By Joanna Puddister King
FLOWOOD – A life-size bride dressed in handmade flowers greeted parishioners at St. Paul Church this Easter, her gown a delicate arrangement of soap petals crafted by members of the parish just weeks before.
Inside the church, those same flowers adorned the altar, the result of a daylong, bridal-themed workshop that invited participants to reflect on the Church as the Bride of Christ and her call into the “Divine Dance.”
More than 100 parishioners gathered March 14 for the Easter soap flower workshop led by Amber Earles, owner of A’Marie’s Bath Flower Shop, along with Cecilia Carlton, director of liturgy at St. Paul, and parishioner Pam Harkins. Guests of all ages filled tables, shaping delicate soap petals into flowers that would become part of the parish’s Easter environment.
The event blended creativity, catechesis and celebration, with each element of the bridal theme pointing to a deeper spiritual meaning.
“We’ve worked on this for a year, just letting things come to us from the Holy Spirit,” Earles said. “It wasn’t forced – it just unfolded, like the flowers.”
Earles, a St. Paul parishioner, began her business more than a decade ago after creating a bouquet of soap flowers for her hospitalized mother-in-law. When her mother-in-law hesitated to use them because they were “too pretty,” Earles developed a petal-by-petal design that could be enjoyed both visually and practically.
While her handcrafted flowers are now shipped nationwide, Earles said opportunities like the parish workshop remain central to her mission.
“This is why I do what I do,” she said. “Yes, I work to live, but this – seeing people come together, creating and finding joy – this is the purpose behind it.”
Throughout the day, participants created mostly white flowers symbolizing the purity of the Bride of Christ, along with multicolored blooms representing the unique gifts within the Body of Christ. These were later incorporated into both the altar display and the atrium scene depicting Jesus inviting His Bride into the Divine Dance.

During a midday reflection, Carlton guided participants into the theological meaning behind the imagery.
“We are not meant to stand apart from the Lord,” Carlton said. “We are invited to the feast of the Lamb – invited into relationship, into communion, into the dance itself.”
Drawing from Scripture and tradition, Carlton described the Divine Dance as the movement of love within the Trinity and the invitation extended to all believers.
“No more standing at a distance,” she said. “There is a place set for you at the table.”
The bridal theme carried through the day with a wedding-style cake, a bouquet toss and soap flower bases given as favors – lighthearted touches that reinforced the central message of the wedding feast of the Lamb.
By the end of the workshop, the room that once buzzed with conversation and careful handiwork reflected a shared sense of joy and participation in something greater.
“It’s not just about making something beautiful,” Earles said. “It’s about being invited into something deeper – into God’s love.”

(Above) Kerry Doyle, a parishioner of St. Paul Church, displays a handmade soap flower she crafted during a March 14 workshop preparing decorations for the Easter altar and atrium. (On right) Amber Earles speaks to participants about the origins of her handcrafted soap flowers and A’marie’s Bath Flower Shop. (Photos by Joanna King – For more photos visit jacksondiocese.zenfoliosite.com.)