"A candy maker in Indiana wanted to make a candy that would be a witness, so he made the Christmas Candy Cane. He incorporated several symbolsfor 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 candy maker made the candy in the form of a "J" to represent the preciousname of Jesus, who came to earth as our Savior. It could also represent the staff of the Good Shepherd 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 candy maker stained it with red stripes.He used three small stripes for the blood shed by Christ on the cross. So thatwe could have the promise of eternal life.
Unfortunately, the candy became known as the Candy Cane. It became a meaningless decoration seen at Christmas time. But meaning is still there for all those who "Have eyes to see and ears to hear." We pray that this symbol willagain be used to witness to the wonder of Jesus and His great love that came down at Christmas."
The candy maker made the candy in the form of a "J" to represent the preciousname of Jesus, who came to earth as our Savior. It could also represent the staff of the Good Shepherd 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 candy maker stained it with red stripes.He used three small stripes for the blood shed by Christ on the cross. So thatwe could have the promise of eternal life.
Unfortunately, the candy became known as the Candy Cane. It became a meaningless decoration seen at Christmas time. But meaning is still there for all those who "Have eyes to see and ears to hear." We pray that this symbol willagain be used to witness to the wonder of Jesus and His great love that came down at Christmas."
~~Author Unknown~~
This is a nice story but not exactly true. There are several versions of this story floating around. I searched until I found the actual origin of the candy cane.
Remember in the history of the Christmas tree, we talked about how edible decorations were made to symbolize plenty. One of the decorative treats made was sugar sticks. These were sweet sticks of candy. At the time they were solid white and made year round.
In the 1670's, a german choirmaster bent the sugar sticks into the shape of a shepherd's staff and gave them to the children who attended the Christmas services. Soon this practice spread throughout Europe and made it's way to America. Sometimes candy makers would adorn the white candy canes with sugar roses.
It has been said that a german immigrant in America first used the white candy canes to decorate his Christmas tree sometime around the 1840's. It wasn't long after the candy cane reached America, that it was given it's red stripes and peppermint flavoring. Since then there have been many versions of the story of the candy cane. The candy itself has evolved into many different colors and flavors in recent years but our favorite is still the classic.
So there you have it. I'll tell my son the quoted story above while he's young because it is a fascinating story and if you think about it, it's really up to you how you want to view this delicious Christmas treat. I like the first story :)
Let me now give credit where credit is due, my sources for my story: about.com
noelnoelnoel.com
