Light a Candle

Maybe you've noticed a small room to the left just before you enter our worship space (sanctuary) at St. Andrew's? It's dimly lit and has a couple of kneelers facing an icon of Mary (as Our Lady of the Atonement) and Jesus, with a bank of votive/vigil candles off to the side.

Or possibly you've found the Chapel (off the main courtyard, behind the statue of St. Francis). Inside this quiet room for prayer is another set of votive/vigil candles. Do you remember lighting a candle when you'd go to church as a child? What I remember in my home parish was a section off to the side, just before the altar area, with several rows containing many blue or red votive/vigil light holders, with sand in the tray in which to extinguish the long matches or wicks. When I was little, I loved being allowed to light a candle, and then making that flame go away by sticking the long match into the sand! I must confess: the main point of lighting a candle for me WAS literally lighting a candle.

Okay, enough with memory lane: what about this tradition of lighting candles? What I learned while looking up an answer is that the words 'votive'(vow) and 'vigil'(wait/watch) come from Latin words that describe two purposes of prayer .. and because he does it so clearly, I'm simply going to quote directly from the book:

The former [votive] is associated with seeking some favor from the Lord, Mary, or a saint in return, usually, for some promise or vow. The candle is burned as were sacrifices in ancient times. The latter, as its name "vigil" indicates, accompanies prayer of attention or waiting. (Greg Dues, Catholic Customs and Traditions, p. 183, 2000 rev. ed)

I like to think of the burning candle representing that our prayer lives in the heart of God long after we have finished offering it.

You may hear people say "I'll light a candle for you" - that's another way of saying that you will be in their prayers.

On a practical aspect, you might notice the "Offering" slot on the candle stand. Let's be VERY CLEAR about this- the donation is not meant as a 'spiritual bribe' to be sure that your prayer gets heard! It's simply that candles, as any other materiel object, DO cost money to purchase and restock, so a quarter, fifty cents, or whatever contributed is appreciated. One more little point, especially for younger children- the goal is not to light every candle (like pushing every elevator button), but to light one that represents your prayer intention (and to save candles for the prayers of others!).