John 19:19-22 - Spoonmen, Oreos and Sanford's $1 Million Award

The meaning of symbols morphs with the users...

When I was a kid, specially marked boxes of Nabisco Shredded Wheat held little plastic spacemen. Their oval helmet had an antennae matching the Nabisco logo. The spacemen--called "Spoonmen"--snapped onto a spoon to get kids excited about eating their shredded wheat; an upgrade from mom saying, "Open your mouth for the airplane!"

Now decades later, I'm an hospice chaplain with Sanford Health. When Sanford merged with MeritCare in 2010, they assumed a new logo incorporating the Lorraine Cross "....also known as the crusader’s cross [which] has gained in significance ...  as a symbol... representing hope and healing to those we serve." (1)
Every two years, the $1 million Lorraine Cross Award recognizes someone who has excelled in "life-changing treatments, medical innovations and research." (2)

Deeper in Sanford's website I found:
"The Lorraine cross is an historic symbol used as a rally point in battle, as an emblem of liberation and a crusade for health. This mark harkens back to our legacy founded in faith, our belief in medicine and our desire to deliver exemplary care." (3)

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I was eating a Nabisco Oreo cookie the other day and ...wow! Is that a Lorraine Cross on my cookie? Why is it on top of an oval? 

I went further down the rabbit trail.

An orb or oval under a cross symbolizes the world. It's called a Triumphant Cross. Sometimes combined with the Lorraine Cross, it represents "...triumph [over] humankind's sin by the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross." (4)

Through the centuries, this combination of crosses was used by printers and others as a mark of completed craftsmanship. Consequently, Nabisco "has claimed in promotional material that [the Lorraine Cross] is an early European symbol for quality."  (5)

Again, the meaning of symbols morphs with the users. For example, why is there an extra bar that goes through the top of the Lorraine Cross? One has to go back further than the Crusades.

Jesus explained, “My Kingdom is not an earthly kingdom... my Kingdom is not of this world.” (John 18:36, New Living Translation, 2015)
But His enemies twisted His words into a charge of sedition that deserved crucifixion:
"Anyone who declares himself a king is a rebel against Caesar.” (John 19:12, NLT)

Pilate gave into the Jews, but insisted on having the final word. He
19 ...posted a sign on the cross that read, “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews.”  *** 21 Then the leading priests objected and said to Pilate, “Change it from ‘The King of the Jews’ to ‘He said, I am King of the Jews.’ ” 22 Pilate replied, “No, what I have written, I have written.” (John 19:19–22, NLT)

The top of the Lorraine Cross held a death sentence: Jesus was guilty of being a King. Without an army behind Him, He conquered the biggest enemy--death itself--and rose again, thereby offering life and salvation to the world.

Lord Jesus, You "personally carried our sins in Your body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By Your wounds we are healed." (1 Peter 2:24, NLT) Wake us from getting used to seeing Your cross as anything less than that. Stir our passion to share the power of the cross in a world that desperately needs Your healing forgiveness. Amen.

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(1) https://news.sanfordhealth.org/lorraine-cross/better-021-sanford-lorraine-cross-award/
(2) https://news.sanfordhealth.org/lorraine-cross/why-the-lorraine-cross-award-is-important-to-sanford/
(3) http://ww1.prweb.com/prfiles/2010/07/20/4281744/0_FrequentlyAskedQuestionsFinalExternal.pdf
(4) https://www.seiyaku.com/customs/crosses/nabisco.html#
https://www.seiyaku.com/customs/crosses/triumphant.html
(5) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nabisco#Corporate_image
https://www.seiyaku.com/customs/crosses/nabisco.html#
https://logos.fandom.com/wiki/Nabisco