While there are many Christmas movies to choose from during the holidays, there are a rare few that actually have something to do with the true meaning of Christmas — the incarnation of the Word Made Flesh, Jesus Christ.
Based on a Max Lucado book by the same name, The Christmas Candle certainly focuses on the impact of Jesus’ birth and ministry. Set in the fictional village of Gladbury, England, circa 1890, local legend holds that every 25 years an angel visits the town’s candlemaker and bestows a miracle upon whoever lights the “Christmas Candle.” However, shortly after the arrival of a new pastor, David Richmond (Hans Matheson), the candle goes missing.
Matheson, the Scottish actor best known for playing Marius in the 1998 Liam Neeson-starring version of Les Misérables, is often quite affecting as Rev. Richmond. Co-star Samantha Barks (Eponine in last year’s Les Misérables musical film) plays Emily Barstow, a religious skeptic and kindred spirit to the reverend.
Distributed by Rick Santorum’s EchoLight Studios, the film also marks the motion picture debut for British singing sensation Susan Boyle. She contributes an original song, “Miracle Hymn,” but the film would have been fuller with another song or two.
“It’s a film about Christmastime when a lot of people think God isn’t with them,” Santorum told me when I talked to him about the film a couple weeks ago. “A lot of people think they’ve been left out there on their own.”
Despite the collision of the ancient and the modern in this story, set at the dawn of the electric age, the film delivers on its Christmas message despite being short on polish and shine, making it come off like a Hallmark Channel movie (which isn’t always a bad thing).
“God is still the God of miracles,” Santorum said. “He may not answer all our prayers the way we want, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t hear us and isn’t going to be there for us when we need him.”
The Christmas Candle is in theaters now. Rated PG. Run time: 105 min.
PATRICK NOVECOSKY is the editor of this blog and the editor-in-chief of Legatus magazine. This article appeared in the December 2013 issue of Legatus. It is reprinted here with permission.
