Official feasts used to be an important part of the human community. People would gather together to remember something sacred, express their faith and hope for the future, and / or just be together formally, recognizing each other as being part of a shared community. Few things express a desire for shared companionship and social intimacy more than dining together. Sadly, the gathering together for feasting is increasingly a relic of the past – at least here in the West.
It need not be so! Today we will remember the ancient feasts.
THE FEAST DAY OF Candlemas
This feast is a Christian religious celebration commemorating the presentation of Jesus at the Temple. Candlemas marks the end of the Christmas-Epiphany season on the Christian calendar.
What is Candlemas?
Candlemas, also known as the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ, the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or the Feast of the Holy Encounter, is a Christian feast day commemorating the presentation of Jesus at the Temple. It is based upon the account of the presentation of Jesus in Luke 2:22-40. Under Leviticus 12, a woman was to be purified by presenting a lamb as a burnt offering, and either a young pigeon or dove as sin offering, 33 days after a boy's circumcision. It falls on 2 February, which is traditionally the 40th day of and the conclusion of the Christmas–Epiphany season. While it is customary for Christians in some countries to remove their Christmas decorations on Twelfth Night (Epiphany Eve), those in other Christian countries historically remove them after Candlemas. On Candlemas, many Christians (especially Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, and some mainline Protestant denominations including Lutherans, Anglicans and Methodists) also take their candles to their local church, where they are blessed and then used for the rest of the year; for Christians, these blessed candles serve as a symbol of Jesus Christ, who is the Light of the World.
History
The Feast of the Presentation or Purification is one of the oldest feasts of the church. The pilgrim Egeria recorded how it was celebrated in Jerusalem in the 380s:
But certainly the Feast of the Purification is celebrated here with the greatest honour. On this day there is a procession to the Anastasis; all go in procession, and all things are done in order with great joy, just as at Easter. All the priests preach, and also the bishop, always treating of that passage of the Gospel where, on the fortieth day, Joseph and Mary brought the Lord into the Temple, and Simeon and Anna the prophetess, the daughter of Famuhel, saw Him, and of the words which they said when they saw the Lord, and of the offerings which the parents presented. And when all things have been celebrated in order as is customary, the sacrament is administered, and so the people are dismissed.
Christmas was, in the West, celebrated on 25 December from at least the year AD 354 when it was fixed by Pope Liberius. Forty days after 25 December is 2 February. In the Eastern parts of the Roman Empire, Roman consul Justin established the celebration of the Hypapante.
Pope Gelasius I (492–496) contributed to the spread of the celebration but did not invent it. It appears that it became important around the time of the Plague of Justinian in 541 before slowly spreading West. The ancient Romans celebrated the Lupercalia in mid-February, in honor of Lupercus, the god of fertility and shepherds. The celebration of Feralia occurred around the same time.
The Lupercalia has frequently been linked to the presentation of Jesus at the temple, particularly by Cardinal Caesar Baronius in the 16th century especially because of the theme of purification that the two festivals share. However, this is probably inaccurate since Lupercalia was not celebrated in Jerusalem, and it was only there that one finds some celebrations of the presentation of Jesus around this date. Pope Gelasius I had much earlier written a letter to senator Andromachus, who wanted to reestablish the Lupercalia for purification. The so-called Gelasian Sacramentary mentions the celebration of the Presentation of Jesus, supporting the conclusion that Gelasius substituted a Christian festival for a pagan one. However, the Gelasian Sacramentary showed a strong Gallican influence and was compiled between AD 628 and AD 731. Hence it is possible that the addition of the celebration was not due to Pope Gelasius at all.
Moreover, when Gelasius addressed Andromachus, he did not try to use his authority but contented himself to argue, for example, that the Lupercalia would no longer have the effect it once had and was incompatible with Christian ideals. This could be interpreted as evidence that he had limited influence on the Roman aristocracy.
Centuries later, around the year 1392 or 1400, an image of the Virgin Mary that represented this invocation was found on the seashore by two Guanche shepherds from the island of Tenerife (Canary Islands). After the appearance of the Virgin and its iconographic identification with this biblical event, the festival began to be celebrated with a Marian character in the year 1497, when the conqueror Alonso Fernández de Lugo celebrated the first Candlemas festival dedicated especially to the Virgin Mary, coinciding with the Feast of Purification on 2 February. Before the conquest of Tenerife, the Guanche aborigines celebrated a festivity around the image of the Virgin during the Beñesmen festival in the month of August. This was the harvest party, which marked the beginning of the year. Currently, the feast of the Virgin of Candelaria in the Canary Islands is celebrated in addition to 2 February also on 15 August, the day of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in the Catholic calendar. For some historians, the celebrations celebrated in honor of the Virgin during August are a syncretized reminiscence of the ancient feasts of the Beñesmen.
