Shower candle

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Black shower candle from the pilgrimage basilica Maria Absam

Shower candles , also known as weather candles or thunderstorm candles , are blessed candles that are lit for prayer in custom in order to prevent damage and lightning strikes when storms are approaching. Today the custom is mainly widespread in the foothills of the Alps and the Alps.

There are both black and white weather candles, depending on local custom. Sometimes both variants are offered in one place and with the same images in the devotional shop. The candles are often sold at places of pilgrimage and are provided with an image of the respective miraculous image (often the Mother of God or St. Anna ) or images of the place of pilgrimage, occasionally with invocations of certain saints or parts of the weather blessing . In addition, simple candles are also used.

historical development

The custom of lighting shower candles or weather candles probably originated from the dispensation of the weather blessing. This is usually donated, especially in rural areas, between the earlier Feast of the Finding of the Cross (May 3rd) and the Feast of Exaltation of the Cross (September 14th) at the end of Holy Mass .

The first mention of the shower candles in church documents can be found for the year 1497 and again in 1512, when a church in Ingolstadt was bought from the local dealer wax "zu den Schauerkertzen". 1565 is for the feast of hll. Martyrs John and Paul on June 26th demonstrated the custom of a cross procession with five candles from Landshut to Geisenhausen.

Large numbers of donated candles have been preserved at several pilgrimage sites, some of which were as heavy as Easter candles . A larger collection of candles has been preserved in Andechs Monastery . Because of their external similarity to other candles that were donated ex voto , i.e. as a votive gift, it is no longer possible to determine whether or not it is a weather candle. There is a larger collection of candles in Andechs Monastery. From the number of 230 candles alone, it is concluded that there must also be weather candles among them. These shower candles donated ex voto remained in the churches; it was sometimes customary to reward the sexton with a special allowance for lighting them.

In addition to these mostly white, ex voto donated large candles, smaller black weather candles for domestic use were established between the 16th and 18th centuries. B. in Walldürn , Andechs , Vierzehnheiligen or Altötting are available. Such weather or shower candles are first mentioned in church documents in 1675. To this day, weather and shower candles are set up in some Catholic households in the Herrgottswinkel or next to the holy water font. When a heavy thunderstorm, hailstorm, storm or other impending weather conditions are approaching, the candle is lit and a supplication is said. By invoking God and the saints, people, animals, house and yard were to be protected from damage by the storm, especially lightning.

The color of black shower candles originally came from the fact that they were made from drip wax collected by the sexton and the remains of wax paintings; the wax was therefore colored black by the addition of candle soot. While a Landshut administrative act from the year 1700 forbade the imitation of weather candles made of wax that did not come from the memorial chapel there, the production of Altötting weather candles from purchased black wax had established itself in 1785, since the drip wax from the churches required weather candles could not cover.

Candle consecration

Shower or weather candles are usually blessed with other candles at the candlestick consecration for Candlemas ; however, the blessing can also be given at any other time by a priest or deacon .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Volk und Volkstum, Jahrbuch zur Volkskunde Vol. 2, Georg Schreiber, Hrsg., P. 89
  2. ↑ Volk und Volkstum, Jahrbuch zur Volkskunde Bd. 2, Georg Schreiber, Hrsg., S. 89/90
  3. ↑ Volk und Volkstum, Jahrbuch zur Volkskunde Vol. 2, Georg Schreiber, Ed., P. 91
  4. ↑ Volk und Volkstum, Jahrbuch zur Volkskunde Vol. 2, Georg Schreiber, Hrsg., P. 90/91
  5. ↑ http://www.erzabtei-beuron.de/schott/proprium/Februar02.htm

Web links

literature

  • Monika Weyer, Rosa Rosinski, Verena Burhenne: Weather: bewitched, interpreted, explored. Catalog for the traveling exhibition of the same name by the Westphalian Museum Office (LWL) in collaboration with the Bielefeld Farmhouse Museum , Regional Association Westphalia-Lippe; Edition: 1 (May 21, 2006) ISBN 3927204641