Blessing Light

Shabbat-

Shabbat can be a small taste of the world to come. At one time humanity lived in a place like this called Gan Eden. The experience of Gan Eden was complete wholeness; it was a life without pain and war…a life of total peace, inside and out. Our tradition explains that at that time humanity was something different than we are today; we were creatures of light, like some kind of heavenly beings. The book of Bereshit explains that Chava, our first mother, was deceived by a creature called a Nachash. The events which followed transformed our existence; the light which previously clothed our human forms now became hidden inside of us. On Shabbat we return to our former existence.

The light of Shabbat-
In Judaism’s more mystical traditions the lighting of Shabbat candles serves more than just the practical function of adding light to a home. When a woman makes a blessing over light she is making a tikkun. A tikkun is understood as a repair or correction in the universe; a tikkun is made when we make right what had previously gone wrong. Because the woman was alone when she was deceived by the Nachash, a woman alone retains the ability to make the proper correction in the universe (Talmud, Shabbat 31b). By lighting Shabbat candles a woman has the ability to reveal the light which was hidden in The Garden.

Miriams Tikkun-
It’s implied in our messianic texts that Miriam the mother of Yeshua was only a teenager when she gave birth to her son. As our tradition describes, Miriam was a tzadeket, a holy woman. Although she had never been with a man a child began growing inside of her. A heavenly messenger was sent to inform Miriam that her child was to be named Yeshua, “because He will be a salvation (yeshuah) of His people.” Yeshua was born to be the greatest tzaddik the world has ever known and the true light of HaShem. That the Mashiach was conceived without the help of a man reveals the connection and purpose of this strange event. Because a woman alone brought forth the concealment of light now it was by a woman only that the true light was being birthed into the world. When a woman blesses over light she is participating with Miriam in this tikkun of bringing light into the world.

How2
Practically speaking, lighting candles before Shabbat can be quite simple. After drawing your hands inward three times bathing yourself in that messianic Shabbat light cover your face with your hands and make the blessing:

Baruch atah HaShem Elokeinu, melekh ha'olam, asher kid'shanu b'mitzvotav v'tzivanu l'hadlik ner shel Shabbat.

Blessed are You, HaShem our G-d, King of the universe, Who has made us holy through His commandments and commanded us to kindle the Shabbat light.

***In the above blessing the words rendered as "HaShem" and "Elokeinu" should be pronounced "Adonai" and "Eloheinu" while actually performing the ritual.