The following information is gathered from Candlehome.com/traditions/
St. Francis Assisi said, “All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.”
There is no recorded history of candle making. However, references to lighting candles date back to ancient times as early as 3000 BC in Crete and Egypt. Candles are mentioned in Biblical writings as early as the tenth century BC. A fragment of a candle from the first century AD has been found in Avignon, France.
In the fourth century B.C., candles were developed by the Ancient Egyptians by soaking the pithy core of reeds in molten tallow (animal fat). Called rush lights, they had no wick like a candle.
The early Romans are credited with developing the candle with a wick which was made from papyrus (a tall, aquatic, Mediterranean grass like plant) .
In the Middle Ages, beeswax, a substance secreted by honey bees to make their honeycombs, was introduced. Beeswax candles were a marked improvement over those made with tallow since they did not produce a smoky flame or emit an unpleasant odor when burned. Instead, beeswax candles burned pure and clean. However, they were expensive and, therefore, only the wealthy and the church had them.
In fourteenth century England, servants of the Royal household were paid partly in beeswax candles. Through to the reign of George III, the ends of used beeswax candles from the royal palaces were given to the Lord Chancellor as a valuable benefit of his position.
From the sixteenth century onwards, living standards improved as evidenced by the increasing availability of candlesticks and candleholders and their appearance in households. At this time, candles were usually sold by the pound and sold in bundles of eight, ten, or twelve candles. Everyday candles were made of animal fat (tallow), usually from sheep (mutton) or cows. These candles were usually a dark, yellowish color and probably gave off a nasty smell.
Early Chinese and Japanese candles were molded in paper tubes. They were made out of a wax made from an insect known as a “Cocus” and were mixed with seeds from various trees. The wicks were made of rolled-up rice paper.
In India, the use of animal fat in candles was prohibited by religious decree so candles were made from wax skimmed while boiling cinnamon.
Along the Northwest coast of North America the Indians produced light by inserting oily dried smelt into a slit at the end of a stick and lighting it.
In the Shetland Islands ( Scotland) the Stormy Petrel as well as other birds known to have a high content of fat in their bodies were hunted, killed and dried. They then had wicks put down their throats which were lit to produce light.
America ’s Colonial women discovered that boiling the grayish green berries of bayberry bushes produced a sweet-smelling wax that burned clean. However, extracting the wax from the bayberries was extremely tedious.
In 18th century England, candles were taxed and common people were forbidden to make their own. There were two guilds of chandlers, one for tallow chandlers and one for wax chandlers. They were the only ones licensed to produce candles until 1831. At that time the law was repealed.
Also in the 18th century the growth of the whaling industry brought the first major change in candlemaking since the Middle Ages. It was then that spermaceti, a wax obtained by crystallizing sperm whale oil, became available in quantity. Like beeswax, the spermaceti wax did not elicit a repugnant odor when burned. It was also harder than both tallow and beeswax which meant it did not soften or bend in the summer heat.
It was during the 19th century when most major developments affecting contemporary candle making occurred. In 1834, inventor Joseph Morgan introduced a machine which allowed continuous production of molded candles. A cylinder which featured a movable piston ejected candles as they solidified.
In 1850 the production of the first paraffin wax made from oil and coal shale began. It was made by distilling the residues left after crude petroleum was refined. The resultant bluish-white wax was found to burn cleanly and with no unpleasant odor.
We love candles because they captivate, stimulate, celebrate with us, warm us, calm and excite us.
Today candles are extremely popular. Seven out of ten households use candles. Although not required for lighting, we use candles for a variety of reasons including celebration, romance, decoration and fragrance. In addition many traditions and beliefs have candles as their basis.
“It is better to light a candle than curse the darkness.” – Mother Theresa
Ancient customs decreed that a candle was to be lit at the time of death to prevent demons from seizing the soul of the dying.
The Greeks and Romans lit candles or torches to accompany the dead to their last home.
Until the 15th century, candles used in churches were made of beeswax because it was thought that bees originated in Paradise.
Puritans added a bit of gunpowder to their Christmas candles to usher Christmas in with a flash and an explosion.
