles for loved ones. Came into the church 10/16/06. Still have a lot of questions.
Welcome to CHNI and to the Catholic faith. We're glad to have you, and we'll do our best to answer your questions as best we can. I won't give you a theological answer; others are much better than I at doing that. I'll tell you what it means to me.
I found this beautiful description of blessed candles at Catholic Forum:
In the Christian Church they were first employed to dispel darkness when the faithful met before dawn or in the gloom of the catacombs; but their beautiful symbolic meaning was soon recognized, and the custom of blessing them for Church services and private use is traceable back to an early period. Light is pure, penetrates darkness, fosters life, moves with incredible velocity, and illumines all around it. Therefore it is an emblem of God, the All Pure, the Giver; of life and enlightenment.
A blessed candle represents the human being, with the wick (soul) encased in the wax (body) as a source of light (grace) that spreads forth from the spiritual depths outward to the world. What a remarkable image!
Vigil candles, those that we light in memory of loved ones, stand as a reminder to others of the light of faith that shines forth from their souls. They are not consumed by the darkness of death but brighten heaven with their radiance. As a child, when I lit a candle for a loved one, it was with the belief that the entire Church (triumphant, militant, and suffering) would see that light and join in my prayer for them. I still believe it today.
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Understanding is the reward of faith. Therefore seek not to understand that you may believe, but believe that you may understand. - Augustine
Rick Luquette
Luquette Lane
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David W. Emery
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Posted: Mon Feb 11th, 2008 03:48 am |
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As Rick indicated, there’s a bit more to the story.
Candles are symbolic — sacramentals, if you will. In the usage you ask about, the candle represents the person’s prayer. The flame is the light of life, charity and devotion (chesed in Hebrew) dwelling in the person praying, the smoke is the prayer rising to God’s throne in heaven. Candles are like incense, which is referred to 89 times in the bible in connection with divine worship (liturgy) — or in some cases, idolatrous worship; see Psalm 66:15 and 141:2 and Revelation 8:2–4 for examples of the former. So the tradition of candles, lamps and incense goes back to the Jewish usage, far beyond the catacombs of early Christian times.
But there are other meanings that we need to keep in mind as we look through the bible. The candle or lamp is sometimes a symbol of a person’s life; hence we read in the book of Proverbs: “If one curses his father or his mother, his lamp will be put out in utter darkness.” (Proverbs 20:20; compare Revelation 18:23). This means that through the sin of cursing his parents (disobeying the commandment to honor father and mother) a person’s life is forfeit before the Lord.
A candle or lamp can also refer to the light of wisdom and understanding — the light of the Holy Spirit (see Luke 11:33–36) — and the light of divine revelation (see John 5:35 concerning the prophecy of John the Baptist; 2 Peter 1:19 with reference to the “prophetic word” in general; and Revelation 22:5, where earthly revelation is compared to its fulfillment in the heavenly Beatific Vision).
David
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BodRod
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| Joined: | Mon Oct 2nd, 2006 |
| Location: | Apple Valley, California USA |
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| First Name: | Cliff | | Gender: | Male | | Faith History: | Raised an SDA, then Generic Christian, finally at home with ... |
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Posted: Mon Feb 11th, 2008 04:17 am |
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| I lived with my grandmother for awhile when I was a little kid. I drove her up the wall a few times. I feel confident that she is in heaven but I decided to light a candle for her anyway. I hoped that she would take it as a "thank you" for all that she did for me.
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Gratias agamus Domino Deo nostro.
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Pani Rose
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Posted: Tue Feb 12th, 2008 01:58 pm |
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A bit of Church history, I believe it began with Justinian, the use of candle in procession so that all may see the beauty of the Feast. In the East the candles are blessed and taken home to be used there....
(This article says it is still practiced in the Orthodox Church, but it is also in use in the Eastern Catholic - Byzantine/Greek Catholic - Churches. Also, women and their babies are still Chruched. However, churchings occur all year long, not just on that day.
The Western term "Candlemas" refers to the practice found in the Roman Missal whereby a priest on 2 February blesses beeswax candles with an aspergilium for use throughout the year, some of which are distributed to the faithful for use in the home. In Poland the feast is called "Matka Boska Gromniczna" (Matka Boska, "Mother of God" + Gromnica, "beeswax candle").
