{{Short description|Christian holiday}} {{Other uses}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2022}} {{Use Oxford spelling|date=January 2022}} {{Infobox holiday | holiday_name = Candlemas | image = 2017Candlemas.jpg | imagesize = | caption = Blessing of candles on Candlemas at an Episcopal church | nickname = {{ubl | Candlemass | Candlemas Day | Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ | Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary}} | observedby = Christians | date = 2 February | observances = {{hlist | Having candles blessed for the year during a service of worship | removal of Christmas decorations in some localities}} | celebrations = | significance = Commemoration of the presentation of Jesus at the Temple | relatedto = {{hlist | Christmastide | Epiphanytide|Groundhog Day}} | frequency = Annual | duration = 1 day | scheduling = same day each year | type = }}
'''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 by Joseph and Mary. It is based upon the account of the presentation of Jesus in Luke 2:22–40.
According to the Old Testament rules in 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. The feast falls on 2 February, which is traditionally the 40th day of and the conclusion of the Christmas–Epiphany season.<ref name="Knecht1910">{{Cite book |last=Knecht |first=Friedrich Justus |url=https://archive.org/details/apracticalcomme00knecgoog |title=A Practical Commentary on Holy Scripture |publisher=B. Herder |year=1910 |page=[https://archive.org/details/apracticalcomme00knecgoog/page/n452 410] |language=English |quote=We keep a feast on the 2nd of February, forty days after Christmas, in memory of our Lord's Presentation in the Temple. This feast has several names. First, it is known as the Feast of the Presentation of our Lord Jesus. Secondly, it is called the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary. But the usual and popular name for this Feast is Candlemas-day, because on this day candles are blessed before Mass, and there takes place a procession with lighted candles. Candles are blessed and lighted on this particular feast. |access-date=27 December 2016}}</ref>
While it is customary for Christians in some countries to remove their Christmas decorations on Twelfth Night (Epiphany Eve),<ref name="Learning">{{Cite book |title=A Study Guide for William Shakespeare's "Twelfth Night" |publisher=Cengage Learning |year=2016 |isbn=9781410361349 |edition=2nd |page=29 |language=English |quote=Twelfth Night saw people feasting and taking down Christmas decorations.}}</ref> those in other Christian countries historically remove them after Candlemas.<ref name="Edworthy2008">{{Cite book |last=Edworthy |first=Niall |title=The Curious World of Christmas |year=2008 |publisher=Penguin Group |isbn=9780399534577 |page=83 |language=English |quote=The time-honoured epoch for taking down Christmas decorations from Church and house in Candlemas Day, February 2nd...Candlemas in old times represented the end of the Christmas holidays, which, when 'fine old leisure' reigned, were far longer than they are now.}}</ref><ref name="Roud2008">{{Cite book |last=Roud |first=Steve |title=The English Year |date=31 January 2008 |publisher=Penguin Books Limited |isbn=9780141919270 |page=690 |language=English |quote=As indicated in Herrick's poem, quoted above, in the mid seventeenth century Christmas decorations were expected to stay in place until Candlemas (2 February), and this remained the norm until the nineteenth century.}}</ref> On Candlemas, many Christians (especially Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Evangelical-Lutherans, and Anglicans) also take their candles to their local church, where they are blessed and then used for the rest of the year;<ref name="Braden2020">{{cite web |last1=Braden |first1=Mark |title=The Blessing of the Candles at Candlemas |url=https://www.gottesdienst.org/gottesblog/2020/1/30/the-blessing-of-the-candles-at-candlemas |publisher=Gottesdienst: The Journal of Lutheran Liturgy |access-date=2 February 2026 |language=English |date=30 January 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hothersall |first=Barbara |title=Candlemas – Festival of Light |url=http://www.fulwoodmethodist.org.uk/fmcmag/archives/saints/candlemas/candlemas.htm |access-date=27 December 2016 |work=Fulwood Methodist Church Magazine |language=English |quote=In some countries special candles are brought along to the blessing by the worshippers. These are often very elaborate and are highly treasured. Afterwards they are taken home and kept to be lighted at times of stress – during storms, in sickrooms and at the bedside of the dying.