Rosemead Kiwanis Club
"Serving the Community Since 1945"
FAX OF
LIFE
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Rosemead Kiwanis Club "Serving the Community Since 1945" |
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FAX OF LIFE
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The Fax of Life
A weekly inspiration, courtesy of the Kiwanis Club of Scott's Valley
(distributed free by the Kiwanis Club of Rosemead, CA - rosemeadkiwanis.org )
March 16, 2008 Volume 13, Number 25
There Is A Legend
At the time of Crucifixion, according to a long circulating Christian fable of unknown origin, the dogwood had been the size of the oak and other forest trees. So firm and strong was the tree that it was chosen as the timber for the cross. To be used thus for such a cruel purpose greatly distressed the tree, and Jesus, nailed upon it, sensed this.
In His gentle pity for all sorrow and suffering Jesus said to the tree: "Because of your regret and pity for My suffering, never again shall the dogwood tree grow large enough to be used as a cross. Henceforth it shall be slender and bent and twisted and its blossoms shall be in the form of a cross--two long and two short petals. And in the center of the outer edge of each petal there will be nail prints, brown with rust and stained with red, and in the center of the flower will be a crown of thorns, and all who see it will remember."
A poetic version of this story is displayed below and rendered in pictorial form on the Internet here.
In Jesus' time, the dogwood grew
To a stately size and a lovely hue.
'Twas strong & firm it's branches interwoven
For the cross of Christ its timbers were chosen.
Seeing the distress at this use of their wood
Christ made a promise which still holds good:
"Never again shall the dogwood grow
Large enough to be used so
Slender & twisted, it shall be
With blossoms like the cross for all to see.
As blood stains the petals marked in brown
The blossom's center wears a thorny crown.
All who see it will remember me
Crucified on a cross from the dogwood tree.
Cherished and protected this tree shall be
A reminder to all of my agony."
Out of this tale has been derived symbolism from which all may profit:
The pink dogwood is said to be blushing for shame because of the cruel purpose which it served in the Crucifixion.
The weeping dogwood further symbolized the sorrow.
The red dogwood, called the Cherokee, bears the color to remind us of the blood shed by our Savior.
The inflorescence, or stem grouping, of the
tree's flowers now mimic the form of the crucifixion itself. The four
white bracts, or specialized leaves, are cross-shaped, which are said to
represent the four corners of the cross, each bearing a rusty
indentation as of a nail; the red stamens, or male organs of the flower,
represents Jesus' crown of thorns; and the clustered red fruit represent
his blood.*
Author unknown
*This last bullet point is adapted from the Wikipedia article on "Dogwood."
Kiwanis is a global organization of volunteers dedicated to changing the world one child and one community at a time. All of its Clubs are community service clubs.
The Kiwanis Club of Scott's Valley normally meets at the Heavenly Café in Scott's Valley on Wednesdays at 7 am - see the Scott's Valley Kiwanis website @ http://svkiwanis.org; The Kiwanis Club of Rosemead normally meets on Thursdays at 12:10 - see the Rosemead Kiwanis website @ rosemeadkiwanis.org for confirmation and directions. Visitors are welcome to join mweetings of either club anytime.
There is no charge to anyone for receiving the "Fax;" however. if you have been encouraged in any way by the message, pass it on by saying something encouraging to someone else during the week.
Neither the Scott's Valley or Rosemead Kiwanis Clubs make any representations as to the accuracy of quotes or actions attributed to named individuals; material selected for the Fax of Life comes from a variety of sources and is chosen based solely on its presumed inspirational value to readers.