What is A Christingle?
Christingles are candles set in oranges held by children at Advent services. Each element has a special meaning significant to the Christian church.
The tradition was begun in Germany in the 18th century but then popularised when John Pensom brought it to the UK and held Christingle services to raise money for The Children’s Society. This year it is the 50th year since the first Christingle service.
Ready to Make your Very own Christingle?
You will need the following:
- An orange
- A red ribbon
- Dried fruits and sweets on skewers or cloves
- A lit candle
The orange represents the world; the red ribbon indicates God’s love wrapped around the world and the blood Christ shed on the cross; the dried fruits are symbols of God’s creations and the lit candle symbolises Jesus.
Now for the fun part!
- Tie a ribbon around the middle of your orange. Make sure its nice and tight!
- Cut a small cross in the top of your orange and lay a square of silver foil (1cm square) over the cross. This might be a good time to get an adult to help.
- Place a candle on top and wedge it firmly into the orange. The foil will help prevent hot wax running onto your hand.
- Load four cocktail sticks with raisins, sultanas or soft sweets and insert them into the orange around the base of the candle. Alternatively insert cloves all over the orange (it smells amazing!)
Take a photo of your Christingle, send it to us here and tag us on Instagram (@Munchachos). We cannot wait to see your creations!
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