How to light the Advent wreath
An Advent wreath is a circle of evergreen branches holding four candles, often with a fifth white candle in the middle. Many see the unbroken circle as a picture of God's love that has no end, and the light grows each week as Christmas gets closer. Christians have lit wreaths like this in homes and churches since the 1800s. Here's the simple way to do it at home.
- 1
Set it up before the first Sunday
Four candles in a ring, three purple and one pink, plus a white one in the center if you like. Where a church uses blue, all four candles are usually blue. A plate with candles on it works fine. In 2026, have it ready by Sunday, November 29.
- 2
Turn the lights down
Gather everyone, dim the room and give the kids a minute to settle.
- 3
Read the verse
One person reads that week's short reading. It's printed under each candle below.
- 4
Light the candles
Relight the candles from earlier weeks first, then the new one. Let someone different light it each week.
- 5
Pray
Read the lighting prayer, or let a child say the one-line version. Everyone says "Amen."
- 6
Sit in the light for a minute
Sing a verse of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," talk about the question for the week or just eat dinner by candlelight.
- 7
Blow them out safely
Never leave the wreath burning in an empty room, and keep dry greenery away from the flames.
This page is for the candle lighting itself. For a short prayer for every day from November 29 to Christmas Eve, and prayers for small groups and kids, see our full guide to Advent prayers.
The Advent candles at a glance
The order most families and many churches follow, with the 2026 dates.
- Week 1, Sunday, November 29: hope. Purple or blue. Also called the Prophecy (or Prophets') candle.
- Week 2, Sunday, December 6: peace. Purple or blue. Also called the Bethlehem candle.
- Week 3, Sunday, December 13: joy. Pink or rose, lit on Gaudete Sunday. Also called the Shepherds' candle.
- Week 4, Sunday, December 20: love. Purple or blue. Also called the Angels' candle.
- Christmas Eve, Thursday, December 24, or Christmas Day: the Christ candle. White, in the center.
Your church may do it differently
Catholic parishes usually keep three purple candles and one rose, with no official theme for each week, though plenty of Catholic homes use hope, peace, joy and love anyway. A number of Protestant churches swap peace and love, and some name the candles for the prophets, Bethlehem, the shepherds and the angels instead. Whatever order your church uses, swap the prayers to match.
Free printable Advent candle prayers
Print it before November 29, cut out the cards and keep them by the wreath.
Free printable · PDF
Advent prayer calendar and candle cards, 2026
A calendar from November 29 to Christmas Eve with a short prayer prompt for every day, a card for each Sunday's candle and a page for the people you're praying for. The cards carry shorter versions of the prayers on this page.
US Letter size. Printing on A4? Get the A4 version.
- Advent calendar, November 29 to December 24, 2026
- Four candle-lighting prayer cards
- An Advent prayer list
Want the next printable? We'll email you when there's a new one.
A blessing for the Advent wreath
On the first Sunday, before you light anything, some families bless the wreath. Hold hands around it if you like.
Blessing the wreath
Holy Spirit, we've made this circle of green branches and set these candles in it. Bless it, and bless us as we gather here each week.
As the light grows, let our hope grow too. Make these few minutes by the candles the quietest part of a busy month. Get our hearts ready for Jesus, who came once as a baby and will come again. Amen.
Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.
First Sunday of Advent: the hope candle
Sunday, November 29, 2026. Light the first purple (or blue) candle. God's people waited centuries for the promised Savior. The first candle remembers that waiting, and the hope that kept them going.
Who reads: the youngest person who can read, with help. Let a little one light the candle with a grown-up's hand around theirs.
Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good thing which I have promised unto the house of Israel and to the house of Judah.
Lighting the hope candle
God of hope, we light the first candle. It's only one small flame, but it's a start.
Your people waited a long time for You, and some of us are waiting too: for a phone call, a diagnosis, a job, a prodigal to come home. We don't know how those will turn out. We do know You came for Your people once, and You haven't forgotten us now. Help us trust You this week, even when Your timing isn't ours. Let this little light remind us that You're coming. Amen.
One line for kids
God, thank You for keeping Your promises. Help me wait for Jesus. Amen.
Talk about it: What's one thing you're hoping for this Christmas that isn't a present?
