DIOCESAN NEWS
04/06/07
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Natchez couple make, decorate Easter candle
By Fr. David O’Connor
       NATCHEZ — John and Doris Kerwin, members of St. Mary Basilica Parish, consider it a privilege to have been asked to make the Paschal (Easter) candle for their parish. They have done this for three years.
       John, with the help of members of the local council of the Knights of Columbus, has the responsibility of preparing the wax formula and pouring it into the mold, and seeing to it that the wick is the correct material and thickness.
       Doris, a career artist, takes over at this stage with her design and decorations for the candle. “Although I have been doing this now for three years, I never do it the same as the previous year,” she said.
       “This year I have placed the design 22 inches from the top, so that as the candle burns, the design remains complete,” she explained. “I have given the candle a marble-color and in the center I painted a cross in sky-blue color to reflect the traditional color associated with        Mary. This is bordered in gold, and the numerals for 2007 are in red.
       “The alpha and omega symbols are also in red,” she said. Below this central decoration are images of the four evangelists – Matthew, Mark, Luke and John – and of Mary, under whose patronage the basilica is dedicated. The blue lines represent the Mississippi River and the sacrament of baptism. Above the central decoration on the candle is a representation of the crown of thorns,” Doris said.
       The Natchez Easter candle is five feet long and has a diameter of four inches. “At the beginning we experimented with the amount of bees’ wax, the thickness and material of the wick, and the chemicals that determine the texture of the candle,” John Kerwin explained. “I think we have it right, and when we pass on the responsibility for making the Easter candle in the future, we will pass on the recipe for doing this.”
       The tradition of making the Easter candle at St. Mary Basilica can be traced to 1987 when Father David O’Connor, during his first time as pastor of the parish, asked Henry        Foggo – then chairman of the Liturgy Commission – to experiment with him in making a candle proportioned to the size and height of the sanctuary area.
       “We made mistakes at the beginning,” Father O’Connor said, “but within two years we had stumbled on a good formula.”
       Foggo, with the help of members of the Knights of Columbus continued the practice until his death in the mid ‘90s, and the tradition was continued by his son, Henry Foggo III, until he moved away from Natchez and the Kerwins took responsibility three years ago.

 

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