THE SIGNIFICANCE OF FLOWERS.

Levin Daily Chronicle, 20 November 1917, Page 3

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF FLOWERS.

Crowded congregations met at St Mary's Church on Sunday in connection with "Flower Sunday." For several hours on Saturday afternoon patient Ihands had worked to most beautifully deco'rate the sacred edifice with glorious roses. At morning service those who had been confirmed two weeks) before by Bishop Sprott took their first Communion. The - sermon was preached by tlhe Vicar, the Rev. G. B. Stephenson, both at morning and evcncng prayer. At the morning service the address dealt with the garden. Mi - Stephenson instanced the universality of the garden. No matter how sad or troubled the human mind might be nature still persisted. Christ, in the moments of His greatest agony, retired to tho Garden of Getlisemane. After -the Crucifixion His body was laid to rest in the garden belonging to Joseph. Arrfid the awful shot and shell of Flanders out men had planted, flowers between the trenches, said the preacher. In 'the evening Mr Stephenson took as his text the words "And the wilderness shall blossom as a rose." It is well, he said, that our race has taken the rose as its emblem. The rose is the most widely distributed among flowcirs. It : is found in the tropics, it is found among the Esquimaux. In the Alps the last plant to be met is a rose. In the deserts of Palestine and Arabia a rose of virgin whiteness is often times the only flower, hence she text. Mr Stephenson proceeded to draw useful lessons for the Christian life from his tex:':, and concluded by saying that unfortunately, as the cultivated rose had lost much of its sweetness and honey, so had we moved away from the early Christian simplicity.