}}</ref><ref name="Pappas2012">{{Cite web |last=Pappas |first=Christopher A. |date=18 January 2012 |title=Ecumenical Candlemas (Feast of the Presentation) |url=http://holytrinity.ab.ca/ecumenical-candlemas-feast-of-the-presentation/ |url-status=live |access-date=27 December 2016 |publisher=Holy Trinity Anglican Church |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190110073917/http://holytrinity.ab.ca/ecumenical-candlemas-feast-of-the-presentation/ |archive-date=10 January 2019}}</ref> for Christians, these blessed candles serve as a symbol of Jesus Christ, whom they refer to as the “Light of the World”.<ref name="Mazar2015">{{Cite book |last=Mazar |first=Peter |title=To Crown the Year: Decorating the Church Through the Seasons |date=6 March 2015 |publisher=Liturgy Training Publications |isbn=9781618331328 |edition=2nd |page=253 |language=English}}</ref>
== History == [[File:Marianne Stokes Candlemas Day.jpg|thumb|Candlemas day by Marianne Stokes, 1901]]
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:
<blockquote>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.<ref name="Bernard">{{Cite web |year=1896 |orig-year=385 |title=The Pilgrimage of S. Silvia of Aquitania to the Holy Places |url=http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/egeria/pilgrimage/pilgrimage.html |website=digital.library.upenn.edu |translator=John H. Bernard}}</ref></blockquote>
[[File:Fra Bartolomeo 007.jpg|thumb|The presentation of the Lord in the temple by Fra Bartolomeo, 1516]]
Christmas was, in the West, celebrated on 25 December from at least AD 354 when it was fixed by Pope Liberius. Forty days from 25 December (inclusive) is 2 February. In the Eastern parts of the Roman Empire, Roman consul Justin established the celebration of the Hypapante.<ref name=Holweck>{{cite encyclopedia| url = http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03245b.htm | last = Holweck | first = Frederick | title = Candlemas | encyclopedia = The Catholic Encyclopedia | volume = 3 | location = New York | publisher = Robert Appleton Company | year = 1908}}</ref>
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.<ref name=Holweck/> 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.<ref>Dumézil, Georges. ''Archaic Roman Religion.'' Vol 1. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press, 1966. p. 366</ref>
The Lupercalia has frequently been linked to the presentation of Jesus at the temple, particularly by Cardinal Caesar Baronius in the 16th century<ref name="Green">{{cite journal |last1=Green |first1=William M. |title=The Lupercalia in the Fifth Century |journal=Classical Philology |date=January 1931 |volume=26 |issue=1 |pages=60–69 |doi=10.1086/361308 |s2cid=161431650 }}</ref><ref>(la) Barri Ducis, L.Guerin, Annales Ecclesiastici Caesaris Baroni, 186, t.</ref> 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.<ref name="Bernard" /> Pope Gelasius I had much earlier written a letter to senator Andromachus, who wanted to reestablish the Lupercalia for purification. But while the pope opposed the celebration of Lupercalia in the letter, there is no historical indication that he ever intended to substitute it for a Christian feast.<ref name="Kelly">{{cite book |title=Chaucer and the Cult of Saint Valentine |last=Kelly |first=Henry Ansgar |publisher=BRILL |year=1986 |isbn=978-90-04-07849-9 |pages=60–61 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_bqdZbKPztMC&pg=PA60}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Forbes|first=Bruce David|title=America's Favorite Holidays: Candid Histories|date=October 27, 2015|publisher=University of California Press|isbn=9780520284722|page=54|quote=There is no indication that in suppressing the Lupercalia, Gelasius put anything else in its place. Much later, in the 1500s, a Cardinal Baronius speculated that Gelasius converted the Lupercalia into the Feast of the Purification of the Virgin (or Candlemas), changing one purification ceremony into another, and many noted authors have repeated this claim. Recent scholarship has refuted Baronius's assertion... The letter by Gelasius to Andromachus criticizing the Lupercalia contains no reference to... any replacement observance.