Campus Christian Association
Christmon Tree Decorates Chapel
By Jayne Peacock
Approximately 25 students
helped the Campus Christian
Association decorate a Christ
mon tree in Howard Chapel. A
Christmon tree is interdenom
inational and is the heritage of
all Christians. It proclaims
Jesus through the use of sym
bols.
A Christmon tree is decorated
in white and gold. The white
refers to Christ’s purity and
perfection. In Western culture it
is the symbol of joy. The gold
symbolizes the glory and majes
ty of God and the Son of God.
The evergreen tree symbolizes
the eternal life which Christ won
for mankind. The tiny white
lights speak of Him who is the
Light of the World.
Many of the decorations on
the tree are rectangular blocks
called cornerstones, which sym
bolize Christ Himself who was
called the cornerstone of the
Christian faith. These corner
stones have different symbols of
Christ on each side.
Many of the symbols on the
tree are crosses. The cross is a
reminder of Christ’s redemptive
sacrifices by which mankind
receives forgiveness and salva
tion. Different designs of
crosses have been used to depict
various aspects of Christ’s work.
The cross used most often today
is the Latin cross.
Many Greek monograms are
used to represent Christ. The
most widely known Christmon is
the Chi Rho (XP), the union of
the first two letters of the Greek
word for Christ. IHC are the
first three letters of the name
Jesus in Greek. Alpha and
Omega, the first and last letters
of the greek alphabet are often
used to represent Christ, the
beginning and the end. NIKA is
the Greek word for conqueror or
victor. .
One of the most commonly
used symbols of Christ is the
fish or IXOYC in Greek. The fish
was a secret sign of Christians
during the early persecutions.
On catacomb walls, the fish
pointed to places of worship.
The use of the fish was and is
a strong confession of faith and
affirmation of the basic doctrine
of Christianity.
Other symbols arc the circle,
which represents eternity; the
triangle and the trefoil, two
symbols of the Trinity—Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit; the butter
fly, which symbolizes Christ's
resurrection; the descending
dove, which represents the
kingship of Christ; the chalice
(cup), which symbolizes the Last
Supper or communion; the
lamp, which symbolizes divine
inspiration, truth and know
ledge; the anchor, which sym
bolizes the cross of hope (the
Christ Child is the hope of the
world); the scroll or bi>ok, which
represents the written word of
God (the Bible); and the stars
formed by crosses set at various
angles, which show the close
relationship between the birth
and death of Christ the Redeem
er. The number of points that a
star has indicates a specific
meaning. Five points—the
epiphany star—represents
Christ the Saviiw, the Son. Six
points—Crealor’s star—repre
sents God the Father who
created the world in six days.
Everyone is invited to stop by
the chapel and loi>k at the
Christmon tree closely.
Coll
I LIBRAR
l)cH*eniber 9, 1981 Vol. 52 No. 14
The Campas Christian Association decorated a Chrismon tree In
Howard Chapel. Each of the handmade ornaments Is symbolic of
some aspect of the Christian faith. [Photo by Harold Williams]
Inside The Collegiate
Editorial P**® 2
Letters to the Editor Page 3
Christmas How To ^
Final Examination Schedule ' Page 4
Calendar of Events Page 5
Mosic Reviews Page 6
Movie Reviews Page 7
Sports *
8
Boxes to Help Distribution
By Tony Turiey
Six boxes are under construc
tion in which to place future
Collegiates for distribution and
pick-up. These boxes are being
designed and built by the Eng
lish 013 Stage Craft class. These
six boxes will be put at the
following locations: Hines Hall
lobby. Hardy Center, Hackney
Library, Hamlin Student Cen
ter, the cateteria and Moye
Science Building.
Dennis McDowell, instructor
of the course, was asked to build
these boxes by the Collegiate
editors. He then divised a plan
so this project could be the
class’s final exam. The final
drawings from each of the six
members of the class were due
Tuesday, Dec. 8. Now the choice
design will be used. McDowell
is drawing up a design himself
just in case none of the stu
dents’ are adequate. He has
said that this will be their first
design project. Then on Dec. 10,
the selected plan will be pre
sented to the class and, over the
weekend, preparations for the
building of the boxes by each of
the students will be taken care
of i.e. tools, pieces of wood
honed down to the required
size, tec. The boxes will be built
on Monday, Dec. 14, during the
two-hour final exam peritxl set
aside for the class. The partic
ipating students are Burton
"Trip” Campbell, Hugh John
ston, Bob Poole, Kevin Rouse,
Alan Winstead and Robert
Wort on.
The general restrictions for
the design include the time
allowed for its planning and
building; the budget, which is
$100 for six boxes; the amount
of labor that will be put into the
project; and the hope that their
use will be permanent. The
individual considerations in
volve the problems of making
the box functional and eco
nomic. The ideal box would be
big enough for the newspaper to
fit in, sturdy and long-lasting,
using the materials to their
greatest advantage, and worth
the initial investment.