In Swedish and Finnish Lutheran churches, Candlemas is (since 1774) always celebrated on a Sunday, at the earliest on 2 February and at the latest on 8 February, except if this Sunday happens to be the last Sunday before Lent, i.e. Shrove Sunday or Quinquagesima (Swedish: Fastlagssöndagen, Finnish: Laskiaissunnuntai), in which case Candlemas is celebrated one week earlier.
The Roman church's custom of blessing candles by the clergy found its way to Germany. The German conclusion that if the sun appeared on Candlemas, a hedgehog would cast a shadow, making a "second winter", was the origin for the modern American festival of Groundhog Day, as many of Pennsylvania's early settlers were German.
What do you do at the Candlemas Feast Day, traditionally?
In many countries, the celebration of Candlemas is also accompanied by the putting away of Christmas celebratory decorations, due to the fact that the celebration marks the end of the Christmas-Epiphany annual cycle.
It is also a custom among some Christians to take their candles to their local church, where they are blessed and then used for the rest of the year, as a reminder and symbol of Jesus Christ, who is the Light of the World.
I have embedded a candle blessing below:
What do you eat for the Candlemas Feast Day?
From wiki:
Candlemas in many countries is considered the day of crêpes. Tradition attributes this custom to Pope Gelasius I, who had pancakes distributed to pilgrims arriving in Rome. Their round shape and golden color, reminiscent of the solar disc, refer to the return of spring after the dark and cold of winter. Even today, a specific symbolism can be associated with preparing the crêpes. A tradition is to flip the crepes in the air with the right hand while holding a gold coin (such as a Louis d'or) or some other coin in the left hand to have prosperity throughout the year. One has to ensure that the pancake lands properly back in the pan.
Crêpes De La Chandeleur (Candlemas Pancakes)
Ingredients For Crêpes De La Chandeleur (Candlemas Pancakes)
- 1 cflour
- 1/2 tspbaking powder
- 1/2 tspbaking soda
- 1/2 tspsalt
- 2eggs
- 3/4 cmilk
- vegetable oil or butter
How To Make Crêpes De La Chandeleur (Candlemas Pancakes)
- 1. Break eggs into a large mixing bowl and beat with a wire whisk.
- 2. Measure flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into another bowl and stir to combine. Add gradually to egg mixture.
- 3. Add milk gradually, continuing to stir with the wire whisk. The batter should be smooth, with no lumps. If it seems too thick, you can whisk in a little water
- 4. Pour oil into an 8-inch skillet to cover the bottom. Heat the oil over medium-high heat. Using a soup ladle, carefully pour a ladleful (about ¼ cup) of the batter into the hot oil. Tilt the pan carefully to spread the batter into a large, thin crêpe that covers the bottom of the skillet.
- 5. Cook until the crêpe is golden brown on the bottom (about 3 to 4 minutes). Carefully flip the crêpe over to cook the other side. Remove crêpe from pan, and blot on paper towel to remove excess oil, if necessary.
- 6. Serve with maple syrup. (traditional Canadian) or topping of your choice. Applebutter is yummy!!
Is there a Traditional Candlemas Prayer?
via Catholic.org
Lord Jesus Christ,
You are the true Light
enlightening every soul born into this world.
Today we celebrate the feast of Candlemas.
Before Holy Mass,
the priest blesses the candles,
whose wax is the humming summer's work of countless bees.
The flames of these candles
will shed their light upon the altar at the Holy Sacrifice.
Help us to realize,
this day and every day,
that our own humdrum daily work,
if it is done for love of You,
and in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass,
will be a supernatural work,
and will shine brightly before You for all eternity.
Help us realize, too,
each time we see the blessed candles at Holy Mass,
or at the bedside of the sick,
that they are a symbol of Yourself,
the Light shining in the darkness of this world.
Help us to live in that Light,
to make it our own,
and to kindle it in the souls of others,
increasing the area Of light
and lessening the darkness in the World This,
dear Lord, help us do,
through the merits of Your own dear mother, Mary,
who did everything for love of
You, from the moment she brought You into this world
till the day she joined You in the realms of light at her death.
Then we, too, working for You,
shall be light-bearers who will help to spread Your kingdom on earth,
and increase the number of those who dwell in heaven,
the city of eternal light.
Amen.
When is the Feast Day of Candlemas celebrated?
Candlemas occurs on 2 February.
If you celebrate, I hope you have a wonderful time!
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