Hot Wax! The candle has been poured

After a few false starts, this years candle has been poured. The first picture (above) shows the burners with the pouring pitchers. Solid wax is put into the pitchers. The pitchers are then placed in a pot of hot water (think double boiler). The wax is heated up to about 170 degrees. Then the wax is poured into a warm mold. The Paschal Candle requires two pitchers worth of wax.


















The second picture shows the mold with the hot liquid wax. The mold is actual a clear plastic tube which is really neat because it means you can see the wax as it is cooling. What looks like cloudyness at the bottom of the mold is actually the cooling white wax. Now it is important to "poke" the candle and repour hot wax into the candle as the wax will shrink as it cools.

Say a few prayers that the candle will slip right out of the mold. Hopefully... tomorrow.

Where's the candle?

Well... have a little patience. Roger is still working on the candle. Maybe tomorrow.

The Easter Vigil begins in silence and in darkness. A fire is struck and blessed. The Easter candle is lit from the fire and the fire is spread throughout the assembly, as the candle is processed to the front amid the the acclamation that grows louder:
Light of Christ! Thanks be to God!

The following is a portion of the Eucharistic Prayer that is proclaimed before the Easter light.

Accept this Easter candle,
a flame divided but undimmed,
a pillar of fire that glows to the honor of God.

Let it mingle with the lights of heaven
and continue bravely burning
to dispel the darkness of this night!

May the morning Star which never sets
find this flame still burning:
Christ, that Morning Star, who came back from the dead,
and shed his peaceful light on us all,
your Son who lives and reigns for ever and ever.
Amen.

2006 Paschal Candle

With one year under my belt, when it came time to design the 2006 Paschal Candle I felt up for a little more of a challenge. Somewhere along the line a very stylized version of the St. Juan Diego icon was created for use by the parish (letterhead, envelopes, etc). See below. I added color to this logo and thought that might make a nice design for the candle. The design can be easily transferred onto the candle. Since the wax is soft you can leave a slight impression in the wax and you just have to paint inside the lines. I put the printed design over the candle and trace the outline with a shape pointed instrument. I use an embossing tool. It works great. Once you paint the design you can no longer see the trace lines. You may have noticed the Greek letters - Alpha and Omega on both candles. I will explain the meaning of these symbols next week... stay tuned!

The pouring of this year's candle will probably take place this Saturday. If you want to see pictures of the pouring be sure to check back.

Why do we need such a special candle at the Easter Vigil?

Here is what the US Council of Catholic Bishops has to say about the particulars of the Easter Candle (it is also called the Paschal Candle).

What considerations should be given for the paschal candle used at the Easter Vigil?
This candle should be made of wax, never be artificial, be replaced each year, be only one in number, and be of sufficiently large size that it may convey the truth that Christ is the light of the world. The paschal candle is the symbol of the light of Christ, rising in glory, scattering the darkness of our hearts and minds. Above all, the paschal candle should be a genuine candle, the pre-eminent symbol of the light of Christ. Choice of size, design, and color should be made in relationship to the sanctuary in which it will be placed.
http://www.usccb.org/liturgy/triduumquestions.shtml

Our candles have been made out of 66% beeswax and 33% soy wax blend and is definitely 'sufficiently large'. How large you might ask? They are 4 ft in length and 2.5 inches in diameter. The candle weighs in at about 9 pounds and if burned continuously it could burn for over 36 hours! How is such a large candle made? Check in tomorrow for more about how Roger is able to make such a huge candle.

2005 Paschal Candle

Here is a better picture of the design from 2005. Another special thing we do at St. Juan Diego, is to have candles for the RCIA Elect and Candidates that are made from the same wax and have a similar design.

The Story of the Paschal Candles at St. Juan Diego

As some of you may know, Roger and I create the Paschal Candle used at St. Juan Diego Church each year. This is a very collaborative effort for us and I thought some might be interested in the whole process of how the candle is created and where the design comes from. You will not find another candle like ours as it is truly one of a kind in its design. Roger is responsible for making the candle and I come up with the design and then we work together to bring that design to life. That is what we are doing... bringing the light to life.

Over the next few days I will chronicle the first 4 Paschal Candles (2005-2008). I will also go into some more detail about the inspiration for this year's candle (hint: this is the pilgrimage blog).

The design for the first year's candle (2005) was a simple painted cross with blue bands. I found this image out in google land and really liked it. This was the first year for us to make the candle so to some degree we were in uncharted water and were happy that it turned out as well as it did. I used acrylic paint with a candle medium mixed in about 50-50. Painting on a waxy surface is not the easiest thing to do. The wax tends to resist the paint. Painting intricate details would be near impossible so the design needs to be somewhat simple... until I master the technique.

Here is a picture of the first paschal candle we ever made. That is Fr. Adam Gonzales, OCD (then Brother Adam) holding the candle before it is about to be dipped into the baptismal pool.