Hi Anne. Yes, I personally agree with you. However, these religious traditions have emotionally comforting meaning for those involved in every kind of religion, each with their own symbolic references. (Jesus being the light of the world etc) . It does appear a total waste of time and energy, but people follow what they are used to, and what those in their own culture do, the world over. Luckily, the candles that they snuff out halfway are all gathered up, then melted down again to be made back unto new ones. Christiann Orthodoxy is virtually the state religion in Greece, just as Catholicism is in Southern Ireland. Hindus and Muslims all have their own traditions, which non religious people might consider wasteful, as do the lovely people in Bali who leave rice and flower petals every day on the shrines to their gods. As I have photographed or videoed religious ceremonies all over the world for many different faiths and cultures, I have found that the one thing that unites us all, is not the actual traditions themselves, but the community spirit that most religions practice. The sad thing though, is the heartless animosity between certain faiths, who only wish to destroy those who don't "belong" to their particular faith, believing only in their own supremacy.