Paschal Candles

As its name suggests, the Paschal Candle is closely associated with the Paschal Mystery – the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. The beeswax represents the purity of Christ, the candle's wick signifies His humanity and the flame His Divine Nature. As the candle burns, it gets smaller – in a sense, it sacrifices itself, just as Christ sacrificed Himself on the cross for our salvation.

Beeswax is made by female worker bees who never mate (virgins), further symbolizing Christ’s perfect purity.

For churches that celebrate the Easter Vigil on the night of Holy Saturday, a fire is kindled in a metal bowl, called a brazier (bray’-zhur). From the brazier comes a “new” and blessed fire serving as an image of the Resurrection that lights the Paschal candle, which is then carried in procession into the dark church. The candle, which represents Christ himself, is placed on a special Paschal candle stand near the altar. The Paschal candle remains lit for all worship services throughout the Easter season, which lasts for the 50 day period from the Easter Vigil to Pentecost.

These nails represent the Five Holy Wounds which remained after Christ’s Resurrection, resulting from the three nails that pierced His hands and feet, the spear thrust into His side to wound His heart and the thorns that crowned His head. Five grains of incense, signifying the aromatic spices that were used to prepare His body for the tomb, are embedded in the nails.

After Eastertide, the Paschal candle will be lit for baptisms, symbolizing a person’s new life in Christ; funerals, when the Paschal candle is placed near the deceased to serve as a reminder of the Christian hope of resurrection in the face of death; and on special occasions such as ordination of priests.

Besides making sure the Paschal candle diameter fits your Paschal candleholder socket, the answer to this will depend on the depth of your sanctuary (for visibility), how large your congregation is (specifically, the frequency of baptisms and funeral services held in your church during a 12 month period) and finally, your own preferences. Call Angel Direct at 770.455.9177 if you have questions about choosing the size of your Paschal candle, including available options to have the Paschal candle design lowered to accommodate churches with larger congregations and recurrent baptisms and funeral services.