The word ‘kandilo’ comes from the Latin candela, which means ‘candle.’ In the Orthodox Church, the oil lamp is placed in front of the holy icons. The oil lamp placed on the Holy Table in the altar is kept burning continuously and is called the “unextinguished” lamp.
An oil lamp is also placed before the home iconostasis and, according to Orthodox tradition, is lit every day. This is a custom rich in Christian symbolism, representing the light of Christ, which illuminates every person, warms the soul, strengthens hope, and dispels the endless hours of loneliness.
Lighting the oil lamp symbolizes offering our respect and honor to God and His saints as a sacrifice. It also represents the light of Christ, which enlightens everyone, and reminds us of the Lord’s command that we, as Christians, must be the light of the world.
The oil used in our lamps is a symbol of God’s mercy. As St. Symeon of Thessalonica writes, it reminds us of “God’s mercy,” which was manifested when the dove returned to Noah’s ark with an olive branch in its beak, signifying the end of the flood; or when Christ, praying fervently, watered the olive trees with His drops of sweat as He knelt beneath their branches in that agonizing night in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Of course, we all know that the inner, spiritual light, which is immaterial and far more sublime, is incomparable to material light.
The oil symbolizes God’s infinite mercy, but the oil lamps also represent the Church, which transmits this enlightening grace of God.
The oil lamps symbolize the saints who have been illumined by the light of Christ, according to the Lord’s words: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven!” (Matthew 5:16).
There are many reasons why we light the oil lamp, such as:
- To remind us of the necessity of prayer;
- To illuminate the holy icons and drive away the forces of darkness;
- To remind us that Christ is the only true Light, and faith in Him is light;
- To remind us that our lives must be radiant;
- To remind us that just as the oil lamp needs our hand to light it, so too does the soul need God’s hand, His grace;
- To remind us that our will must burn, and our love for God and others must be fervent and sacrificial.
Once, our Lord Jesus Christ prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, and today, the church with its many oil lamps becomes a new Gethsemane, where the oil reminds us of God’s mercy, and the flame – of the light in our lives, which should be pure and bright.
The shedding of light in the church symbolizes the Divine Light of God’s presence, which illuminates the hearts of all Christians, not just the newly baptized. The Lord revealed this great truth about Himself with the following words: “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12).
He is the light not only because of His luminous teaching but primarily because of His radiant presence. This is confirmed, above all, by His miraculous Transfiguration: “His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light” (Matthew 17:2).
In the Nicene Creed, the Son of God is referred to as “Light of Light.” In the evening service, the Church hymnographer also praises the Lord as “O Gentle Light.” And Christians, through the holy mysteries of the Church and their spiritual efforts, can receive the light of the grace of the Holy Spirit and radiate it in their lives.
The Lord, teaching His disciples in the Sermon on the Mount, said: “You are the light of the world… Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven!” (Matthew 5:14,16).
The saints in eternal life will become like the Lord and will become “gods by grace.” The Lord clearly tells us this through His prophetic words: “Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear!” (Matthew 13:43).
