Volume 30, No. 29                                                 
July 24, 2005

Flower Power

   It always raises a big stink and wide public approval, both at the same time.

   At its first-ever showing, in England during 1889, the titan arum attracted so many people police had to control the waves of curious onlookers. A recent exhibition in Germany drew 16,000 in just three days. The source of such excitement?   A flower.

   But no ordinary flower, and its drawing-power has nothing to do with beauty, or a sweet scent.  In fact, it’s just the opposite.  The plant is the biggest — and smelliest — in the world.  

   Native to the Indonesian island of Sumatra, the titan arum thrives in sunlight and grows up to 20 feet high, 15 feet wide and a weight of 170 pounds!  But its main attraction is a putrid stench that smells like rotting flesh, which is why the plant is also called the corpse flower.

   Related to the same plant family as callalilies, philodendrons and skunk cabbage, it blooms for just two or three days after sitting dormant for months to build up its energy reserves.  It has a fleshy, upright spike surrounded by a pale green, petal-like leaf that’s velvety maroon inside, to resemble a decaying body.  

   For the first eight hours after blooming, the titan arum gives off waves of a nauseating odour caused by sulfurous chemicals — like those that trigger the smell of rotten eggs — and compounds called cadaverene and putrescine, which are also produced when flesh breaks down.  Just as roses and peonies use pleasant scents to attract bees and other pollinators, the sour stench in the corpse flower attracts beetles and flies that lay eggs in dead carcasses.

   To ensure insects can detect the smell up to half a mile away, the titan arum generates heat.  Botanists think the flower’s giant spike acts like a chimney to radiate the stench far and wide, attracting the pollencarriers who go from plant-to-plant, reproducing the species.  

   Repulsive and attractive at the same time, the corpse flower is a lot like the Christ follower  As the apostle Paul tells us, God uses the sacrifice of his Son to rescue us from our sin and its consequences. “Now, wherever we go, He uses us to tell others about the Lord and  spread the Good News like a sweet perfume.  Our lives are a fragrance presented by Christ to God.  But this fragrance is perceived differently by those being saved and by those perishing.  To those who are perishing we’re a fearful smell of death and doom.  But to those being saved we’re a life-giving perfume. (2 Cor. 2:14-15)

   In other words, Christianity is for all, but it’s not for everyone.  Many reject it as too restrictive.  When those around us see changes because of our faith — even when the smallest changes take months and incredible effort — some feel defensive, or worry about us judging them by our new Standard.  “Your former friends are very surprised when you no longer join them in the wicked things they do, and they say evil things about you,” observes Peter.  Just remember they’ll have to face God who’ll judge everyone...  Most of all, continue to show a deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:4,5, 8)

   That love also generates the warmth that radiates the aroma of Christ.  Like the titan arum, we thrive in the Light, and the same Presence that repulses those who reject Jesus draws those who have open, receptive hearts. When those accustomed to the world’s decay sense a truly radical, outrageous love brought about by the death of our sin-centred wills, they’ll be enticed to come close.  Once they see that a wonderful spiritual destiny begins with the death of our wills and  weak bodies, what was once putrid becomes perfume.  Even those who watch from afar will be curious about this new, life-altering perspective on death that brings peace and hope.

   “That’s why we never give up.  Though our bodies are dying, our spirits are renewed every day.  For our present troubles are quite small and won’t last very long... So we don’t look at the troubles we see right now.  Rather, we look forward to what we haven’t yet seen.  For the troubles we see will soon be over, but the joys to come will last forever.” (2 Cor. 4:16-18)

   And that’s nothing to turn up your nose at.

By Rick Gamble, published in Cross Current, the weekly newsletter of the Followers of Christ church family in Brantford, Ontario, Canada.  Reprint at will in not-for-profit publications.  To receive these free weekly articles via email, send a note to sgamble@bfree.on.ca