The traditional advent wreath has four candles, one for each Sunday in Advent, three purple and one pink. Some more modern traditions (commonly Lutherans) use advent wreaths with four blue candles. If they are all the same color, it doesn't matter what order you light them in, so I presume you are asking about the tradional pink/purple candles. The candle opposite the pink candle is lit first, on the first Sunday of Advent (or the vigil service on the Saturday night before). There's no real rule about going clockwise or counter clockwise, as far as I know, but the second Sunday means lighting the first candle as well as a second purple one. On the third Sunday the pink candle is lit along with the previous two purple ones. On the fourth Sunday all four candles are lit. Many congregations and families also use a white candle in the center to represent Christ; this is lit on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
A violet candle is lit on each of the first two Sundays of Advent, the pink candle on the third Sunday, the last violet candle on the fourth Sunday, and the white one on Christmas.
The first candle is lit on the first Sunday of Advent. Each succeeding Sunday an additional candle is lit until all four are lit on the forth Sunday of Advent.
There are no "rules" regarding the placement of the Advent Wreath; however, it should be placed in a prominent place so it can be easily lit.
The second candle in the Advent wreath represents peace. It is traditionally lit on the second Sunday of Advent to symbolize the peace that Jesus brought to the world through his birth.
There are typically four candles on the outside of an advent wreath, with an additional candle in the center that is lit on Christmas Day.
It is an advent wreath. Each Sunday before Christmas a candle on the wreath is lit to celebrate the time leading up to Christmas.
The white candle in the center of the wreath is the 5th candle - that is lit on Christmas or Christmas eve at Mass.Roman Catholic AnswerTechnically the Advent wreath doesn't have a fifth candle. A fifth candle is making into something other than an Advent wreath. Advent has four weeks, and there is a candle for each week. The Advent wreath should be taken down before the Christmas midnight Mass begins. I think the "fifth candle" is some modern invention that makes no sense.
The Advent Wreath is put up on the first Sunday of Advent.
The third candle on the Advent wreath is for joy. It is lit on what is known as Gaudete Sunday, and that means joy.
On each of the four Sundays before Christmas (December 24th), one more candle of the Adventskranz (advent wreath) is lit. So on first Sunday in Advent it's one candle, second two candles etc.
Each candle on an Advent wreath represents one of the Sundays of Advent. A candle is lighted at the beginning of Mass on that Sunday. An Advent wreath in the home is lite for whatever reason that person has an Advent wreath. They are not an official liturgical thing.
It means that someone is trying to get inventive in decorating his Advent wreath.
An Advent wreath is a symbol of the four weeks of Advent passing. You light a candle each week on Sunday and the fifth candle is lit on Christmas Day. The candles represent the spiritual preparation to celebrate the birth of Jesus.