Agnus Dei, in ecclesiastical affairs, the figure of a lamb bearing a cross. The emblem is symbolical of the Saviour, the Lamb of God, a sacrifice offered for the redemption of a guilty world. The medieval sculptors used the emblem freely in their designs. The small cake made with the wax of Easter candles, and imprinted with this figure, is known as an Agnus Dei. The popes used to bless these cakes and distribute them freely on the Sunday after Easter. In later days of the church, however, the pope sends an Agnus Dei only to prominent ecclesiastics and this only on the occasion of his election and every seven years thereafter. The gift of a papal Agnus Dei is considered an honor. An anthem introduced into the Catholic Missal about 700 is called Agnus Dei. It is a paraphrase of John i:29. It takes its name from the opening Latin words which signify "O, Lamb of God, who taketh away the sins of the world, have pity on us." This anthem has a prominent part in the celebration of mass.