A MOTION from Worcester diocesan synod on sustainable church flowers was carried by the General Synod on the Thursday, despite earlier attempts by some members to have to removed from the agenda.
The motion originated from the PCC of St Bartholomew’s, Harpley, in Worcester, which was “determined to make a tangible difference locally, by glorifying God sustainably”. Several PCC members were present at the debate, and others watched online.
The motion was moved by the Bishop of Dudley, the Rt Revd Martin Gorick (Southern Suffragans). The Business Committee had earlier defended its scheduling, after some members had said that debating it would be “wasting costly time”, given that issues such as Palestine were not on the agenda.
An early attempt by John Wilson (Lichfield) to move to next business was defeated. “This originates from a PCC, to a deanery, to a diocese. If you squash this now without an opportunity to hear more, what does that say to every diocese in the country?” Bishop Gorick asked, to loud applause.
The background paper said that floral foam, which had been created as a plastic by-product in the 1950s, containing microplastics that were damaging to the environment and marine life. The Royal Horticultural Society had banned it in 2020.
The paper offered alternatives for flower-arranging and practical tips for churches. These included choosing seasonal and local flowers, working with local growers or farmers’ markets, and repurposing floral arrangements.
“Not all churches will be able to implement all the principles all at once. It will take time to find places to source locally grown flowers, and not every church has a churchyard where flowers, foliage, or twigs can be found,” the paper acknowledged
The debate went beyond flowers to the heart of worship and parish life. “The motion doesn’t ban anything or force churches to stop doing things,” Bishop Gorick said. “It rejoices in foliage in church; it rejoices in what is naturally around you — simple, natural beauty.”
A video from Harpley also celebrated the joy of using local flowers “that tell the story of this time of year”. It was, the Bishop said, “about faithfulness. It is deeply theological, to honour the God who made the earth.”
“This is about far more than flower-arrangers,” Judith Osborne (Leeds) said in a maiden speech. “It gives confidence to those who want to see environmental responsibility embedded into the life of their church. . . It’s not about criticising past practice, but encouraging a sustainable approach for the future.”
The Revd William Harwood (Truro) was worried about unintended consequences at parish level. These included resorting to silk flowers, how the motion might be viewed as “a diktat from the national Church”, and its basis of “outdated” scientific information: floral foam was now completely biodegradable, he said.
The Revd Jody Stowell (London) said that her flower team had long stopped using floral foam. They had encountered views of church flower-arranging as “women’s work, sadly demeaned and dismissed,” she said. “In my parish, flowers honour the God who made us. Worship is much more than the cerebral intake of information.”
The Bishop of Norwich, the Rt Revd Graham Usher, who is the lead bishop for the environment, spoke about the seasons, the Christian meaning of flowers, and their place in folklore. “We have long in this nation brought flowers and foliage into the architecture of our churches. . . The things we can look on as ephemeral are often beautiful in God’s eyes . . . full of fun, playfulness, beauty, and kindness.”
Nigel Lea-Wilson (Liverpool) said that his wife, a florist, led the church floral team. Her view was that floral foam could be used only once before going mouldy, and that fresh cut flowers in non-foam support were preferable. The serious health impact of microplastics necessitated a rethink, he said.
The Revd Rachel Webbley (Canterbury) understood the “click-bait headlines” and why the outside world might be baffled that this item was on the agenda, but it was an expression of Christian discipleship, she said. A debate on the “urgent, time-critical situation in Palestine” could not have happened in this slot. This was “not a zero-sum game. . . Such delicate, precious matters merit a sensible series of suggestions,” she said
Jane Evans (Leeds), a flower-arranger, supported “a good motion on an important issue”, but she was concerned about the potential impact of a boycott of imported flowers on growers in countries such as Kenya: “We do need to be conscious of what other steps we take to ensure livelihoods in the poorest parts of the world.”
Robin Lunn (Worcester) was in support. He said that the motion showed “much about the power of the parish”. It was not proscribing anything, “not asking others to do things, but putting emphasis on the local.”
“It’s an important spiritual matter for us. I’m glad we’re taking it seriously,” the Revd Dr Abigail Walsh (Lichfield) said. “Care for creation is about small things: small changes have great power. It encourages us to see beauty in the natural world.”
The Revd James Menzies (Salisbury) was a convert: he confessed to initial annoyance at the inclusion of this topic on the agenda. “But what the debate has done is to help to change our minds. I’ve changed mine after this. I support it as a grass-roots initiative to honour God and to celebrate the glory of God in the land we’re living in, and to honour flower teams for hard work often unacknowledged and taken for granted.”
Carolyn Graham (Guildford) said that not everybody had gardens. Nicholas Land (York) had been contacted by many in his parish. “This is something where tens of thousands of lay people are involved, a significant aspect of ministry.” Was flower-arranging a spiritual gift? But care needed to be taken about implementation of the motion, she said, so that it was not seen as a “top-down diktat”, but, rather, “an invitation to the flower-arranging team, to thank them for their ministry, and reflect on how best to do it for the glory of God”.
Jane Rosam (Rochester), a farmer, said: “As farmers, we care deeply for or beautiful world. This is a matter of witness. What we place on our altars says much about what we value. It’s about making our worship truthful, aligning our practice with our prayers.”
The Revd Kathryn Campion-Spall (Bristol) recalled the witness of two members of the flower team — one elderly, one a more recent member — in her church’s “Faith in Action” slot. Their work was “deeply connected to their faith, an expression of their faithful, loving service,” she said. “We should celebrate and honour those who bring the beauty of God’s creation into our worship.”
The motion read:
That this Synod
(a) embrace the principles of the Sustainable Church Flowers movement which encourages a living into the Fifth Mark of Mission by promoting the use of local, seasonal and fully biodegradable compostable flowers and foliage;
(b) encourage cathedrals, churches and churchyards — wherever possible — to source flowers and foliage locally and seasonally for use in worship and church life;
(c) call on cathedrals, churches and churchyards to eliminate the use of floral foam (oasis) and all similar non-biodegradable and non-reusable products and techniques, while rediscovering traditional and environmentally friendly methods of presentation and display.
Read more reports from the General Synod Digest here