What would Jesus do if he owned 108,000 acres (over 60,000 football pitches) of land? Would he farm the vast majority for profit, or would he use some of it to restore forests, wetlands and meadows to help save our vanishing wildlife?

A diverse collection of actors, scientists, academics, TV personalities, politicians, theologians and naturalists, along with over 120,000 members of the public, have joined forces to call on the new Archbishop of Canterbury, Sarah Mullally, to lead the Church of England in committing to rewilding 30% of their vast estate.

This morning, Chris Packham carried this groundswell of support to St. Paul’s Cathedral. On the steps of the iconic building, the conservationist and TV presenter held aloft a model of Noah’s Ark etched with the names of the thousands of members of the public who want the Church of England’s wealthy investment body, the Church Commissioners, to take urgent action to protect nature.

The action, organised by grassroots campaign group Wild Card, is part of a growing movement pressing for the Church of England, one of the country’s biggest landowners, to do more to tackle the nature and climate emergency.

Actor Emma Thompson said: "Nature is the heart of creation, but has been treated as disposable, as a space to be colonised without regard to the welfare of any of its denizens, including humans.

“We are slap bang in the middle of a biodiversity crisis. Now, with the Church's first female leader, I am hopeful that she will also be the first to truly lead on behalf of all creation. Humans like to think of themselves as apart from nature. It has become clear to most of us that this is not the case, and that we are as much a part of nature as any other living creature. I implore the new Archbishop to make a determined commitment to rewilding and try to help British wildlife to recover."

Packham was also armed with an open letter for the Archbishop-Designate, signed by nearly 50 high profile individuals and organisations, including, broadcaster, actor and writer Stephen Fry, Green Party leader Zack Polanski, former Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams, former chair of the IPBES and IPCC Sir Robert T Watson, chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and former Green Party leader Caroline Lucas.

Speaking at the event, Chris Packham said: “For too long the Church Commissioners have gotten away with putting profit over creation. The new Archbishop has the power to lead real change, not just within the Church, but within the country.

“With the planet in the midst of a climate and nature emergency, and over one hundred thousand people, including many churchgoers, sending a clear message that they want action, we are hopeful that the Archbishop-Designate will give British wildlife the salvation that it desperately needs.”

Presented alongside the ark that featured at today’s event, was a gift of more than 100,000 wildflower seeds for the new Archbishop, each representing a signatory’s hope for the Church to take action to protect nature.

Britain ranks in the bottom 10% of nations globally for biodiversity. Given that half of England is owned by less than 1% of its population, the country’s top land owners, like the Church of England, must act if we are to increase biodiversity and reach the United Nations’ target (of which the UK Government is a signatory) of restoring and protecting 30% of land and seas for nature by 2030. Currently, a majority of the 108,000 acres of land held within the Church Commissioners’ investment portfolio, is in a poor ecological condition. Largely used for commerical farming, only 3% is wooded, compared with the UK average of 13%, giving it the lowest tree coverage of the UK’s top ten institutional landowners. Meanwhile, according to Church officials, fewer than half of Church Commissioner owned sites of special scientific interest (known as SSSIs) are considered to be in ‘favourable condition’, despite their potential value for nature.