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Does that word "Candlemas" ring a bell?
It does for me.
I grew up in a parish that still retained some of the old German tone that it had at its founding in the 19th century.
Of all the immigrant groups that expanded and filled our churches, seminaries, and convents starting about a hundred years ago, the Germans had the most "liturgical" tradition. The Irish never had the chance to practice their Faith 'above ground' for centuries; and Italian Catholicism featured more popular 'festas' of Saints and Our Lady. In my home parish we still had outdoor Corpus Christi processions and candles were blessed on this day. The Dominican Sisters who taught us at the parochial school (themselves a German congregation originally ) taught us the traditional English name for the "Purification of Our Lady": Candlemas. The pre-Reformation English language noted in this term the ancient custom of the blessing of candles on this day and named "the Candle Mass" shortened to "Candlemas".
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