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 Lit
candles and Icon lamps (lampadas) have a special symbolic meaning in the
Christian Church, and no Christian service can be held without them. In
the Old Testament, when the first temple of God was built on earth - the
Tabernacle - services were held in it with lamps as the Lord Himself had
ordained (Ex. 40:5, 25). Following the example of the Old Testament Church,
the lighting of candles and of lampadas was without fail included in the
New Testament Church's services.
The Acts of the Apostles mentions the lighting of lamps during the services
in the time of the Apostles. Thus, in Troas, where Christ's followers
used to gather on the first day of the week (Sunday) to break bread, that
is, to celebrate the Eucharist, them were many lights in the upper chamber
(Acts 20:8). This reference to the large number of lamps signifies that
they were not used simply for lighting, but for their spiritual significance.
The early Christian ritual of carrying a lamp into the evening service
led to the present-day order of Vespers with its entry and the singing
of the ancient hymn, "O Jesus Christ, the Joyful Light", which
expresses the Christian teaching of spiritual light that illumines man
- of Christ the Source of the grace-bestowing light. The order of the
morning service of Mating is also linked to the idea of the Uncreated
Light of Christ, manifested in His Incarnation and Resurrection.
The Fathers of the Church also witnessed to the spiritual significance
of candles. In the 2nd Century, Tertullian wrote: "We never hold
a service without candles, yet we use them not just to dispel night's
gloom - we also hold our services in daylight - but in order to represent
by this Christ, the Uncreated Light, without Whom we would in broad daylight
wander as if lost in darkness". The Blessed Jerome wrote in the 4th
Century that "In all the Eastern Churches, candles are lit even in
the daytime when one is to read the Gospels, in truth not to dispel the
darkness, but as a sign of joy...in order under that factual light to
feel that Light of which we read in the Psalms (119:105): Thy word is
a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path".
St. Sophronius, Patriarch of Jerusalem, wrote in the 7th Century: "Lampadas
and candles represent the Eternal Light, and also the light which shines
from the righteous". The Holy Fathers of the 7th Ecumenical Council
decreed that in the Orthodox Church, the holy Icons and relics, the Cross
of Christ, and the Holy gospel were to be honored by censing and the lighting
of candles; and the Blessed Simeon of Thessalonica (15th Century) wrote
that "candles are also lit before the Icons of the Saints, for the
sake of their good deeds that shine in this world".
Orthodox faithful light candles before the Icons as a sign of their faith
and hope in God's help that is always sent to all who turn to Him and
His Saints with faith and prayers. The candle is also a symbol of our
burning and grateful love for God. During the reading of the Twelve Passion
Gospel at Holy Friday Matins, the faithful hold candles, re-living our
Lord's sufferings and burning with love fur Him. It is an ancient custom
of Russian Orthodox Christians to take home a lit candle from this Service
and to make the Sign of the Cross with it on their doors in remembrance
of Our Lord's sufferings and as protection against evil.
At Vespers on Holy Friday, when the Plashchanitsa (Epitaphion) is borne
out of the Altar and also during the Lamentation Matins of Holy Saturday,
the faithful stand holding lit candles as a sign of love for Christ Crucified
and Dead, showing their faith in His radiant Resurrection. On Pascha itself,
from the moment of the procession around the church, in memory of the
Myrrhbearers who proceeded with burning lamps to the sepulchre of the
Lord, the faithful hold lit candles in their hands until the end of the
Paschal Service, expressing their great joy and spiritual triumph
Since ancient times, at hierarchical services special candle-holders have
been used. The faithful reverently bow their heads when blessed by the
Bishop with the dikeri, representing the two natures of Christ - His Divinity
and His humanity, and the trikeri, representing the Holy Trinity. Candles
are also lit during the celebration of the Holy Eucharist.
Holy Baptism is celebrated with the Priest fully vested and all the candles
lit. Three candles are lit before the baptismal font as a sign that the
Baptism is accomplished in the Name of the Holy Trinity; and the person
to be baptized (if an adult) and the sponsors hold lit candles in their
hands during the procession around the font as an expression of joy at
the entry of a new member into the Church of Christ,
At the betrothal ceremony, the Priest hands the bride and bridegroom lit
candles before they enter the church to receive the Sacrament of Matrimony,
throughout which they hold the lit candles as a symbol of their profound
love for each other and of their desire to live with the blessing of the
Church. At the Sacrament of Holy Unction, seven candles are lit around
the vessel of Holy Oil as a sign of the grace-bestowing action of the
Gifts of the Holy Spirit. And when the body of a deceased person is brought
in the church, four candles are placed about the coffin to form a cross
to show that the deceased was a Christian. During the Funeral service,
as well as Memorial services, the faithful stand with lit candles as a
sign that the deceased's soul has left this world and entered the Kingdom
of Heaven - the Unwaning Light of God.
During the Vespers portion of the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts,
the Priest blesses the congregation with a lit candle and censer, proclaiming,
"The Light of Christ illumines all!" On the Eve of the Nativity
of Christ and the Theophany, a lit candle is placed before the festal
Icon in the middle of the church to remind us of the birth and appearance
on earth of Christ Our Savior, the Giver of Light. At all Divine Liturgies,
lit candles are carried in procession at various parts of the service.
Thus candles and lampadas are lit at all Church services, all with a wide
variety of spiritual and symbolic meanings; for it is God Who said, "Let
light shine out of darkness," [and] Who has shone in our hearts to
give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ
(1 Cor. 4:6). So too, lit candles in the church are also an expression
of the worshippers' adoration and love for God, their sacrifices to Him,
and at the same lime of their joy and of the spiritual triumph of the
Church. The candles, by their burning, remind one of the Unwaning Light
which in the Kingdom of Heaven makes glad the souls of the righteous who
have pleased God. |