}}</ref> Also, the dates do not fit because at the time of Gelasius I the Christian feast was only celebrated in Jerusalem, and it was on 14 February only because Jerusalem placed the Nativity of Jesus (Christmas) on 6 January. Jerusalem's Presentation of Jesus at the Temple on 14 February became the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary on 2 February as it was introduced to Rome and other places in the mid-7th century and onwards, after Gelasius I's time.<ref name="Kelly" />
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.<ref name="Green" /> This could be interpreted as evidence that he had limited influence on the Roman aristocracy.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Demacopoulos |first=George E. |title=The Invention of Peter: Apostolic Discourse and Papal Authority in Late Antiquity |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |year=2013 |pages=74–80|jstor=j.ctt3fj4j1 |isbn=9780812245172 }}</ref>
Centuries later, around 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).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria |trans-title=Our Lady of the Candelaria |url=https://corazones.org/maria/candelaria.htm |access-date=2019-02-19 |website=corazones.org |language=es}}</ref> 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 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.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Galdón |first=Sonia |title=Medio siglo de fervor en Candelaria |url=https://www.laopinion.es/afondo/2009/02/09/medio-siglo-fervor-candelaria/197498.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170824012038/https://www.laopinion.es/afondo/2009/02/09/medio-siglo-fervor-candelaria/197498.html |archive-date=24 August 2017 |access-date=2019-02-19 |work=La Opinión de Tenerife |language=es }}</ref>
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.<ref name="Tesis">{{Cite book |last=Álvarez Delgado |first=Juan |title=Sistema de Numeración Norteafricano. A. Numerales Canarios.- B. Sistema Numeral Norteafricano: Caracteres. Estudio de lingüística comparada sobre el sistema de numeración y cómputo de los aborígenes de Canarias |publisher=Instituto Antonio de Nebrija (CSIC) |year=1949 |location=Madrid |oclc=459382352 |language=es |author-link=:es:Juan Álvarez Delgado}}</ref>
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 of the modern American festival of Groundhog Day, as many of Pennsylvania's early settlers were German.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://weather.com/photos/news/2018-02-02-groundhog-day-history-photos | title=Groundhog Day: How One of America's Weirdest Traditions Came to be (PHOTOS) }}</ref>
In Roman Catholicism, in 1997, on the Candlemas day, Pope John Paul II instituted the World Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usccb.org/committees/clergy-consecrated-life-vocations/world-day-consecrated-life|title=World Day for Consecrated Life|date=February 2, 2025|archive-url=https://archive.today/20250202140427/https://www.usccb.org/committees/clergy-consecrated-life-vocations/world-day-consecrated-life|archive-date=February 2, 2025|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/messages/consecrated_life/documents/hf_jp-ii_mes_06011997_i-consecrated-life-day.html|title=Message of John Paul II for the I World Day for Consecrated Life|date=January 6, 1997|access-date=February 2, 2025}}. "Mary is associated with the presentation of Christ. The Virgin Mother who carries Jesus to the temple so that he can be offered to the Father expresses very well the figure of the Church who continues to offer her sons and daughters to the heavenly Father, associating them with the one oblation of Christ, cause and model of all consecration in the Church."</ref>
== Customs == ===Europe=== ==== France and Belgium ==== [[File:Crêpe_opened_up.jpg|right|thumb|Crêpes are a traditional food on ''La Chandeleur''.]]