Within the Roman Catholic Church, since the liturgical reforms of the Second Vatican Council, this feast has been referred to as the Feast of Presentation of the Lord, with references to candles and the purification of Mary de-emphasised in favor of the Prophecy of Simeon the Righteous. Pope John Paul II connected the feast day with the renewal of religious vows.
In the Eastern Orthodox tradition, the Meeting of the Lord is unique in that it combines elements of both a Great Feast of the Lord and a Great Feast of the Theotokos (Mother of God). It has a Forefeast of one day, and an Afterfeast of seven days. However, if the feast falls during Cheesefare Week or Great Lent, the afterfeast is either shortened or eliminiated altogether. The holy day is celebrated with an All-Night Vigil on the eve of the feast, and a celebration of the Divine Liturgy the next morning, at which beeswax candles are blessed. This blessing traditionally takes place after the Little Hours and before the beginning of the Divine Liturgy (though in some places it is done after). The priest reads four prayers, and then a fifth one during which all present bow their heads before God. He then censes the candles and blesses them with holy water. The candles are then distributed to the people and the Liturgy begins. The services for the Meeting of the Lord contain hymns composed by many of the great Church hymnographers: St. Andrew, Bishop of Crete (7th cent.); St. Cosmas, Bishop of Maiuma; St. John Damascene; St. Germanus, Patriarch of Constantinople (8th cent.); and St. Joseph the Hymnographer, Archbishop of Thessalonica (9th cent.)
On the same day, Orthodox Christians also commemorate a wonder-working icon of the Theotokos known as "the Softening of Evil Hearts" or "Simeon's Prophecy." It depicts the Virgin Mary with her hands upraised in prayer, and seven swords piercing her heart. This is one of the few Orthodox icons of the Theotokos which do not depict the infant Jesus.
It is because of the biblical events recounted in the second chapter of Luke that the Churching of Women came to be practiced in both Eastern and Western Christianity. Though the usage has mostly died out in the West, the rite is still practiced to this day in the Eastern Orthodox Church.
Some Christians observe the practice of leaving Christmas decorations up until Candlemas.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Candlemas
Also, in the West is the Feast of St. Blaise, which is an 'optional memorial' on Feb. 3 I think, in which candles are used to bless the throats of the people. It is wonderful to have this prayer and the blessed candles placed on the throat. The link below also gives the history of St. Blaise.
Because of the cure of the boy's throat when the boy was choking, St. Blaise is patron against troubles of the throat, and today our throats are blessed at Mass. The priest will bless two candles in honor of St. Blaise. The words of this blessing are: V. Our help + is in the name of the Lord.
R. Who made heaven and earth.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with thy spirit. Let us pray.
Almighty and most gentle God, Who didst create the multiplicity of things through Thine only Word, and didst will that same Word through Whom all things were made to take flesh for the refashioning of man; Thou, Who art great and without measure, terrible and worthy of praise, a Worker of wonders: the glorious martyr and bishop Blaise, not fearing to suffer all sorts of diverse tortures because of his profession of faith in Thee, was suited happily to bear the palm of martyrdom: and Thou didst grant to him, among other graces, the favor that he should by Thy power cure all kinds of illnesses of the throat: we humbly beg Thy Majesty not to look upon our sins, but to be pleased by his merits and prayers and to deign in Thy venerable kindness to bless + and sanctify + this creature of wax by the outpouring of Thy grace; that all whose necks in good faith are touched by it may be freed by the merits of his sufferings from any illness of the throat, and that healthy and strong they may offer thanks to Thee within Thy Holy Church, and praise Thy glorious name, which is blessed forever and ever. Through our Lord Jesus Christ Thy Son, Who liveth and reigneth with Thee, in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end.
R. Amen. Then he will hold the two, unlit blessed candles crossed over our throats, intoning: Per intercessionem S. Blasii liberet te Deus a malo gutteris et a quovis alio malo
English:
May God at the intercession of St. Blasius preserve you from throat troubles and every other evil. Then he will make a sign of the Cross over us.
St. Blaise is also the patron of veterinarians and against attacks of wild animals. He is represented in art as a Bishop holding two crossed candles, with wool combs, or in a cave surrounded by wild animals.
http://www.fisheaters.com/customstimeafterepiphany4.html
Last edited on Tue Feb 12th, 2008 02:00 pm by Pani Rose
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