adjective "Christian"

[Arnold M. Zwicky]

from the NYT, 3/10/05, p. A22, "Favor the Rod, Get the Ax" (with
subhead: "College Expels Education Student Who Advocated Corporal
Punishment"), by Patrick D. Healy:

The profanity transported him [Scott McConnell, the education student
in question] back to his own days at Robert E. Lee Elementary School in
Oklahoma in the 1980's, when there was a swift solution for wiseacres:
The paddle.

"It was a footlong piece of wood, and hung on every classroom wall like
a symbol, a strong Christian symbol," said Mr. McConnell, who is 26.
-----

i'm struggling to see how a paddle used for punishment serves as a
Christian symbol.  what's the interpretation of "Christian" here?

arnold (zwicky at csli.stanford.edu)