When St. Simeon took the Child Jesus into his arms, he was inspired by the Holy Spirit and chanted the hymn,
“Now You can let Your servant go in peace, 0 Master . .. ” (Lk. 2, 29-32),
which was integrated into the service of Vespers. In his inspired hymn, St. Simeon referred to Jesus as the “Light to the Gentiles,” it prompted the first Christians to carry a lighted candle or lamp in the procession that day, symbolizing the mystical presence of the “True Light” (In. 1, 9), Jesus. The solemn procession itself symbolized the journey of Joseph and Mary to Jerusalem in fulfillment of the Law.
In all the religions of the world, the symbol of the deity is the light and the lighted candle symbolizes the Divine Presence. This is more pronounced in the Christian religion in which God is referred to as the “Light” (In. 1, 5) and that He dwells in the ” inaccessible light.” (I Tim. 6, 16) In the Old Testament, God Himself ordered the Israelites to burn lamps as a sign of His presence among the people. (Lev. 24, 14)
In the New Testament, the Christians followed the same prescription as attested to by St. Epiphanius (d. 403) in his letter to the monk John of Jerusalem.
As the Saint was passing through the country around Anablatha, he passed by a building in which he noticed a ”lamp burning.” In answer to his inquiry, he learned that the building was a “Christian Church.” In our churches today, the Presence of a burning vigil-light indicates the Real Presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist on the altar.
St. John the Evangelist presents Our Lord Jesus Christ to us in his gospel as the” Light of Life” (In. 8, 12), a spiritual life, a life of grace. In this context, the burning candle presented to us at Baptism is a symbol of the new spiritual life we receive through the sacrament.
St. Matthew refers to light as a symbol of Christ’s teaching:
“The people that lived in darkness (of ignorance) have seen a great light .. . ” (Mt. 4, 16)
Hence the custom of having two lighted candles, one on each side of the Gospel, when it is read during a liturgical service, as explained by St. Jerome in 378 A.D. “In all the churches of the East, whenever the Gospel is to be read, candles are lighted although the sun is already shining. Of course, it is not done to dispel the darkness but to express our joy … Under the material light that Light is represented of which the Psalmist speaks:
‘Your Word, 0 Lord, is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path ‘ ” (St. Jerome, Against Vigilantius, 7).
The burning candles, then, flanking the Gospel during the reading, remind us that the teaching of Christ should enlighten us and guide us on our way to salvation as indicated by the words of Our Lord Himself:
”I am the light of the world; anyone who follows Me will not be walking in the dark, but will have the light of life.” (In. 8, 12)
In the East, this custom is mentioned for the first time in the biography of St. Sabas which was written in 556. It seems that this practice was introduced during the sixth century by the hermits who, in order to create a prayerful atmosphere in their caves, burned oil lamps or candles in front of the icons. (J. Moschus, Spiritual Meadow, 155) St. Germanus, the Patriarch of Constantinople (715-733) and a great defender of the veneration of icons, explained to one of his bishops:
”Let it not scandalize some that lights and incense are burnt before the holy images, for these rites were devised in their honor, .. . since visible lights are a symbol of their gift of divine grace and the burning incense is a symbol of pure inspiration and the fulness of the Holy Spirit.”
(Epistle to Bp. Thomas)
In 787, the Council of Nicaea II approved the custom of offering lights (candles or oil lamps) in honor of the icons of Our Lord, the Blessed Mother of God, the Angels and all the Saints, as well as in honor of the Holy Cross and the Book of Gospels, for ” this was a pious custom since ancient times.” (cf. The Decree of the /I Nicaean Council)
The burning candles and lights placed in front of the holy icons should remind us of the light of the exemplary lives they lived and inspire us to model our lives after their’s in imitation of their “good works.” (compo Mt. 5, 16)
The custom of blessing candles on the Feast of the Presentation was introduced to fill the “needs of the people.” (I Prayer of the Blessing) Its introduction into our Rite was relatively recent, during the seventeenth century, but its roots reach venerable antiquity. As recorded in The Chronicle of St. Theophanes, Emperor Justinian I had issued an order in 541 A.D. that on the Feast of the Presentation, a candle-light procession be held throughout the city to implore Divine Protection against pestilence and the numerous earthquakes that plagued the city.
And in answer to this holy gesture, God caused the pestilence and the earthquakes to subside. This gave rise to having similar processions on other occasions when the common welfare of the people was in danger.
These solemn processions, which eventually developed into Litia services in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, were later discontinued and limited only to the churches. The faithful, however, continued to use the candles as the means of Divine protection. This prompted the blessing of candles on the Feast of the Presentation which then were distributed to the faithful.
In homes, the blessed candles are lighted and placed before a holy icon in times of serious sickness or the threat of a storm to implore Divine protection, as the family is gathered in prayer. It is also used by the parents to dispel the fear in children caused by darkness or thunder.
The candle blessed on the Feast of the Presentation is also used when the Last Rites of the Church are administered to a member of the family. It should also be placed into the hand of the dying as the priest recites The Prayers for the Departure of the Soul, sending him to God as the ” champion of Faith” (St. John Chrysostom, Hom. on Hebr., IV, 7).
CONCLUSION
The blessing of candles on the Feast of the Presentation is closely related to the Gospel narrative, introducing Jesus as the “Light of the people” (Lk. 2, 32) The burning candle symbolizes the abiding presence of Jesus Christ in the midst of the Christian community as He, Himself, had promised :
“Where two or three are gathered in My Name, there I am in their midst.” (Mt. 18, 20) For this reason, the ritual of the Church prescribes that at least two candles be lit on the altar at all liturgical services, and the greater the solemnity, the greater the number of candles used.
The burning candles also create a more prayerful atmosphere in the churches. They remind us that our prayers should come from a heart burning with love of God and they should be directed toward heaven, where God abides in the “inaccessible light.” In this manner, candles make a positive contribution to the fervor of our prayers. The burning of a votive candle in church, besides its sacrificial value (donation), has also a symbolic meaning, namely, the continuation of our prayers after we leave the church.
Lighted candles are also carried in procession for the ” Glory of God” (cf. /I Prayer of Blessing) as well as for the support of our prayers, imploring Almighty God to show us His “mercy” (cf. I Prayer of Blessing).
From this “‘intercessory” character of processions, the protective power was ascribed to the candles blessed on the Feast of the Presentation.
Therefore, at the present time, the faithful use them to implore God’s help in their every sickness and distress.