Excommunication by Inch of Candle was a form of excommunication in which the offender is allowed time to repent only while a candle burns.
In medieval times, there was a curious practice of offering at a shrine a candle or a number of candles equaling the height of the person of whom a favor was asked.
This was called “Measuring to St. Whomever.” The practice can be traced back to the time of St. Radegund and later right through the Middle Ages. It was especially common in England and the North of France in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.
A candle lighting ceremony is traditional to several age related celebrations:
Thirteen candles are lit by a Jewish child at the time of their Bar/Bat Mitzvah.
Fifteen candles are lit when a Mexican girl celebrates her fifteenth birthday.
Sixteen candles are lit at a sweet sixteen party.
Most of us have performed our first act of candle magic by the time we are two years old. Blowing out the candles on our first birthday cake and making a wish is pure magic. This childhood custom is based on the three magical principals of concentration, will power and visualization. In simple terms, the child who wants his wish to come true has to concentrate (blow out the candles), visualize the end result (make a wish) and hope that it will come true (will power).
Who can forget September 11, 2001? The following Friday, thousands of New Yorkers joined people across the world to mourn and hold candlelight vigils for peace.
Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD) held an online candlelight vigil during the 2004 holiday season. People could light a “’virtual candle” and submit a tribute message to a loved one or friend impacted by drunk driving.
In 1992, International Society for Animal Rights (ISAR) began and commemorated National Homeless Animals’ Day and candlelight vigils to magnify the significance of the overpopulation problem. The annual vigils spotlight the tragic killing of healthy dogs and cats due to pet overpopulation and provide a solution to end the killing: spaying and neutering.
The annual World AIDS Day includes candlelight vigils to increase awareness about AIDS, educate people about how to prevent its transmission and express support for those suffering from it.
The first week of October is nationally proclaimed as Mental Illness Awareness Week. In 1996, numerous mental health and mental illness advocacy organizations joined together to begin Mental Illness Awareness Week by holding a candlelight vigil at Loose Park, Kansas City, Missouri.
Jesus Christ said that His followers were candles or Lights of this world of darkness. Together we become a city on an hill that cannot be hid. People can see the light from miles around. A Light to give Hope, Direction, Comfort, and Security. A Light to banish the Darkness, Fear, Despair, and Confusion.
Jesus Christ is the True Light and His believers are little Lights. When He ascended back to His Father, and poured out His Holy Spirit into the hearts of the 120 gathered together on the Day of Pentecost, the upper room lit up with a Glory of God that soon filled the whole city and countryside, and soon the world.
Proverbs 20:17 ESV says, “The spirit of man is the lamp of the LORD, searching all his innermost parts.”
I have been asking God to revive His ministers and missionaries and believers around the world; to open their spiritual eyes to see their conformity to the darkness around them, instead of turning up their light to drive back the darkness. In recent weeks, I am seeing more and more preachers speaking with more passion than ever about the Power of the Cross and our need to get back to the basics of prayer, fasting and the study of His Word. Do I believe that this is happening because of my prayers alone? Of course not, but I believe that God is using men and women and young people around the world in every tribe, nation and tongue to bow their hearts with their knees in intercessory prayer. As a result of this revival of intercessory prayer around the globe, the candles are being trimmed and new Oil of the Holy Ghost is being burned. This is driving back the darkness that is trying to overtake the church and snuff it out by making it comfortable with the worldly darkness around it.
The recent intensity of attacks on the Son of God and those who believe in Him as such, calls for the candles of the Lord to come together around the globe in the only place they can possible do so: on their knees in intercessory prayer for more oil for our lights. Only this will drive back the darkness of the evil one and the devil’s servants, allowing those who are indeed hungry for the Lord to find Him as the Way, the Truth and the Life/Light. Prayer Warriors fighting the evil spirits of darkness to allow His Holy Light to shine brighter and brighter until He appears before the world as the King of kings and the only true light that lights every human being coming into this world!
I encourage you to join that multitude of believers that will shine as that city on the hill that will welcome Jesus Christ when He returns to take us to that place that He has prepared for those who love Him. A home that has no need of the Sun; for Jesus Christ will be the Light or the Candle therein for all eternity!