The candles and the church

The Heilige Lodewijkkerk is located on the Steenschuur street. It is a beautiful little church, supported by white walls and a sober decor. This creates a calm atmosphere, offset by the decadence of a beautiful shrine at the front of the church. At the back of the church there is a space devoted to some of the saints of the Catholic church. It shows several small statues of these saints and some burning candles in front of them. These candles are called votive candles and come from an age-old tradition within the Christian church.

Saint Jerome was the first church father who wrote about this tradition. In 420 AD he wrote in his Contra Vigilantium that already in the year 200 AD, people were lighting candles next to the tombs of saints and martyrs. In the following centuries such candles also appeared near statues and relics of saints and martyrs, resulting in a widespread tradition. According to Jerome this tradition was innocent as long as people were burning their candles for Christian saints rather than pagan gods. With him accepting this tradition, the votive candles became an officially recognized Christian tradition.

Currently votive candles are still a widespread phenomenon. Everyday people light candles in Catholic (and in an increasing amount of Protestant) churches to give thanks to God. Moreover, many people use votive candles to celebrate a success, honor the dead or pray for those who are going through a difficult period in their life. Among them is Eliza. She often lights a candle, thinking of loved ones in need of support.