Christmas 2022: Bengaluru church sends message of sustainability through Christmas decoration

Discarded CDs and bamboo strips form the Christmas tree as a part of the festive decorations in the Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Bengaluru

By: Lifestyle Desk

New Delhi | December 25, 2022 06:20 PM IST

3 min read

christmas, christmas tree, sustainability, bengaluru, church, indian express

Every year, members of the Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Bengaluru create Christmas trees using environment-friendly materials. (Express Photo by Jithendra M)

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The spirit of Yuletide comes with an inherent sense of exchanging gifts. While we make the most out of the traditional Yule trees as a part of our Christmas decorations, we spare little thought to what we take from nature in this process. And that is why this church in Bengaluru customarily revels in the festive spirit by giving back to the nature (or at least sparing it from the wrath of extraction) through the process of recycling.

Every year, members of the Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Bengaluru create Christmas trees using environment-friendly materials. Following this tradition, they have chosen CDs and bamboo strips as primary material for their 25-ft tree this year.

Discarded CDs and bamboo strips have been used to make this Christmas tree at the Mar Thoma Syrian Church in Bengaluru. (Express Photo by Jithendra M)

For more than a decade now, the church has used only recyclable materials in its festive decorations. By using eco-friendly and locally-sourced products, it aims to spread the message of sustainability.

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“While being environment-friendly has been a topic of discussion globally now, the idea struck us when we were talking about how to source Christmas decorations. Instead of just buying a tree and decorating it, we decided to make it from scratch,” said Daniel Thomas, the Christmas decoration team lead.

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Items out of the scrapyard, such as old videotapes, used plastic bottles and carton boxes, have all found a place in the Christmas tree decorations and other decorations in the church premises over the years.

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However, every constructive creation has to pass a number of hurdles; making this eco-friendly tree was no different. “This year, we used a pulley to set up the tree. Soon after, it fell down. This was a week before the celebrations were to begin. We had to put it back together as quickly as we could,” he said.

The members of the church coherently worked in the making of this tree. They started putting together the entire structure over a month before the Christmas celebrations, Thomas concluded.

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