Altar-Worthy Weeds

That might sound like an odd title for an article, but it was one of the workshops at our Altar Guild meeting last month. I took more away from that workshop than simply how to create an arrangement for the altar… more on that in a minute!

The meeting / workshop was held at Still Hopes in Columbia. The day started with Valerie giving us an update from both Kanuga and Triennial. She shared part of a video from Triennial when Presiding Bishop Curry met with the Altar Guild. She shared information about the National Altar Guild Association, and some of the products they have for sale in their Sacristy Shop. One item I was particularly interested in was the Disaster Kits for Eucharist. If you’ve never heard of these, you can read more about them here.

For our first workshop, Valerie furnished supplies for us to each make a prayer journal. A couple of us (me for one) had some missteps in the process, but it was a lot of fun! This would be a great project to do in your own church…maybe plan now to create one for Advent!

The other workshop was the “Altar-Worthy Weeds” workshop I mentioned at the beginning. Valerie brought a few cut flowers she had purchased, but everything else came from her yard. She talked about how to prep anything you cut from the yard before you bring it inside to arrange, how to start your arrangement and then build from there, and reminded us that no part of your arrangement should be higher than the cross.

Beyond those basics, the two things that resonated with me were 1) the beauty that can be found in your own yard, or the church’s yard, to use on the altar, and 2) the more practical aspect of the cost of purchased arrangements for the altar. However your church pays for the altar flowers each week, the cost of purchased floral arrangements is high. One group of women at the workshop creates their own arrangements. An Altar Guild I was a member of in the past had a couple of women who created the arrangements each week. As we head into fall, then winter, maybe your Altar Guild would be willing to try creating their own simple arrangements. If you have a Junior Altar Guild, maybe you could work on that together! Besides saving a little money, think of the holiness of worshiping God by creating something from your own hands to worship Him, the Creator of all.

peace~

Dawn