The Unity CandleThe Unity Candle symbolizes the merger of two families into one new family. The two side taper candles represent the bride and groom. Before or during the ceremony, the bride's family or parents light one of the tapers and the groom's family lights the other. After the wedding vows, the bride takes the flame from her family's candle and the groom from his, and together they light a single candle. When the two flames unite, then the two become one and can no longer be separated. If there are children, you can have a candle made with extra wicks to allow them to participate in this part of the ceremony. This is a wonderful wedding custom to symbolize the blending of the new family. The Marriage Cup, is another ceremony that symbolizes the blending of two families into one. In this ceremony, the bride's and groom's family each fill a glass with wine. The couple then fills a third glass by pouring wine from the other two glasses. The couple then drinks the wine from the glass with the mingled wine. Another candle lighting ceremony used in weddings today to symbolize the blending of the families, is the candlelight ceremony. This ceremony is mainly used in night weddings for a dramatic effect. The couple may light their mother's and father's candles and then watch as their parents pass the light on to their families and guests until the church is shimmering with candlelight.
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The two tapers can be blown out to signify the start of your new life together or they can continue to burn to signify lasting family ties.