Christingle Service

Our Christingle Service is to be held at 3:00pm on Saturday, 18 January 2025. This is a service for families (but all welcome to attend). Join in the fun of making your own christingle reminding us that Jesus is the Light of the World.

Background

Christingles are used as a symbol by many Christian groups during the seasons of Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany. The idea for them seems to go back to the 1740’s when Bishop Johannes de Watteville of the Moravian Church in Germany wanted a way for encouraging people to reflect on Jesus. Essentially, christingles try to symbolise the coming of Jesus as the Light of the World. The word “christingle” probably derives from a German dialect word meaning “Christ Child” or “Christmas gift”.

As members of the Moravian Church moved away from their original roots, they helped to spread the tradition, particular within protestant churches. In the 1960’s it was popularized in the UK when it was used to help raise funds for the Children’s Society.

Originally, a christingle was simply a ribbon wrapped around a candle. However it has evolved over the years. Today, a christingle usually consists of the following elements. Firstly, there is an orange and this represents the world. Around the orange is placed a red ribbon and this symbolises the blood Jesus shed during Holy Week and hence God’s love embracing the world.

Four short sticks are inserted around the orange and these stand for either the “four corners of the world” or the four seasons. Small sweets or fruits are placed on the sticks. These represent God’s creation and, more specifically, the fruits of harvest.

Finally, a candle (partly wrapped in foil) is inserted in the top of the orange. When lit, this reminds us of Christ, the Light of the World: “The light shines on in the dark, and the darkness has never mastered it” [John 1:5].