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Happy Feast of the Presentation of the Lord!

I am wondering, are there any special Eastern observances for this feast? In the Latin church today we had the blessing of candles [hence the origin of the name "Candlemas"].

Also, in remembrance of blessed Anna & Simeon, today is World Day for Consecrated Life in the Roman Catholic Church. This day was chosen because of the holy pair's symbolism as archetypes of religious men & women.

PAX

Dear Br Elias,

Well you lives and learns Also, in remembrance of blessed Anna & Simeon, today is World Day for Consecrated Life in the Roman Catholic Church. This day was chosen because of the holy pair's symbolism as archetypes of religious men & women.

Wish I had known that in time - I write the Bidding Prayers for the month of February - so it would have been nice to include that specifically yesterday - ah well it's noted for next year

The Blessing of candles - well I wish about that too - I suppose I ought to be charitable and say that with 6 weekend Masses [or was it 7?] poor Father was rather busy and as one assistant was on holiday and the other cannot stand long enough to celebrate Mass at present [ a long standing problem ] -- but t'would have been nice

Anhelyna

Orthodox parishes in Slovakia also often have the blessing of candles on the Feast of the Presentation.

Spasi Khristos -
Mark, monk and sinner.

The blesing and the procesion with the candles is a very ancient rite that come from the Holy City of Jerusalem. If I am not wrong the first historical testimony of this rite is found in 5th century Peregrinatio Egeriae in Loca Sancta. Someone told me that this rite was adopted by the Latin Chuch only during the 10th century.

In the Roman Catholic tradition, what is the connection between Candlesmas Day and the feast of St. Blaise and the blessing of troats with candles. Wasn't St. Blaise an Armenian?

Ung-Certez

Dear Brother Elias,

The East calls this Feast "the Meeting of the Lord in the Temple" calling to mind the meeting of Christ with St Simeon.

The Liturgy for this day (which my Church will be celebrating on February 15th, by the way . . .) recalls the prophetic words that "suddenly the Lord will come to the Temple."

It celebrates Christ as our Light and Life, very much like the Feast of the Theophany or Epiphany.

It brings the 40 day Nativity Season to a close and after this day we no longer greet one another with "Christus Natus Est" or, er, "Christ is Born!"

(Do you see how Latinized I can become just by TALKING with a Latin? )

In the Ukrainian tradition, candles are blessed and distributed. We take them home and keep them with our icons and holy water - with our other sacred items.

Such candles are lit whenever someone is about to die at home or else during very bad lightning storms to the invocation of St Elias the Prophet asking his assistance . . .

We have also a number of miraculous icons of the Mother of God that are related to this feast and Simeon's prophecy that a "Sword will pierce your heart."

One icon is the "Seven Arrows" and the other is "the Softener of evil hearts."

Both types depict the Mother of God with a circle of seven daggers or swords pointed toward the middle of her heart or soul - her heart never being depicted in iconography.

Another name for these icons is "Simeon's Prophecy."

This is the icon I put out on this feast.

Alex

Dear Ung-Certez,

Yes, St Blaise or "Vlasios" was an Armenian Saint, also sometimes called "Saint Bucolos."

He is the Eastern patron of throat ailments and since his feast fell so closely to Candlemas, Candles were used to bless throats.

His feast is on that of St Photios' Day, February 6, I believe.

Alex

I remember as a child, my mother would often take me to her "Italians'skij Cirkva" on this feast day of St. Blaise the Armenian. We would have our throats blessed. Don't know if this tradition of troat blessing is still popular in the Roman Catholic Church anymore or if this feast is still celebrated, you know with the way most feasts have been eliminated or transferred to Sundays.

Oh verenable St. Blaise, may you be the protector of all cantor's troats(voices) as they sing God's praises, Daj Bozhe!!

Ung-Certez

I love the fact that the Slavonic Service of Blessing Candles (the full order in the Trebnik) is practically a word-for-word translation from the Roman rite. I only did the comparison in English (between the St. Tikhon's Trebnik and a 1961 St. Joseph Daily Missal), and I'm betting it is even better with the source materials.

So, how many years does it take for a "Latinization" to be legitimized in the eyes of purists?

-Dave

Dear Friends:

The blessing of throats was done, at least in parishes that I knew, by tying two candles together in an "X" and laying the upper part across the person's throat.

This is done in remembrance of a miracle St. Blaise did as he was lead to martyrdom.

A young girl was choking to death with a fish bone crossed within her throat.

St. Blaise cured the girl and by doing so became the patron of ailments of the throat.

In the Western church he is one of the 14 Holy Helpers, a group of popular Patron Saints prayed to for specific needs.

He is also the Patron Saint of my tiny little village of S�o Braz, on S�o Miguel Island, in the Azores.

The village was founded after a vow by the local Lord to dedicate a shrine to St. Blaise if his cattle were cured of a fatal throat disease.

The cattle got better, we got a shrine, and later a very nice church.

Viva S�o Braz!

defreitas

Dear Chtec Dave,

How do you know the Latins didn't take the service from us?

Alex

hahaha. That was funny, tell me another one.

Dear Chtec,

I'd try, but I can't hold a candle to you . . .

Alex

Hello,
the feast of Saint Blaise is on Feb 3 on the western calendar, the day after Candlemas. My parish will be having the blessing of the throats today. My parish priest also gave a general blessing yesterday at Mass for those who can't make it to church today.

In many places Nativity scenes are kept up until Feb. 2. In Mexico it is also the custom to bring images of the Christ Child to church to be blessed by the priest. Feb. 2 is also regarded in many places as the start of the Carnival season.

Dear Manuel,

And that is the true and proper way to keep Christmas - all forty days of it!

In New Orleans, I believe, they begin preparations for Mardi Gras following Epiphany.

Alex