Today is Candlemas. This often forgotten festival was once one of the most important holy days in all Christendom.
Candlemas, also known as the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ, the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or the Feast of the Holy Encounter, commemorates the presentation of Jesus at the Temple by Joseph and Mary. It is based upon the account of the presentation of Jesus in Luke 2:22–40.
The feast falls on 2nd February, which is traditionally the 40th day of and the conclusion of the Christmas–Epiphany season.
While it is customary for Christians in some countries to remove their Christmas decorations on Twelfth Night (Epiphany Eve), those in other Christian countries historically remove them after Candlemas. On Candlemas, many Christians (especially Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, and some mainline Protestant denominations including Lutherans, Anglicans and Methodists) also take their candles to their local church, where they are blessed and then used for the rest of the year. These blessed candles serve as a symbol of Jesus Christ, who is referred to as the Light of the World.