Candlemas, between religion and popular beliefs
Candlemas is celebrated on 2 February, which for religion is the anniversary of Jesus' presentation in the Temple, forty days after his birth. In churches, candles are blessed as a symbol of Jesus enlightening people.
It is the first journey for Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem, as tradition dictates, and every woman must present herself to the Temple forty days after birth for the purification and presentation of the first-born to God.
When Joseph and Mary bring Jesus to the Temple the evangelist introduces us to the elders Simeon and Anna, who recognise in the child the Saviour. In particular, the evangelist reports the words, full of astonishment and emotion, of Simeon, which the liturgy of the Church has sung every day in the Compline prayer: ‘Now let your servant go in peace, O Lord, according to your Word, for my eyes have seen your salvation, prepared by you before all peoples: light to enlighten the nations and glory of your people Israel’.
On 2 February in particular, candles are blessed in churches, but this custom dates back to earlier times. The festival of lights originated in the East called Ipapante, i.e. meeting. Then it spread to the West from Rome to Gaul, with a procession of candles that gave the feast its name, Candlemas. In the Celtic tradition is Imbolc, the festival of light or rain, a kind of rebirth that heralds the coming out of winter.
There are many proverbs and beliefs about Candlemas that vary from region to region. For example, in Piedmont it is called Bear Day. Legend has it that on 2 February, the bear wakes up from hibernation and emerges from its den. If winter is over he wakes up for good, if he finds cold and snow he goes back into hibernation for a while longer.
Another proverb says: by Candlemas if it rains and snows we are out of winter, sunshine we are always in the middle of winter. That is, if it rains and is cold on Candlemas day, winter is over; if, on the other hand, it is sunny, it means that winter will still be long. However, these beliefs vary from area to area in Italy. In fact, in other regions the saying is practically the opposite.
In France, crepes were offered on Candlemas because they were a symbol of friendship and sharecroppers offered them on this day to their masters as a symbol of trust. The recipes were made in great secrecy the day before because the dough had to rest overnight. Tradition has it that one has to make a wish and have a gold coin in one hand while holding the handle of the frying pan with the other and blowing the crepes without dropping it.
The Candlemas tradition is also found in Canada and the USA and is called Groundhog Day.
