Symbolic Decorations: Women make 240 Chrismons for Decatur church's tree

Dec. 2—Using thousands of white and gold beads and 82 patterns, 14 women spent hundreds of hours creating more than 240 Chrismon ornaments.

The beaded Chrismons, which appear in the shape of crowns, crosses, doves, fish, chalices, angels and stars, currently adorn the 14-foot tree at The Church at Stone River in Southwest Decatur.

"Because of all the symbols and the white and gold, the Chrismon tree glorifies God. The majesty and glory it brings to God takes my breath away," said Suzanne Pruitt, the church's care and visitation pastor and a Chrismon maker.

Member Debi Swaney spearheaded the effort to create the Chrismons.

"Last year, I saw this big tree in the church, and I could just imagine what it would look like covered in Chrismons," Swaney said.

After pitching the idea to the church's lead pastor, the Rev. Ted Amey, Swaney began holding Chrismon-making classes. From March until October, the women met weekly to make the ornaments. Swaney described the gatherings as a blessing.

"I was surprised by the interest and that the women kept coming back," Swaney said. "We became a small group. We shared together, we prayed together, we cried together and we laughed a lot together. And, in the midst of all that, we made Chrismons, too."

A combination of the words "Christ" and "monogram," Chrismon translates to "symbols of Christ" and tell the story of Jesus' life and ministry. The ornaments' white and gold color represent the purity and majesty of Christ.

There is the Christ child Chrismon to symbolizes Jesus' birth.

There is the crown of thorns Chrismon to symbolize the crucifixion.

There is the butterfly Chrismon to symbolize new life and resurrection.

The decorations date back to 1957 when Frances Spencer introduced the ornaments to Ascension Lutheran Church in Danville, Virginia.

"The ladies of that church, with Frances' prodding, made the first ever Chrismons," said Sue Bosco, a member of St. Paul's Lutheran Church in Decatur.

A tree adorned with hundreds of beaded Chrismons typically stands in St. Paul's sanctuary. Along with the traditional tree, the church's Lutheran Women in Mission group also decorated a tree at the Enchanted Forest at Founders Park with Chrismons.

"It is our goal to share the story of Christ and our faith with everyone we can," Bosco said. "It would be hard for me to pick a favorite because they all are really special. When I see them all together on the tree, I start thinking what the Advent season is all about."

While Chrismon trees have appeared in the sanctuaries of St. Paul's Lutheran and St. Andrew's Presbyterian churches for decades, this marks the first year The Church at Stone River's tree featured the hand-beaded ornaments.

To create the ornaments, the women strung beads on wires and followed patterns to create the symbols. One of the simplest designs, a cross, contains 55 beads and one wire. Others contain more than 100 beads and several wires.

The key to the uniqueness of the Chrismons at Stone River rests in the beads. Swaney acquired the beads from Donna Lane, a North Carolina woman who sells handmade Chrismons on Etsy.

"These aren't beads you can get from the local craft store. These beads are sourced from Japan. They are just so beautiful and they are all uniform. I think the beads make the Chrismons really come alive," Swaney said.

In October, Swaney received a message from Lane about another Decatur church who had contacted her about Chrismons.

"I see this as a God thing. Members of Decatur Methodist Church had contacted Donna and she got them to contact me. In January, I, along with some of the other women, are going to start classes for Decatur Methodist so they can have their own Chrismon ornaments," Swaney said.

Except for Swaney, who started beading in 2021, none of the women had experience making Chrismons.

"It was funny. I sent them all a picture of the tools they needed — little wire cutters, little pullers and little pliers. The key word was 'little,'" Swaney said. "I had all my cute, little tools on the table and then here they come plopping down these massive tools. Their sweet husbands had said, 'I have some wire cutters you can use.' Of course, they were too heavy. Everyone has all the right tools now."

For most of the women, an interest in the ornaments and a love for crafts attracted them to the project.

"I thought the Chrismons were beautiful and I like to do crafts a bit. I like to sew and it reminded me of sewing, except I'm sewing with wire," Donna Barnett said.

Depending on the difficulty of the ornaments, the Chrismons can take an experienced maker like Swaney anywhere from 20 minutes to 8 hours to complete.

"How long does it take you for a fish?" Pruitt asked.

"I can knock a fish out in 20 to 30 minutes," Swaney said.

"Try two hours for me," Pruitt said.

Along with the traditional symbols of crosses, crowns, fish and doves, the tree at The Church at Stone River features more unique designs of a beehive to symbolize a community working together, an umbrella to symbolize God's protection during a storm, dragonflies to symbolize growth and development and teapots.

"Theologically, what does that say," Pruitt asked, pointing to a teapot Chrismon.

"Let's have tea with Jesus," Barnett laughed.

"Really, it's about hospitality and welcoming people into your home," Swaney said.

For Swaney, making Chrismons for the church's tree is an extension of her passion.

"I used to be addicted to knitting and then I started beading and became addicted to that. Making Chrismons became my therapy," Swaney said.

To prepare for the Advent season, which begins on Sunday and culminates with Christmas, Swaney and her Chrismon-making crew spent an hour-and-a-half decorating the church's tree last Sunday.

"The tree is so much more than I ever thought it would be," Swaney said. "When we got done decorating it and I was able to stand back and look at the tree, it was emotional because I really do see it as glorifying God through all the symbolism. It was also emotional because I knew all of the work the women had done to make it happen."

Along with Swaney, Pruitt and Barnett, the team, which hopes to create 100 more Chrismons next year to decorate the backside of the tree, included Sherri Barrett, Susan Behrendt, Tisa Brothers, Wanda Griffin, BeBe Holtzclaw, Joan Hudson, Christy Lamb, Kristen Lunderg, Suzanne Pruitt, Renay Terry, Dana Tuell and Emily Whittier.

— cgodbey@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2441. Twitter @DecaturLiving.