Catholic churches in France, Belgium, and Swiss Romandy celebrate Candlemas ({{langx|fr|La Chandeleur}}, {{langx|nl|Maria-Lichtmis}}) on 2 February. Tradition says that manger scenes should not be put away until Candlemas, which is the last feast of the Christmas cycle.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}
Candlemas in those countries is also considered the day of crêpes.<ref name="Annette">{{Cite web |last=Charlton |first=Annette |date=2019-10-01 |title=La Chandeleur or Candlemas: A French Tradition |url=https://www.afrenchcollection.com/la-chandeleur-or-candlemas-a-french-tradition/ |access-date=2019-02-02 |website=A French Collection}}</ref> Tradition attributes this custom to Pope Gelasius I, who had pancakes distributed to pilgrims arriving in Rome.<ref name=Collet>{{Cite web|url=https://frenchlibrary.org/2020/01/28/blog-la-chandeleur-2020/|title=La Chandeleur|first=Natalie|last=Collet|date=28 January 2020|website=French Library}}</ref> Their round shape and golden color, reminiscent of the solar disc, refer to the return of spring after the dark and cold of winter.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Howard |first=Holly |date=2021-02-01 |title=Candlemas in France: Regional crêpes for La Chandeleur |website=The Connexion |url=https://www.connexionfrance.com/French-news/Candlemas-in-France-Regional-crepes-from-Brittany-Nice-and-more-for-La-Chandeleur}}</ref> 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.<ref name=Collet/>
In Belgium, it is customary to eat pancakes. All the candles in the house should be lit. It is believed that a clear sky on Candlemas foretells a beneficial year for beekeepers.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://focusonbelgium.be/en/facts/candlemas-celebration-dates-back-dawn-time-and-lives-judeo-christian-tradition-and-our|title=Candlemas, a celebration that dates back to the dawn of time and lives on in the Judeo-Christian tradition and in our folklore|date=18 January 2019|website=Focus on Belgium}}</ref>
==== Germany ==== Candlemas used to be an important date (''{{ill|Lostag|de}}'') in the year. It was associated with payment deadlines, fixed employment relationships, and the beginning of the "farmer's year". In addition, many customs, weather proverbs, other sayings, and rhymes are related to this feast.
The "farmer's year" began on Candlemas, and from then on, fieldwork or the preparations for it can be resumed depending on the circumstances. On Candlemas, the farmer should have had half of the winter food stock for his cattle. Depending on the proverb that one can eat by daylight on Candlemas, the time in which people worked with artificial light sources came to an end, as did when the women sat in the spinning room.
On this day, the "servant's year" also ended. The servants were paid the remainder of their annual wages and could or had to look for a new job or extend their employment with the previous employer for another year, usually with a handshake. The custom of giving the servants a pair of shoes at Candlemas as a reward for further work or looking for a job was also widespread.
==== Hungary ==== In Hungary, a rich array of traditions surround the holiday. The feast is called ''Gyertyaszentelő Boldogasszony'' day. Nowadays, children often dress up as bears, light candles and eat honey,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Jenő |first=Palocsai |date=2024-02-02 |title=FEOL - Gyertyaszentelőt tartottak, de a macit is csalogatták a barlangjából Fehérvárcsurgón (galéria, videó) |url=https://www.feol.hu/helyi-kozelet/2024/02/gyertyaszentelot-tartottak-de-a-macit-is-csalogattak-a-barlangjabol-fehervarcsurgon-galeria-video-unnepseg |access-date=2024-04-28 |website=FEOL - Gyertyaszentelőt tartottak, de a macit is csalogatták a barlangjából Fehérvárcsurgón (galéria, videó) |language=hu}}</ref> but the bears' foretelling is still a well-known event.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jósoltak a szegedi medvék, kiderült, mikor jön a tavasz |url=https://hirado.hu/belfold/cikk/2024/02/02/kovesse-eloben-ahogy-a-szegedi-medve-megjosolja-mikor-jon-a-tavasz/ |access-date=2024-04-28 |website=hirado.hu |language=hu}}</ref>
Folklore has it that on this day, bears come out of their dens and if they see their shadows (because it's sunny), they get scared of it and go back to sleep, which is thought to mean that it will be cold again. On the other hand, if there is no shadow, they stay outside, knowing that this is the last attempt of winter and that the cold weather will soon ease. This is similar to the American Groundhog Day traditions.
