Ivy – Scott Stanger Photography

I wrote this Sunday, June 28, 2026

This morning the world lost a beautiful young person. Many of us that had been touched by her had prayed and sent strength to her and her husband this past year as they struggled through this horrible disease of cancer.

Now for the spiritual. Every time I am in Church I light a candle and pray for her and ask for the intercession of the Saints to pray for her. This morning, before I knew of her passing, I lit a large candle and prayed, knowing that she has recently ended all medical treatments and the doctors had no other options.

I was in the St. Sergius Chapel at Synod for the Divine Liturgy service in English. I thought my son had gone upstairs to the Synodal Cathedral where it is mostly in Russian, so as I walked to the stairs I saw my godfather Sergey and we hugged and kissed since I had not see in him in weeks. We went up the stairs to the Cathedral and His Eminence Metropolitan Nicholas was celebrating the Divine Liturgy service.

I donated for another large beeswax candle and venerated a cross and icon in a case from my namesake Saint Seraphim of Sarov and asked for intercession for our friend.

I then walked to the miracle-working icon on the other side of the room: the Kursk-Root Icon of the Theotokos, Our Lady of the Sign, which has become deeply intertwined with my faith and with the history of many of the faithful in the Russian Orthodox Church. As I approached the icon, Metropolitan Nicholas began his veneration of the icon as part of the service. Carrying a censer with incense, he venerated the 700-year-old miracle-working icon while I stood nearby. After the veneration, I was able to venerate the icon myself and pray for our friend. I also asked for the intercession of the beloved Theotokos, that she would pray for our friend as well.

As the beeswax candle I had lit was burning, I must have inserted it slightly tilted, causing a large drip down the side and making the candle burn unusually fast. There are people in the church whom I call the “candle police” who walk around and put out mostly burned candles so they do not burn into the brass holders.

Well, one of these candle cops came by, put out the candle, removed the giant beeswax drip, and dropped the drop it into the spent candle bucket below. I assumed that was it, but he left the candle, which was about four inches tall at that point, in the holder.

Another candle cop came by, and since this was the only candle in that particular stand, he relit it using the large candle in the center. As I watched all of this, I thought about writing to our friend to tell her how her candle came back to life after it had been put out. It then burned strong, and that is when I thought to take a picture of it.

After the service, I looked at my phone and saw the post that she had passed away peacefully this morning, with her husband holding her hand. I lit another candle in front of the Cross for her, now gone from our earthly existence. She touched so many lives, and I am grateful to her friends for sharing. May her memory be eternal.

Seraphim Scott Stanger

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