Second Sunday of Advent: the peace candle
Sunday, December 6, 2026. Light the first candle, then a second purple one. John the Baptist told people to prepare the way for the Lord. The peace candle asks Jesus, the Prince of Peace, to settle the places in us that aren't ready.
Who reads: a parent or grandparent. If someone in your home has had a stressful week, ask them to light the candle.
Through the tender mercy of our God; whereby the dayspring from on high hath visited us, To give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.
Lighting the peace candle
Jesus, we light two candles tonight. You came to guide our feet into the way of peace, and we need that. December is already crowded, and our minds are louder than this room.
Bring peace into this house: to the sibling squabbles, the money worries, the conversations we keep putting off. Bring peace to places at war and to people who'll spend Christmas afraid. And let the calmest person in this house this week be the one who usually isn't. Amen.
One line for kids
Jesus, please help us be kind and peaceful in our house this week. Amen.
Talk about it: Where do you need some peace this week? Is there someone you need to make up with?
Third Sunday of Advent: the joy candle (the pink one)
Sunday, December 13, 2026. Light the first two candles, then the pink or rose one. This is Gaudete Sunday, from the Latin word for "rejoice." The pink candle marks a turn: Christmas is close, and the waiting starts to sound like good news.
Who reads: the kids together, or someone who's had a hard year. Joy means most to the people who've had to look for it.
And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.
Lighting the joy candle
Lord, we light the pink candle. Three are burning now, and Christmas is close enough to smell.
Mary sang for joy before anything was easy. She was young, her plans had been turned upside down and the hardest parts were still ahead. Give us joy like hers, the kind that can sing before the problem is solved. And let someone who's finding December hard catch a little of it from us this week. Amen.
One line for kids
God, thank You for all the happy things You give us. Jesus is almost here. Amen.
Talk about it: What's one good thing God did for you this year?
Fourth Sunday of Advent: the love candle
Sunday, December 20, 2026. Light all four candles. The last week of waiting remembers why Jesus came at all: God loves the world. In 2026 this week is short: Christmas Eve comes just four days later, on Thursday.
Who reads: two people together, like a husband and wife, two siblings or a grandparent and grandchild. If you have a guest staying for Christmas, invite them to light it.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Lighting the love candle
Father, the whole wreath is lit now. You didn't love the world from a distance. You sent Your Son into it, not when we'd earned it, but because that's who You are.
This week, let some of that love leak out of this house: to the relative who gets on our nerves, the neighbor who'll be alone on Christmas and the tired cashier on the twenty-third. Amen.
One line for kids
God, You love me even on my grumpy days. Help me love my family like that this week. Amen.
Talk about it: Who could we show love to before Christmas, and how?
Lighting the Christ candle on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day
Thursday, December 24, or Friday, December 25, 2026. Light all four candles, then the white one in the center. The waiting is over. Some families light it after the Christmas Eve service, and others on Christmas morning before the presents.
Who reads: everyone. Let the oldest person light the Christ candle, read the verse together and have each person say one word of thanks before the prayer. If you have time, read the whole Christmas story in Luke 2:1–20.
Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
Lighting the Christ candle
Jesus, the middle candle is lit, and the waiting is over. Four weeks of small flames, and now this one, for You.
You came to a stable and not a palace. The first to hear were shepherds out in the cold with their sheep, not anyone important. Thank You for coming that low, all the way down to where we are.
Be the light in this house all year, not just tonight. When the wreath is packed away and January feels long, remind us that You stayed. Amen.
One line for kids
Jesus, the last candle is for You. We're so glad You came. Amen.
Traditional Advent wreath prayers (Catholic and Anglican)
Many Catholic, Anglican and Lutheran families pray an older, set prayer at the wreath. The collects below are from the Book of Common Prayer (1662), written in Thomas Cranmer's English and still prayed in Anglican churches on these Sundays. Catholic parishes pray the Sunday prayers of the Roman Missal, and many Catholic wreath booklets use old prayers that begin "Stir up thy might, O Lord, and come."
The collect for the first Sunday of Advent ("Almighty God, give us grace that we may cast away the works of darkness…") is printed in full on our Advent prayers page. In the Book of Common Prayer it's prayed every day of Advent, alongside each week's own collect, until Christmas Eve.