In the Szeged area, it was believed that if the candle did not go out at the time of consecration, there would be a good honey harvest.{{cn|date=April 2024}}
Candles have been placed on doorknobs as good luck charms. Also in Göcsej, a piece of a burning candle was placed on the navel of a patient with a bloated stomach and covered with a glass cup, because according to folklore, its extinguishing flame sucked out the disease.{{cn|date=April 2024}}
The women of the village of Hercegszántó used to roll red, white and black yarn together with the candle. After the consecration of the candle, necklaces were made from the yarn and worn by the children until the first spring day. In the once Hungarian commune of Vinga, such necklaces were worn until Holy Saturday when they were burnt.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Gonoszűzéstől az időjós medvéig: népi hiedelmek Gyertyaszentelő Boldogasszony napján |url=https://ma7.sk/kavezo/gonoszuzestol-az-idojos-medveig-nepi-hiedelmek-gyertyaszentelo-boldogasszony-napjan |access-date=2024-04-28 |website=Gonoszűzéstől az időjós medvéig: népi hiedelmek Gyertyaszentelő Boldogasszony napján {{!}} ma7.sk |language=hu}}</ref>
==== Luxembourg ==== A descendant of an ancient torchlight procession, the current tradition of ''{{lang|lb|Liichtmëssdag}}'' in Luxembourg is a holiday centered around children. In small groups, they roam the streets in the afternoon or evening of 2 February, holding a lighted lantern or homemade wand, singing traditional songs at each house or store, especially "Léiwer Härgottsblieschen". In exchange for the music, they hope to receive a reward in the form of sweets or loose change (formerly bacon, peas, or biscuits).<ref name="duchy">{{Cite web |year=2013 |title=Feste und Traditionen in Luxemburg |url=https://luxembourg.public.lu/dam-assets/publications/a-propos-des-fetes-et-traditions-au-luxembourg/a-propos-des-fetes-et-traditions-au-luxembourg-de.pdf |access-date=2021-02-02 |website=Apropos |publisher=The official portal of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg |language=lb}}</ref>
==== Spain: Canary Islands ==== [[File:Virgendecandelariacamarin02.jpg|thumb|Virgin of Candelaria (patron of the Canary Islands). The Virgin of Candles is depicted in the manner of a Black Madonna.]]
''La Virgen de la Candelaria'' or Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria (Our Lady of Light or Our Lady of Candles), popularly called ''La Morenita'', celebrates the Virgin Mary on the island of Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands (Spain). Our Lady of Candelaria is the patron saint of the Canary Islands.
The Basilica of Candelaria in Candelaria, Tenerife is considered to be the main church dedicated to the Virgin Mary in Canary Islands and has been a minor basilica since 2011.<ref name="Multicultural America" /> Her feast is celebrated on 2 February (Candlemas, ''Fiesta de la Candelaria'') and 15 August as the patronal feast of the Canary Islands.
