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There is something about the flickering flame of the candle that brings a sense of calming into our soul. Candles are used for therapeutic reasons by many people and can have similar effects in our own daily prayer life.

According to Nikolaus Gihr in his book, The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, 'The burning candle is intended to represent … Jesus Christ; it is perfectly fitted for this object only when its light is nourished by excellent, pure wax. The bright flame above represents the Divinity of Christ; the candle proper symbolizes His humanity, the wick concealed within the candle is a figure of His soul, the wax itself, which is the product of the virginal bee, is an emblem of Christ’s most pure body…By its sweet scent the wax candle, moreover, represents the bonus odor Christi, that is, the plenitude of grace and virtue, the infinite holiness of Christ.'

Jesus said, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.' (John 8:12) The light of the candle, then, reminds us of this reality and how we should follow that light by stepping out of the darkness of sin and into the 'light of life.'