Lighting a Candle

Click to LIGHT A CANDLE

Light a virtual candle for a birthday, anniversary, prayer, healing, birth, death, friendship or any occasion.

I was just thinking about candles as my boyfriend really loves lighting a candle. I do love it also everytime I drop by in Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto or any statue of a saint I visited. But my bf is really the one into buying and collecting different kind of votive candles for home use. He will lit it before we will pray the rosary and then everytime he will go to a church for a mass or for just a short visit.

Lighting a candle for a particular purpose or intention is practiced worldwide from people of all walks of life. Lighting a candle symbolizes bringing light to our wishes or desires. A candle can be lit as a prayer for peace or a request for healing. Candles are lit for prayer intentions. To "light a candle for someone" indicates one's intention to say a prayer for another person, and the candle symbolizes that prayer.

When I went to the home of my boyfriend's parents, there was also a tall candle in their home on Chirstmas day which they told me will be lit by the youngest member in a household. That youngest member is given the honour of striking the match and lighting a very large candle usually placed near the front window or where the Christmas dinner table is. So since I was the youngest, they told me to lit the candle. I was so honoured to do it and it was really a memorable experience for me to have lit the candle and prayed with them in silence. I have googled that this is an Irish tradition. It is a symbol of Irish hospitality, their way of welcoming Mary and Joseph... and any travelers who might happen to pass by looking for a warm place to stay. 

In an Irish tradition, when it is time to extinguish the flame, only a girl named Mary is supposed to have that honor. Oh, I'm really a Mary as I have a Maria in my name. :) Some carry out an alternative to this custom and have someone named Mary light the candle, then have the youngest blow it out. Perhaps this modern twist is better for those safety-conscious parents out there who really don't want their youngest child lighting a match at all, no matter what the tradition says! Blowing a candle out is much safer than lighting one! 

I found this blog posted by Matthew and let me share it also with you all.


The Sight of burning votive candles -real or electronic - is common in most Catholic churches. The candles are usually placed before statues of saints or at shrines. But how did this tradition get its start?

According to A Handbook of Catholic Sacramentals, by Ann Ball (Our Sunday Visitor Books), the practice of lighting candles in order to obtain some favor probably has its origins in the custom of burning lights at the tombs of the martyrs in the catacombs. The lights burned as a sign of solidarity with Christians still on earth. Because the lights continually burned as a silent vigil, they became known as vigil lights.

Vigil Lights (from the Latin vigilia, which means "waiting" or "watching") are traditionally accompanied by prayers of attention or waiting. Another common type of candle offering is the votive light. Such an offering is indicative of seeking some favor from the Lord or the saint before which the votive is placed.

Lighting a candle is a way of extending one's prayer and showing solidarity with the person on whose behalf the prayer is offered.

After the 9/11 tragedy, lit candles figured prominently in a televised concert affirming the power of goodness over the darkness of evil. The symbolism was similar to the Catholic custom of lighting candles as a form of prayer.

Source: "St. Anthony Messenger" Septmber 2003, Page 26
In the lighting of candles we remember and truly live the words of Our Lord: "I am the Light of the World." In the lighting of candles we not only pray, but our prayers become smaller symbols of the One Light of Christ. In burning candles, our prayers rise up to Heaven day and night; prayers for the saint's intercession are also common because of their friendship with God in Heaven. Saints are powerful intercessors. The lighting of candles has been observed since the early the time of the early martyrs.

I own several votive candles and nearly all churches have votive candles. Some churches ask for only a $1 donation to light one so they can purchase another, while some require up to $10. This is just to help them purchase new candles. Please realize it is a "donation" not an obligation; if you don't have the money, you will still be able to light a candle. There are many churches and Cathedrals over the Internet that will even light candles there for you if you send in a donation. Just one example is the St. Anthony Shrine of Cincinnati, Ohio.

Candles traditionally have been used in churches of all denominations because of their symbolic meaning of light. During weddings, masses, funerals and baptisms, candles' function is to produce light and dispel darkness. Their beauty and warmth are a reminder of the love of God.

Unity

Lighting a candle in church can be a unifying experience. Often each member of the congregation or religious group holds a candle and sings in unison a hymn or chorus. This unity symbolizes the love and warmth each has experienced from God and the religious community.

Truth

The candle's light provides guidance in the darkness. This is symbolic of the truth of the Word of God as it provides a light and a lamp to guide the path of the believer. Darkness is symbolic of ignorance and death. The lit candle can illuminate for the believer the path of life.

Love

Candles can be symbolic of love. The warmth they generate can be felt during a marriage ceremony. The bride and groom often light a candle at this time to symbolize their love. Their closeness, just like the flame, can produce both warmth and pain.

Jesus Christ

Jesus himself claimed to be the "Light of the World" (John 8:12). The candle can symbolize Jesus Christ, as the believer carries the light of Christ with him or her. The candle itself burns away, as does the material body, but the fire represents the eternal truth of those who believe.

Faith

The flame of the candle is symbolic of faith itself. If not guarded, the flame may be extinguished. The believer must protect the flame of faith as she or he does the flame of the candle against the winds of life's experiences.

Photo courtesy of Ant.
Taken by his phone while I was writing this blog  and he was in the Church that time when
he saw this prayer sellotaped  to the wall. What a coincidence! 

Whether it is a birthday or a funeral, candles have always been a part of our cultures and traditions. They have various meanings depending on the occasion candles are used. We can not imagine a birthday without candles on the birthday cake, candle ceremony is a peculiar part of Catholic weddings and, of course, no funeral can be held without candles. They are not just a source of light, candles perform symbolic functions and are inevitable part of many human ceremonies.

In all, the usage of candles is a practice which continues today in many Churches. The symbolism does remind us that prayer is a "coming into" the light of Christ, allowing our souls to be filled with His light, and letting that light burn on in our souls even though we may return to other activities.

Prayer Before Lighting the Candle

Father in heaven

The light of Jesus

Has dispersed the darkness

Of hatred and sin

Accept this candle

And let the light your truth

Guide me to your kingdom

Inflame me heart with your grace

Keep me in the radiance of your truth

Fill my heart with your divine love

And please help me in my needs

(mention your petition)

Grant this through Christ our Lord 

and through the intercession of 

(mention your guardian angel)

Amen.

Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be