|
|
Its shape is the crook of the Shepherd
The white is Jesus' purity,
Eternal sweet compassion,
~unknown
One of the first who came;
The lively peppermint flavor
is the regal gift of spice,
the red His sacrifice;
The narrow stripes are
friendship and the nearness
of His love.
a gift from God above;
The candy cane reminds us all
of just how much God cared
And like His Christmas gift to us,
it's meant to be broken and shared.
A candymaker in Indiana wanted to make a candy that would be a witness, so he made the Christmas Candy Cane. He incorporated several symbols from the birth, ministry, and death of Jesus Christ.
He began with a stick of pure white, hard candy. White to symbolize the Virgin Birth and the sinless nature of Jesus, and hard to symbolize the Solid Rock, the foundation of the Church, and firmness of the promises of God.
The candymaker made the candy in the form of a "J" to represent the precious name of Jesus, who came to earth as our Savior. It could also represent the staff of the "Good Shepherd" with which He reaches down into the ditches of the world to lift out the fallen lambs who, like all sheep, have gone astray.
Thinking that the candy was somewhat plain, the candymaker stained it with red stripes. He used three small stripes to show the stripes of the scourging Jesus received by which we are healed. The large red stripe was for the blood shed by Christ on the cross so that we could have the promise of eternal life.
Unfortunately, the candy became known as a Candy Cane -- a meaningless decoration seen at Christmas time. But the meaning is still there for those who "have eyes to see and ears to hear." Every time you see a Candy Cane, remember the Wonder of Jesus and His Great Love that came down at Christmas, and that His Love remains the ultimate and dominant force in the universe today.
Variations: Candy canes are also said to have been created:
As a sweet treat for children who behaved well in church
As a form of identification among Christians during a time of persecution Origins:
The red-and-white-striped, sugary candy cane can be found everywhere at Christmastime. It's as much an ornament as it is a confection, and people munch these treats and decorate with them, scarcely giving a thought to just where candy canes came from in the first place.
The Candy Cane Legend
The symbol of the shepherds’ crook is an ancient one, representing the humble shepherds who were the first to worship the newborn Christ. Its counterpart is our candy cane – so old as a symbol that we have nearly forgotten its humble origin.
Legend has it that in 1670, the choirmaster at the Cologne Cathedral handed out sugar sticks among his young singers to keep them quiet during the long Living Creche ceremony. In honor of the occasion, he had the candies bent into shepherds’ crooks. In 1847, a German-Swedish immigrant named August Imgard of Wooster, Ohio, decorated a small blue spruce with paper ornaments and candy canes.
It wasn’t until the turn of the century that the red and white stripes and peppermint flavors became the norm. The body of the cane is white, representing the life that is pure. The broad red stripe is symbolic of the Lord’s sacrifice for man.
In the 1920s, Bob McCormack began making candy canes as special Christmas treats for his children, friends and local shopkeepers in Albany, Georgia. It was a laborious process – pulling, twisting, cutting and bending the candy by hand. It could only be done on a local scale.
In the 1950s, Bob’s brother-in-law, Gregory Keller, a Catholic priest, invented a machine to automate candy cane production. Packaging innovations by the younger McCormacks made it possible to transport the delicate canes on a scale that transformed Bobs Candies, Inc. into the largest producer of candy canes in the world.
Although modern technology has made candy canes accessible and plentiful, they’ve not lost their purity and simplicity as a traditional holiday food and symbol of the humble roots of Christianity.
Look out Kids! With all of the history of the "Candy Cane," realize that our Superior Court will likely make this Icon of the Christian Faith illegal. You will be suspended from school for carrying one in your back pack. They will be hunted down like illegal drugs or guns. You won't be safe anywhere . . . If you own a "Candy Cane." ~ Bob Craig
Christmas Symbols
Candy Cane
The True Meaning of Christmas
The development of the candy cane took a few hundred years. Before the invention of the modern pacifier, parents used to give their babies unflavored white sugar sticks to suck on. During the 1670's a German choirmaster had the sugar sticks bent into a shepherd's staff and passed out to children attending the Christmas services. This holiday custom spread throughout Europe and fancy canes, decorated with roses, were used as Christmas decorations in many homes. About 1900 the white candy cane received its traditional red stripes and peppermint flavoring. At the same time the legend of the candy cane came into being. According to this legend, a candy maker in Indiana designed the candy cane to tell the true story of Christmas - a story about a virgin giving birth to a shepherd who would give up His life for the sheep.
