Medellín (Colombia), 12/13/2020, Sr. Rosemary Castañeda.- Every year on December 7, at night, all of us in Colombia go out to light "little candles" at the door of our houses and fill the streets with light. The night of "las Velitas" (the candles) means the radiance that God offered to the Virgin Mary and her acceptance of that divine intervention.
Noche de "las velitas"
Mary, you are the Mother of Light, Lamp that is lit,
Luminous fire that offers Jesus!
It is the feast of an innocent beauty, pure and simple light, the irresolute humility of a little flame that competes with the splendors of our artificial lights, but which has the extraordinary power to give us back the joyful spirit of the small, discreet, the essential and at the same time of the most beautiful: our faith.
The candles are a distant replica of some beautiful signs that unite us to the Hebrew tradition who commemorate the opening of the Second Temple with lights. The Janucá: means light that reaches to the hearts of all and lights up in every life a light of hope, blessing, and peace. For Hebrews this will be around December 10 in the year 2020.
In the midst of this time marked by the pain of the pandemic, we have come to honor the Lord of glory, light of light and to remember the goodness of God in this humble sign of the lights that are lit on the vigil of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.
In Ephesus, the city to which St. Paul addressed his letter and which was the center of so many events in the New Testament, during the year 431, the Ecumenical Council was held in Ephesus, in which the dogma of the Divine Motherhood of Mary was proclaimed among many very important definitions, stating that Blessed Virgin Mary is the mother of God and that in giving birth to the Savior, true God and true man, she must be honored with special affection by the Church with this unique and glorious title.
The inhabitants of Ephesus, in order to encourage the Bishops of the Council and to make their voice heard lit lights in their houses indicating their devotion to the revealed truth of the dogma where Mary is proclaimed as the Mother of God. This assures the dedication of the People of God to the definitions of the dogmas of the Church.
Filling the city with lights of the faithful, there resounds the proclamation of the dogma of the Divine Motherhood.
The faithful Catholics especially in Spain and Latin America, following the custom of the ancient Hebrews, lights their candles on December 7 to proclaim their faith on the vigil of the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception: