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 for 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 Sheperd" 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". I pray that this symbol will again
be used to witness To The Wonder of Jesus and his Great Love that
came down at Christmas and remains the ultimate and dominant force
in the universe today.
