Шілтер шамдары: Христиан дініндегі дұға тілеу рәсімі

Type of votive offering in Christianity

A votive candle or prayer candle is a small candle, typically white or beeswax yellow, intended to be burnt as a votive offering in an act of Christian prayer, especially within the Anglican, Lutheran, and Roman Catholic Christian denominations, among others. In Christianity, votive candles are commonplace in many churches, as well as home altars, and symbolize the "prayers the worshipper is offering for him or herself, or for other people." Candles used may vary from long, taper type candles to tealight candles. Tealight candles are either placed in holders or just on a platform in front of the statue. Long candles may be placed in a special holder.

In the Eastern Orthodox Church, candles are lit before icons, usually of Jesus Christ or the Theotokos. Usually Orthodox churches only use long, thin candles. These are usually placed in round containers, having either various sockets to hold the candles, or in a container filled with sand in which the worshipers place their candles. Orthodox churches will usually have a separate place to put candles lit for the departed; Anglican and Roman Catholic churches make no such distinction.

Lutheran churches may use votive candles which may be lit at home, as a part of personal or family devotions, or at the church. They are usually lit on the altar rails, or in front of the altar cross. They are also often lit during the liturgy of Good Friday. Within the Nordic Lutheran churches of Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Finland, all High Church Lutheran denominations, the use of votive candles is commonplace and most, if not all, churches and chapels will have a votive candle holder (Swedish: Ljusbärare). These are somewhat similar to the Eastern Orthodox type, usually a round metal frame with several sockets surrounding a central, larger candle on which to light the votive candles. As in Eastern Orthodox Churches, Nordic Lutheran votive candles are also long and thin.

In the United Methodist Church, those churches which worship in the High Church tradition make use of votive candles. During the liturgical celebration of Allhallowtide, especially on All Saints' Day (All Hallows' Day), votive candles are lit and a prayer is said for each person of the congregation who has died that year.

In the 2010s, votive candles have been sold with celebrities or political figures fashioned to look like saints. Some secular subjects of votive candles include Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Jonathan Van Ness. In 2019, Vox wrote that "by replacing a saint with a celebrity that is outright silly (like Steve Buscemi or Harambe the gorilla), you are dismissing the function of the prayer candle altogether." Bill Donohue of the Catholic League said he didn't find the candles offensive. "By definition, a celebrity doesn't need a PR presence, so the likely motivating force is narcissism," he says. "By ripping off Catholic iconography, these celebs pay a backhanded compliment to the Catholic Church in their quest for notoriety."