The most obvious symbolism used in the candy cane is its shape. Turned one way, it looks like a "J" for Jesus. The newborn Lamb of God was named Jesus, meaning Savior, because He was destined to "save His people from their sins." [Mtatthew 1:21] Turned the other way, candy canes remind us of the shepherd's staff. The first people to hear of Christ's birth were shepherds guarding their flocks at night. [Lk 2:8-20] Jesus called Himself the Good Shepherd and the Bible frequently compares the actions of the Messiah to those of a shepherd searching for his lost sheep, feeding them, gently leading them, and carrying them in his bosom. [Psalms 23; John 10:1-18; Isaiah 40:11; Jer 31:10; Micah 5:4; Heb 13:20] The sweetness of the candy reminds us that we are fed on the sweet milk of the Gospel of our salvation and peace. [Eph 1:13; 6:15]
The hardness of the candy reminds us that Jesus is our rock of refuge. [Deu 32:4, 15, 18; 1 Sam 2:2; 2 Sam 22:32; 22:47; 23:3; Psa 18:2, 18:31, 28:1, 92:15; 94:22; 95:1; Is 44:8] In rocky lands like Israel, people often sought shelter from their enemies in the caves or rocky crags of cliffs. Rocks also remind us of the solidness of the promises of Christ who is a precious cornerstone and sure foundation to those who follow Him, but a "stone of stumbling and a rock of offense" to those who reject His gift of peace. [1 Pet 2:6-8]
The whiteness of the candy brings to mind the Virgin Birth and the sinless life of Christ. [Mt 1:23; Lk 1:34-35] We also are made as pure as the snow through the cleansing action of His blood. [Revelation 7:9, 7:14; Isaiah 1:18]
The traditional candy cane has 3 small red stripes to remind us of the soldiers' stripes by which we are healed and a larger stripe which represents the blood shed by Christ on Calvary's tree. [Is 53:5; Mt 27:32-50] Some people say that the 3 small stripes honor the Holy Trinity while the larger stripe reminds us of the one true God. Others claim that the small stripes represent our mini-passions or sufferings and the great stripe symbolizes Christ's Passion. A green stripe is sometimes placed on candy canes to remind us that Jesus is God's gift to us. (Green is the color of giving.)
The peppermint flavor of modern candy canes is said to be similar to hyssop. In Old Testament times, hyssop was associated with purification and sacrifice. During the first Passover celebrations, a bundle of hyssop was used to smear the blood of Passover lambs upon the doorposts of houses so that the Angel of Death would pass over their occupants. [Exodus 12:22] Bundles of hyssop were also used to sprinkle blood on worshipers and objects during Mosaic purification rituals. [Ex 24:6-8; Lev 14:4, 14:49-52] After his affair with Bathsheba, King David appealed to God's mercy crying, "Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow." [Ps 51:7] Peppermint reminds us that Jesus is our Passover Lamb. [1 Cor 5:7] His blood cleanses us from sin and destroys the power of death. [Hosea 13:14; 1 Cor 15:54-57; Heb 2:14-15; Rev 20:6]
A challenge for you: The Candy Cane ~ Legend, Myth or Fable
In searching the WEB for information for the "Candy Cane" I came across many, many beautiful descriptions of how The Incredible Candy Cane came to be. Among all the descriptive offerings there was one (1) article that was written with the same mind set as many of the so-called ‘professors' of theology. The one (1) lone article would cast all these Legends aside as mere myths or fables. Only a non believer would spend so much effort to debunk these articles we've posted here for your blessings. It is obvious by what this person had to say that the Bible, In God We Trust and the 10 Commandments would all be classified (by him) as simplistic "Myth or Fable." What about you? Let us know what you believe!
~~
|
Craig Pages |
|
[Site Index]
[Sermons]
[Blessings]
[Sermon Starters]
[Short & Long]
[News]
[Family]
[Contacts]
[Our Links]
|
|
