You're probably burning paraffin in your home right now. Here's why it matters.

Paraffin candles are a petroleum byproduct. When you burn them, they release toluene and benzene into the air in your home — the same compounds found in diesel exhaust. Beeswax candles burn clean. They actually emit negative ions, which bind to dust and allergens and pull them out of the air. The light is warmer and longer-lasting. And there's something deeply right about burning something that came from the earth, made by creatures that have existed since before recorded history, in the space where you pray and rest and gather. Stewardship extends to what you breathe.