Advent candles serve as a cherished tradition, marking the passage of the four weeks leading up to Christmas. This practice provides a visual representation of anticipation and hope for Christ’s arrival. The candles, often arranged in a wreath, help focus reflection during this important liturgical season.
The Specific Colors and Their Meanings
Three Advent candles are typically purple, a color symbolic within Christian traditions. Purple signifies prayer, penance, and spiritual preparation, aligning with Advent’s reflective nature. This color also represents the royalty and kingship of Christ, emphasizing his divine status. Purple candles are associated with themes such as hope, peace, and love.
One candle, pink or rose-colored, is lit on the third Sunday of Advent, known as Gaudete Sunday, from the Latin word meaning “rejoice”. The pink candle symbolizes joy and marks a joyful pause in Advent’s more penitential aspects, celebrating Christmas’s nearing arrival. It reminds believers to rejoice in the promise of Christ’s coming.
Some traditions incorporate a white fifth candle, placed in the center of the Advent wreath. This central candle is known as the “Christ candle”. White symbolizes purity, light, and holiness, representing Jesus’ sinless nature and his role as the light of the world. Its placement and color underscore Advent’s culmination as the season transitions into Christmas celebration.
Lighting the Advent Candles
Advent candles are arranged within an evergreen wreath, a circular shape symbolizing God’s unending love and eternal life. The evergreens represent continuous life and the hope of eternal life through Christ. This arrangement provides a visual framework for the weekly lighting ceremony.
The lighting of the candles follows a sequence throughout the four Sundays of Advent. On the first Sunday, one purple candle is lit. On each subsequent Sunday, a new candle is lit, along with previous ones. The pink candle is lit on the third Sunday, Gaudete Sunday, to signify joy. This progressive lighting signifies increasing light and hope as Christmas draws nearer.
If a white Christ candle is part of the tradition, it is lit on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. This final lighting marks the fulfillment of Advent’s anticipation, celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, the light of the world. The gradual illumination of the wreath, culminating in the Christ candle, visually represents the journey from expectation to celebration.