candles you would light to pray by an image—suggesting Catholic worship, during which the devout light prayers and pray for the souls of loved ones, particularly those in Purgatory who have not yet reached Paradise. The metaphor suggests the limbo in which Offred’s family existscut off from one another, possibly incarcerated, tortured, or dead.
In Hope—the brief phrase suggests several biblical passages, particularly Psalm 16:9, an uplifting statement of trust that God promises joy and deliverance from suffering: “Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: My flesh also shall rest in hope.
