Electronic Votive Candles?

[Bklynguy]

I wasn’t sure if this was the right forum for this, but here goes my question…

I work in a parish office and found out that our priest is possibly implementing an electronic votive candle system and has started collecting donations for it. While normally I do not question my priest’s decisions on liturgical issues, I was wondering if it is liturgically sound to use electronic candles for votive candles.

Our parish will not be switching to all electronic candles to use during Mass, just for the votive candles. The reasoning I have heard is because of wax issues, etc.

If I remember correctly from a theology class I had last year, real candles (with a certain amount of beeswax) must be used for Mass. But I just wasn’t sure if that also applies to votive candles.

Thank you for your answers ahead of time. I greatly appreciate it.

My Parish has been using electric votive candles for quite a few years now. They still, of course, use candles in candlesticks at Mass. But the votive candles are electronic. Interestingly enough, they still ask for the same offering for the votive candles even though they don’t have to purchase candles and their insurance probably went down considerably. I don’t begrudge them, though, as I know it is expensive to run a Parish, especially when attendance at Mass is declining.

 

[Tigg]

I almost consider electric votive candles in the same vein as the big screen monitors placed above and to the side of the sanctuary at some parishes which default to a peaceful mountain scene with a babbling brook running in the foreground. In other words…secular and profane since the scene is similar to one I often have on my desktop…just saying’