Christ the Light – Christingle

Tomorrow will be our Christingle Service – but what does this mean? Christingle – meaning ‘Christ Light’ – is a symbol of the Christian Faith.
For many years churches all over the world have made Christingles to remind them that Christ is the light who came into the world at Christmas.

The Christingle orange represents the world, John reminds us that ‘Jesus was in the world, and though the world was made through Him, the world did not recognise Him. He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive Him’. (Jn 1 v 10 – 11).

The red ribbon of the Christingle represents the blood of Jesus which was shed for us so that our sins may be forgiven. ‘But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from every sin’. (1 Jn 1 v 7).

The fruits and sweets on the four skewers represent God’s gifts to us, the fruits of the earth and the four seasons. ‘As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night will never cease’. (Gen 8 v 22).

The lighted candle, pushed into the centre of the orange, represents Christ, the light of the world. ‘He [Jesus] said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life”.’ (John 8 v 12).
Christingle originated from the Moravian church in Germany and was established in 1467. It was used in a service n Marienborn on Germany in 1747. Have a look at the Children’s society web site