The True Meaning of the Candy Cane
Look at the Candy Cane
What do you see?
Stripes that are red
Like the blood shed for me
White is for my Savior
Who's sinless and pure!
'J' is for Jesus My Lord, that's for sure!
Turn it around
And a staff you will see
Jesus my shepherd
Was born for Me!
Many years ago, a candy maker wanted to make a candy at Christmas time that would serve
as a witness to his Christian faith. He wanted to incorporate several symbols for the birth,
ministry and death of Jesus. He began with a stick of pure white hard candy; white to
symbolize the Virgin Birth and the sinless nature of Jesus; hard to symbolize the solid rock,
the foundation of the Church; firmness to represent the promise of God.
The candymaker made the candy in the form of a 'J' to represent the name of Jesus, who
came to earth as our Savior. He thought it could also represent the staff of the Good
Shepherd, with which he reached 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 true meaning is still there for those
who have eyes to see and ears to hear.
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