This is the most awkward thing for me. Are we actually supposed to kiss the priest’s hand? I’m a lip gloss wearer. I don’t think my priest would have appreciated shimmery pink goo on his hand.
We did as well, though we kissed the priest’s hand first.
Now knowing this, perhaps you could merely forgo the lip gloss on occasions where such a practice exists?
I view the kissing of the hand and candles as so wrapped up in the symbolism of the occasion, that I feel it can only be obvious if viewed at the macro level with awareness of the microscopic detail of the specific act.
In other words: consider who and what the priest represents; the candle and what it represents: all parts including wax, wick, and flame; Mary, and what she represents and was and is; etcetera. Now apply this to the overall picture.
For the priest represents Christ immediately in our locality, but he also represents the Bishop, who represents the Pope, who represents Christ. So, when we kiss the Bishop’s ring, we are kissing it in recognition of that perfect and holy office, and not particularly the man; when we do that, we recognize the Pope who conferred, in the capacity of an office, the authority of that Bishop. The Pope, in a position, and visible office, conferred by Christ on St. Peter, occupies this office through Apostolic succession. As such, that priest is an appointed minister of Christ in the chain of subsidiarity. So, when kissing the priest’s hand, we are symbolizing the effect of kissing Christ’s hand; by kissing the candles, we are symbolizing the effect of Mary’s purification, though entirely in the rubrics of Jewish custom- a mere reaffirmation of her devotion to God. Without the stain of sin, Mary was already pure, though she went through the procedure just as Christ went through baptism. It is the perfection of the plan of God in His condescension towards man, and man’s ascension towards God. In kissing the candles, we are kissing the representation of the Blessed Virgin made pure in the creative plan of God- just like the bees, in their work, make pure wax. Christ is the light of our soul, the wick. Without the purity of the wax keeping the flame, the wick would quickly burn itself out, for it depends on its own ability. This is why devotion to Our Lady is paramount! She keeps us from burning ourselves out in the purifying presence of Christ. She provides an outlet for continual burning. She is the advocate which keeps our flame burning slowly, so it may provide the light for which length it was created.
Nothing the Church does is an accident. No symbolism is meaningless, though often lost on those not willing to consider it.
