The Meaning of the Christingle
Here we aim to explain the meaning behind Christingles and then we show you
how to make one of your own.
Christingle means ‘Christ’s Light’ and it is a symbol of the Christian faith.
Lots of churches hold Christingle services around Christmas time. The custom of
giving out lighted candles in these services originates from the Moravian Church
in Germany in 1747 but they weren’t introduced to the Anglican Church in England
until 1968.
Christingles are made up of different parts, each one being there to remind us of
something. The orange represents the world whilst the candle is to remind us of
Jesus because Christians believe Jesus to be the light of the world. The red ribbon
goes all round the ‘world’ and reminds Christians that Jesus died because it
represents the blood of Jesus. The four cocktail sticks could have either of two
meanings: the four seasons or the four corners of the world. The sweets (or sometimes
dried fruit) is to remind us of God’s gifts to the world including kindness and love.
The foil is merely there to catch the waxy drips from the candle and does not have a
meaning. Find out how to make your own Christingle.