What is Candlemas?

"The Presentation at the Temple" by Fra Beata Angelico (1442)

Luke's gospel tells us that Mary and Joseph presented Jesus at the temple in Jerusalem 40 days after he was born. Actually, Luke doesn't give us the exact day (he just says "When the time came"), but the book of Leviticus says that this event should happen 33 days following a male child's circumcision. If we mark the birth of Jesus on December 25, then his eighth-day circumcision would be December 1, and 33 days after that is February 2.

There were two reasons to bring Jesus to the temple that day -- for Mary to be purified after childbirth, and to dedicate the child to the Lord. This is the moment when Luke says that both Simeon and Anna met Jesus, each proclaiming their respective prophesies and blessings over him. Simeon's words are preserved as the "Nunc Dimittis" meaning "Now dismiss"; he could now depart this world, having seen the Messiah with his own eyes.

Some Christian churches have a worship service on February 2 to commemorate these events. Sometimes this service is called "The Presentation of our Lord" or "Feast of the Purification." Alternatively, it is also known as Candlemas, because at some point in the history of the church this became the day when the entire stock of candles for the coming year was blessed and dedicated. Clearly there is a connection among several Epiphany-related themes: Christ is the light of the world, the role of candles in lighting the worship space, and the desire for all peoples to see God in Christ.

Here is a setting of the Nunc Dimittis, composed by William Byrd (1540-1623), and a prayer from the Book of Common Prayer for the Feast of the Presentation:

Almighty and everliving God,

we humbly pray that, as your only-begotten Son was this day

presented in the temple, so we may be presented to  you

with pure and clean hearts by Jesus Christ our Lord;

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen

By the way, Candlemas is a traditional day for taking down Christmas decorations, at least in some parts of the world. In addition, most Americans know February 2 as Groundhog Day. I have not been able to locate a link between these two celebrations, although this Wikipedia page seems to hint at the possibility of a common origin: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weather_lore#February.