Third Sunday in Advent (Book of Common Prayer, 1662)
O Lord Jesu Christ, who at thy first coming didst send thy messenger to prepare thy way before thee: Grant that the ministers and stewards of thy mysteries may likewise so prepare and make ready thy way, by turning the hearts of the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, that at thy second coming to judge the world we may be found an acceptable people in thy sight, who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
Read it on the joy Sunday, December 13. It remembers John the Baptist, the messenger who prepared the way.
Fourth Sunday in Advent (Book of Common Prayer, 1662)
O LORD, raise up (we pray thee) thy power, and come among us, and with great might succour us; that whereas, through our sins and wickedness, we are sore let and hindered in running the race that is set before us, thy bountiful grace and mercy may speedily help and deliver us; through the satisfaction of thy Son our Lord, to whom with thee and the Holy Ghost be honour and glory, world without end. Amen.
Read it on December 20. "Sore let and hindered" means badly held back; "succour" means help.
Responsive Advent candle prayers for church or a small group
For a church service, a school or a small group, a leader reads the first line and everyone answers with the "All" line. Light the candle during the response.
- Week 1, hope. Leader: The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. All: We light this candle in hope. Come, Lord Jesus.
- Week 2, peace. Leader: Prepare the way of the Lord. All: We light this candle for peace. Come, Lord Jesus.
- Week 3, joy. Leader: Rejoice in the Lord, for He is near. All: We light this candle with joy. Come, Lord Jesus.
- Week 4, love. Leader: God so loved the world that He gave His Son. All: We light this candle in love. Come, Lord Jesus.
- Christmas. Leader: The Word became flesh and lived among us. All: We light this candle for Christ, the light of the world. Welcome, Lord Jesus. Amen.
If you're opening a small group in Advent, our Advent prayers guide has opening and closing prayers to go with these.
Lighting the Advent candles with someone far away
A grown child at college, grandparents in another state, a friend who's on their own this December. You can light candles in two places at the same time and pray for each other. Agree on a time, then send a text.
Lighting the hope candle at 6 tonight. Want to light one too? I'll be praying for you.
Just lit the second candle and prayed for you by name. Peace to you this week.
Three candles lit here, and you were in our prayers tonight. Christmas is close.
All four candles are burning. We miss you, and we're praying for you.
Lit the Christ candle this morning and thanked God for you. Merry Christmas.
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Light the candles together, even from far away
PrayerBoard is a private circle for the few people you pray with, free in beta on iPhone and Android. Share what you're hoping for this Advent and see who's praying with you.
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Questions people ask
What prayer should I say before lighting an Advent candle?
Read a short Bible verse, then pray a sentence or two on that week's theme as the candle is lit. For example, in the first week: "God of hope, as we light this candle, teach us to wait for You and trust Your promises. Amen." Each week's prayer on this page takes under a minute.
What is the most popular prayer for Advent?
Probably "Come, Lord Jesus." It's the second-to-last verse of the Bible, "Even so, come, Lord Jesus" (Revelation 22:20), and Christians have prayed it since the first century. It's the prayer behind the hymn "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," and many families sing a verse of it each time they light the wreath.
What are the four words of Advent?
Hope, peace, joy and love are the four themes many churches and families give the Advent candles, one for each Sunday. Some churches use a different order. Another common set names the candles for the prophets, Bethlehem, the shepherds and the angels. Neither set is official, so churches vary.
What order do you light the Advent candles in?
Light one new candle each Sunday and relight the earlier ones first. The pink or rose candle is lit on the third Sunday. There's no fixed starting position on the wreath, so pick one and go around the circle. The white Christ candle in the center comes last, on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.
Do Catholics and Protestants light the Advent wreath the same way?
Mostly. Catholics usually use three purple candles and one rose candle, with the rose lit on Gaudete Sunday, and the Church doesn't assign official themes to them. Many Protestant churches use the hope, peace, joy and love themes, some use blue candles instead of purple, and many add a white Christ candle.
Can you light the Advent candles every night?
Yes. Light the candles for the current week each evening, say that Sunday's prayer again (or the kids' line on busy nights) and add the new candle on the next Sunday. Families who only manage Sundays aren't doing it wrong.