==== Spain: Catalonia ==== As in many regions in Spain, Catalonia has a weather proverb asserting that bad weather on Candlemas predicts good weather to come, and vice versa: ''Si la Candelera plora, l'hivern és fora; si la Candelera riu, l'hivern és viu'' ("If Candlemas cries, winter is gone; if Candlemas laughs, winter is alive")
Traditionally, Candlemas was identified in mountainous areas of Catalonia as the date that bears awake from hibernation: ''Per la Candelera, l'ós surt de l'ossera'' ("on Candlemas, the bear leaves its den"). Accordingly, bear festivals, where a man in a bear costume scares and annoys the populace, are celebrated in some areas of Catalonia around carnival. The original meaning was linked to the popular belief that they were held at Candlemas.<ref>{{cite web |title=Candlemas is our marmot day |url=https://www.barcelona.cat/culturapopular/en/noticia/infobarcelonaencandlemas-is-our-marmot-day_460575 |website=Ajuntament de Barcelona |access-date=19 June 2024 |language=en |date=28 January 2024}}</ref>
==== Sweden and Finland ==== [[File:Tuomas Mäkipää + Martin Dudley.jpg|thumb|The recessional during Candlemas in Mikael Agricola Church, Finland (2015)]] In Swedish and Finnish Lutheran churches, since 1774 Candlemas has been celebrated on the Sunday between 2 and 8 February inclusive. If this Sunday happens to be the last Sunday before Lent, i.e. Shrove Sunday or Quinquagesima ({{langx|sv|Fastlagssöndagen}}, {{langx|fi|Laskiaissunnuntai}}), Candlemas is celebrated one week earlier.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Oja |first=Heikki |url=https://almanakka.helsinki.fi/fi/julkaisut/aikakirja.html |title=Aikakirja 2007 |publisher=Almanach office of Helsinki University |year=2007 |isbn=978-952-10-3221-9 |location=Helsinki |pages=147 |language=fi}}</ref>
===Americas=== ==== Guatemala ==== The Virgin of Candles is the patron saint of Jacaltenango, and her feast marks the end of the Christmas season.<ref name="Multicultural America">{{Cite book |last=Bayor |first=Ronald H. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bJW79Rlu-igC&q=Virgin+of+Candelaria+is+the+patron+saint+of+%5B%5BJacaltenango%5D%5D&pg=PA814 |title=Multicultural America: An Encyclopedia of the Newest Americans |date=31 July 2011 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=9780313357862 |via=Google Books}}</ref>
==== Mexico ==== Dressing and adoration of the Christ Child and family meals with tamales on Candlemas are an important Mexican tradition.<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 January 2016 |title=What Is The True Meaning Of Día De La Candelaria? |url=http://www.latintimes.com/what-true-meaning-dia-de-la-candelaria-291917 |website=latintimes.com}}</ref> The customs of this feast is closely linked to that of the Epiphany, during which the tasting of the ''rosca de reyes'' (kings cake) will determine who is responsible for organizing ''La candelaria''. Whoever finds the ''muñeco'' (bean-shaped Christ Child) in the cake is named godparent of the Christ child, who will then dress the ''niño dios'' (an image of the Christ child in the form of a doll) on Candlemas with richly decorated clothes. This Christ child is then brought to the church to be blessed. Memories of these events are often passed down from generation to generation in families.<ref name="Amer1">{{Cite web |last=Long-Garcia |first=J. D. |date=February 1, 2019 |title=What is Candlemas—and who is making the tamales this year? |url=https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2019/02/01/what-candlemas-and-who-making-tamales-year |access-date=February 2, 2020 |website=americamagazine.org |publisher=America}}</ref>
Following this is the family meal. Whoever draws the bean on Epiphany must also prepare ''tamales'', believed to echo Mexico's pre-Christian past with its offerings of maize. The whole family is invited to this meal (often the same people as for the Rosca at Epiphany), which gives the festival an aspect of family and sharing.<ref name="Amer1" />
==== Peru ==== The Virgin of Candles is the patron saint of the city of Puno in Peru, held in the first fortnight of February each year.<ref name="peru.travel">{{cite web |title=The Festival of Virgen de la Candelaria, one of the most exciting celebrations |url=https://www.peru.travel/en/masperu/the-festival-of-virgen-de-la-candelaria-one-of-the-most-exciting-celebrations-in-peru |website=peru.travel | date=2020-07-16}}</ref> It is one of the largest festivals of culture, music, and dancing in Peru. In terms of the number of events related to the cultures of the Quechua and Aymara peoples and of the mestizos of the Altiplano, and also in terms of the number of people directly and indirectly involved in its realization, it stands with the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro and the Carnaval de Oruro in Bolivia as one of the three largest festivals in South America.
At the festival's core are music and dance performances organized by the ''Federación Regional de Folklore y Cultura de Puno'', consisting of more than 200 dances in more than 150 dance sets. These include "native dances" from the various communities in Puno and sets of dances organized in different quarters of the city, mostly those known as "costume dances". These performances directly involve 40,000 dancers and some 5,000 musicians and indirectly involve about 25,000 people, including directors, sponsors, embroiderers, and the makers of masks, clothing, boots, shoes, bells, and other items, as well as the bandsmen and staff. Some dance groups are linked to uniformed organizations.
