By L.A. Williams
Christian Action League
June 21, 2024
Operators of a Southern Pines florist have taken a stand for their faith by announcing that they will not offer wedding decor for “LGBTQIA+ ceremonies.”
Using a Facebook post to explain their Biblical beliefs regarding salvation and sin and their intent not to treat anyone unkindly based on gender identity, Soirée Pines owners say they serve LGBTQIA+ customers who purchase flowers, but will limit their wedding services to heterosexual couples. The post has drawn both criticism and support.
“Every business owner should have the right to operate their business in accordance with their peacefully held religious beliefs. The decision by Soirée Pines not to service LGBTQIA+ wedding couples is deeply rooted in their commitment to their faith and what the Bible teaches,” said the Rev. Mark Creech, executive director of the Christian Action League.
He said devout Christians who hold a biblical view of marriage and human sexuality are not motivated by hate or bigotry, nor do they discriminate against other races or classes.
“What they do is to adhere to their religious beliefs, which include discriminating against what they see as sinful behavior. According to the Bible, certain actions are considered grossly immoral and lead to eternal damnation,” Creech said. “While some may find this decision outrageous, ignorant, or disappointing, in our pluralistic society that values individual and religious liberties, the owners of this business are within their rights to live out their faith.”
Erica Street, president of the Southern Pines chapter of PFLAG (formerly Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) told WRAL the social media post was “disappointing.”
“While Soirée Pines is certainly free to service whomever they choose, our community is also free to hire any florist of their choice,” Street wrote in an email. “We have many other florists here who are welcoming and affirming.”
Soirée Pines is not the first florist to take a stand for marriage between one man and one woman. Barronelle Stutzman, the owner of Arlene’s Flowers in Richland, Wash., refused to provide flowers for a gay couple’s wedding in 2013 based on her Christian beliefs. She was successfully sued by Washington State and the ACLU. Alliance Defending Freedom took her case to the Washington Supreme Court, which ruled against her. The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the case, but asked the state High Court to reconsider in light of the victory for cake artist Jack Phillips in Masterpiece Cakeshop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission. The State Supreme Court again ruled against Stutzman, and the case was finally settled in 2021 with a $5,000 payment from the florist.
A similar and more recent case dealing with wedding websites resulted in the opposite outcome. In June 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of Lorie Smith of 303 Create, a Colorado graphic artist and web designer who refused to create messages that contradicted her core beliefs. According to Alliance Defending Freedom, that ruling reaffirmed that “it’s unconstitutional for the state to eliminate from the public square ideas it dislikes, including the belief that marriage is the union of husband and wife.”
The Rev. Creech pointed out that for Christians, every aspect of life—family life, community life, social life, and even work life—should be lived as an expression of worship to God.
“It is considered a perversion of worship, a sin abhorrent to God, to endorse or facilitate what the Scriptures teach that God despises. Same-sex marriage is seen as profoundly sinful, and Christians believe that God will judge the sin and those who live this way. By denying service to LGBTQIA+ couples, the proprietors of the business are acting in accordance with their faith, believing that feeling shame or guilt may actually be a call to reconciliation with God. They hope that this feeling may lead some to repent,” he explained.
“These business owners demonstrate more genuine Christian virtue than many clergy. May the Lord protect and bless them. We encourage the Christians of that community to show their support by doing business with them.”
