Candlemas and blessed candles
Today, Sunday 2nd February, the Feast of Candlemas, or the Presentation of the Lord, is the fortieth day after Christmas and the traditional end of Christmastide. It was forty days after His birth into this world that Mary and Joseph took JESUS to the temple (Luke 2:22-40), where according to the Law of Moses, Mary His Mother presented Him, and He was “consecrated to the Lord” (Exodus 13:2). Mary also underwent the ceremony of ritual purification, and it is for this reason, in the traditional Roman Rite, today’s Feast is known as the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Of course, she needed no purification because she was a virgin before, during and after Our Lord’s birth, and she is also the Immaculate Conception. Neither did Our Lord need to be presented in the temple to be consecrated to God, because He was the Son of God by nature and therefore a Divine Person. But Our Lady carried out this ceremony as it would have given God infinitely more glory than all the sacrifices of the Old Testament put together, because it was His Divine Son Who was being offered as the Victim for our sins, the culmination of which would take place on Mount Calvary thirty-three years later.
On this Feast, it is customary to have the Blessing and Procession with Candles – a ceremony which dates from at least the seventh century. When Our Lord was presented in the temple, the aged Simeon, inspired by the Holy Spirit, proclaimed JESUS to be the fulfilment of God’s promise and declared Him to be, “a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to Thy people Israel.” This is the reason we process with candles. They represent Christ Who is the “Light of the World” (John 8:12). As candles are consumed by their flame, they symbolise Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross out of love for us. Just as light pierces the darkness, so Christ conquers the powers of darkness and evil, and enlightens the hearts of believers. The lighted candle also reminds us of our Baptism when we were presented with a lighted candle, symbolising the light of faith that we must carry into the world. And just as Simeon and Anna longed to see the Messiah before they died, the procession reminds us that we are pilgrims journeying towards Heaven guided by the light of Christ.
Blessed candles are sacramentals. They don’t confer grace as the Sacraments do, but they dispose those who use them with faith to receive grace and sanctify their daily lives. That said, the Church teaches that blessed candles convey the following effects:
• Spiritual protection, driving away the influence of demons and evil spirits. The prayers of blessing often include an exorcism, asking God to drive away the powers of evil.
• They sanctify the environment making it more conducive to prayer.
• They are often lit during storms, natural disasters or in times of fear, invoking God’s protection over homes and families.
• They are traditionally placed near the sick or dying as a source of consolation, where the flame symbolises Christ’s light leading the soul through the darkness of death to eternal life.
I would encourage you all to take a blessed candle home today and make it part of your daily spiritual life. Let its light remind you that Christ is always with you, no matter how dark the world may seem today. May they help strengthen your faith, protect your homes and draw you closer to the Lord in prayer.
Fr Paul Gillham, IC