==== Puerto Rico ==== This festivity officially finalizes the end of Christmas for Catholic Christians in Puerto Rico; the festivities include a procession where the statue of Nuestra Señora de Candelaria (Our Lady of the Light) is carried on the shoulders. Others follow with lit candles until they reach the church where a Mass is celebrated. In the evening, the festivities may continue with a giant bonfire and singing. Some families in the countryside burn their dried Christmas trees on this date as a culmination of the holiday season.<ref>{{cite news |last1=de la Vega |first1=Wallice J. |title=Traditional Candlemas celebration still alive in rural Puerto Rico |url=https://catholicphilly.com/2016/02/news/world-news/traditional-candlemas-celebration-still-alive-in-rural-puerto-rico/ |work=Catholic Philly |agency=Catholic News Service |date=4 February 2016 }}</ref>
===Asia=== ==== Philippines ==== [[File:Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria de Jaro 2022-07-05.jpg|thumb|Our Lady of Candles at Jaro Cathedral, Iloilo City, Philippines]] In the Philippines, Our Lady of Candles is the patroness of Western Visayas region.<ref>{{cite news |title=Jaro cathedral to be declared Marian shrine Feb. 2 |url=https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/245165/jaro-cathedral-to-be-declared-marian-shrine-feb-2/story/ |access-date=2 February 2024 |work=GMA Network |date=20 January 2012}}</ref><!--enshrined in Jaro Cathedral or the National Shrine of Our Lady of Candles under the Archdiocese of Jaro (with feast day every 2 February), and Barangay Tatala in Binangonan, Rizal, which celebrates her feast on the first Saturday of February.{{citation needed|date=January 2021}}--> In Silang, Cavite, her feast is observed locally as a triduum from 1 to 3 February, with 2 February as the actual feast day.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Humarang |first1=James |title=425-year-old church in Cavite releases heritage book |url=http://techandlifestylejournal.com/silang-parish-heritage-book/ |website=Tech and Lifestyle Journal |date=25 September 2020 |access-date=2 February 2024}}</ref>
For many Filipino Catholics, the Feast of Candelaria on 2 February marks the final close of the country's Christmas season, particularly in keeping with the practice of leaving nativity scenes displayed until this day.
== See also == * {{Portal inline|Christianity}} * Imbolc * Liturgical year * Groundhog day
== References == {{Reflist}}
== Bibliography == * {{Cite book |last=Braden|first=Mark|year=2020 |title=The Blessing of the Candles at Candlemas |url=https://www.gottesdienst.org/gottesblog/2020/1/30/the-blessing-of-the-candles-at-candlemas |language=en |publisher=Gottesdienst: The Journal of Lutheran Liturgy|access-date=2 February 2026 }} * {{Cite book |last1=Mergnac |first1=Marie-Odile |title=Proverbes et dictons de toujours |last2=Köhler |first2=Thomas |publisher=Archives et cultures |year=2008 |location=Paris |language=fr}} * {{Cite book |last=Walter |first=Philippe |year=1989 |title=La Mémoire du temps. Fêtes et calendriers de Chrétien de Troyes à la Mort Artur |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3FJcAAAAMAAJ |language=fr |location=Paris |publisher=Champion |isbn=9782051010337}} * {{Cite book |last=Walter |first=Philippe |year=2011 |title=Mythologie chrétienne |url=http://www.editions-imago.fr/listeauteur.php?recordID=59 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191220184408/http://www.editions-imago.fr/listeauteur.php?recordID=59 |archive-date=20 December 2019 |url-status=dead |language=fr |publisher=Imago |access-date=13 October 2019 }}
{{Liturgical year of the Catholic Church}} {{Authority control}}
Category:Epiphany (holiday) Category:Christian processions Category:February observances Category:Groundhog Day Category:Pancakes Category:Great Feasts of the Orthodox Church