Cathy Erickson, left, and her daughter, Chelsea Erickson, look at the hand-made ornaments on the Chrismon tree in the Lord of Life Lutheran Church sanctuary on St. Simons Island Ornaments convey message of faith CHRISMON TREE SYMBOLS REACH BEYOND CHRISTMAS By BETHANY LEGGETT The Brunswick News The Brunswick NewsCrowns represent Jesus as the King of Kings. The circle of three fish was an early Christendom symbol. A cross with three steps symbolizes faith, hope and love, as well as the Trinity. There are shells for baptism, doves for peace and butterflies for transformation. A golden web of netting circles around the tree, tying Christ’s message of making disciples “fishers of men” into the coastal environment of the Golden Isles.

“There’s a meaning behind each ornament,” said Cathy Erickson, a member of Lord of Life, on St. Simons Island. “When the tree goes up, usually the first Sunday of Advent, then we hand out a pamphlet to everyone that explains what each symbol means.” Erickson decorated the tree this year at the church at 2801 Frederica Road, using a collection donated from members and their families that dates back 27 years. “About a decade ago, there was a whole group of women who did background research, sat and worked for about six months to make more ornaments,” she said. Although some symbols are ancient, the tradition is relatively new by comparison. In 1957, Frances Kipps Spencer, a woman living in Danville, Va., combined the words “Christ” and “Monogram,” or symbol, to create a series of tree decorations for Ascension Lutheran Church. Other churches and denominations quickly picked up on the concept, and congregations across the nation continue putting their collections on display each Advent sea­ son. Lakeside United Methodist Church, 5572 New Jesup Highway, Glynn County, is hoping to extend its Chrismon tradition to others during the event, “Chrismon to Christmas” Sunday. Members of the congregation have been gathering weekly since late November to make ornaments to fill nine Christmas trees that will decorate the inside of the church for the community to come see, beginning at 5 p.m. “The trees are all covered in white, gold and irides­cent ornaments. It’s very reverent looking,” said Julee Crews, a member of Lakeside in charge of the Chris­mon event. “What better way for our congregation to get involved and to show others how significant these ornaments are? They represent history – the Christian history – and I think every congregation should have a Chrismon tree.” The task of hand-making ornaments is more than just cutting fabric into a shape. Most are ornamented with pearls, sequins or glitter. One member of the Lakeside congregation has cross-stitched 50 orna­ments for the trees. Even the youngsters at the Methodist church have contributed to the Chrismon decorations. Emelia Stambaugh leads the children’s Sunday school at Lakeside. She said the children, between the ages of 8 and 10, have discussed the different symbols and started crafting their own decorations.

“My little group is pretty knowledgeable for their ages. When we made a fish ornament, one boy told me I needed to have a basket of bread to go along with it, just like how Jesus fed the crowds in the Bible,” Stambaugh said. “They’ve been very intrigued by anything with glitter, too.” She says she has learned a lot about the symbolism by teaching the children. “We all see the tree each year, but do we really know what they mean? Once you learn about it, it’s interesting,” Stambaugh said. There are guidelines and general symbols used, but churches also create their own ornaments sometimes. The only major requirements for making Chrismon ornaments is that they are hand­made and only use white, silver or gold as colors. There’s even a method to which ornaments are placed where on the tree. “We had a local fisherman do­nate a shell with crystal beads made to look like water with pearls glued on,” Crews said. “Sea shells mean a lot for people on the coast, and they also repre­sent baptism. It means a lot to me that we have a heritage of faith that we can connect with, even with an­cient symbols.” At Lord of Life, members have put their own touches on their sanctuary’s tree, as well. “One that we did on our own is a Christ child and manger,” Erickson said. But the tradition is more than just learning about what each sym­bol means. For Erickson, the tree is a living history of the families within Lord of Life’s congrega­tional history. “Every year, when we start put­ting the tree up, these memories come up. Some involved in past years have moved or passed away. But their spirit is still here, and we’re still able to celebrate Advent with them,” she said. Lifestyle Editor Bethany Leggett writes about lifestyle topics. Contact her at thebrunswicknews.com, or at , ext. 316.