There are more trees on earth
than there are stars in the Milky Way.
There can hardly be a view in Britain
that is not graced by trees.
But there's more to them than just natural beauty.
Today I'm in County Durham, exploring the deep meaning
and symbolism of trees in the Bible and in our faith.
Welcome to Songs of Praise.
Coming up in today's programme, I go for a woodland walk
with the Bishop of Newcastle
and discover how trees are vital in Scripture.
In the whole of the Bible, there's a veritable forest of trees.
It begins with a tree. It ends with a tree.
We explore the extraordinary yew tree in Scotland
that's one of Europe's oldest living treasures.
This would have seen the Druids worshipping in the area.
It would have probably seen Roman emissaries
pass around about this way.
# Praise the Son who feeds the hungry...#
And we have wonderful worship music
that gives thanks for God's creation.
From root to fruit.
# Heals the sick, upsets religion...#
This is Ushaw House in County Durham,
nestled in 500 acres of gardens, farms and woodland.
For over 200 years, it served as a Roman Catholic seminary
before closing in 2011.
It is now open to the public as a heritage site
with a focus on faith and spirituality.
There are some beautiful places here,
including this, the stunning St Cuthbert's Chapel,
where local Christians have gathered for much of our music today.
Our first hymn gives thanks to field and forest,
vale and mountain to Beethoven's stirring tune.
Trees are everywhere here at Ushaw, not only in the acres of woodland,
but they form an integral part of the gardens, too.
And the same can be said about Scripture.
In the story of the Bible,
trees not only form part of the background,
but they often take centre stage.
To help me unpack the meaning and symbolism of trees
is theologian and Bishop of nearby Newcastle,
Helen-Ann Hartley.
I've never been here before and the gardens are so beautiful.
But you have. Yes, I've been here a couple of times before.
I've looked at the gardens from the outside perspective,
but actually to immerse myself in them right now is beautiful.
So, trees, they appear in all sorts of places in the Bible.
Why are they so important?
I guess in the whole of the Bible there's a veritable forest of trees.
It begins with a tree. It ends with a tree.
And I think in many ways, trees, particularly in the biblical sense,
speak about what it is to live, what it is to grow,
what it is to endure, and above all, they speak about God's provision.
So I think they offer us so much to reflect on
when we think about our faith journeys.
And are there other significant trees that appear
in the story of the Bible?
Oh, yes, there are lots!
Abraham meets guests by the oaks of Mamre.
Elijah flees and shelters under a broom tree,
when he's feeling really like there's nothing more he can give.
So these are rich examples
of the ways in which particular trees give their own stories.
And I particularly like the story in the Gospels
of when Zacchaeus climbs a sycamore tree
in order to see Jesus,
and that tree then becomes that place of calling
and transformation for his life.
And Christians sometimes refer to the cross as a tree.
Is that right? Yes, that's right.
It's interesting in both in Acts and in First Peter,
the cross specifically is referred to as a tree.
So there could be something deep at work in that particular imagery,
which then becomes a basis and a foundation
for lots of Christian imagery throughout history.
Trees, I think, tell us a lot about what it is to be rooted,
to grow, and also about God's provision for us.
Jesus calls himself a vine.
"I am the vine, you are the branches."
So that sense of us being connected,
rooted, growing patiently,
and rejoicing in God's provision for us.
And I think that's a really hopeful message.
Not far from here, there once stood the sycamore gap tree.
The huge public reaction to its illegal felling
demonstrated our deep connection to trees.
As the Bishop of Newcastle,
it was very close to home for Helen-Ann.
How did the incident affect you when you heard?
It felt so bleak and pointless, and I think people felt a real,
genuine sense of grief.
And I think the thing about that tree is
that it clearly had been a companion to people's life stories
and the testimonies and the stories from people all over the world
who'd had very significant life moments,
you know, marriage proposals, and scattering of ashes.
Lots of people had a connection to that tree.
Despite the sadness caused by the felling, there is also hope.
There were many saplings that were cultivated
from the sycamore gap tree.
I remember being at a primary school near to the site
where they planted a tree,
and the children had composed a song,
and it was a beautiful moment, which, you know,
wouldn't have happened if that tree hadn't been felled.
For me, that felt profoundly hopeful.
And I think ultimately, the message of trees in the Bible
is one of hope and restoration.
So when you think about trees in the Bible,
is there a particular hymn that comes to mind?
I think The Old Rugged Cross
talks about all of the human emotions of pain,
of enduring, of isolation and loneliness,
but which redeems itself through the resurrection.
But how the cross and the tree hold all of that.
Did you ever, as a child, try to guess the age of a tree
by giving it a hug,
or counting the rings of one that had come down?
Many trees are old,
but few come close to one growing in a churchyard in Scotland.
Fortingall in Perthshire, tucked away just north of Loch Tay.
It's a beautiful spot, like many in this part of Scotland.
But in the grounds of the sleepy parish church lives a yew tree
that is world renowned.
As a professional forest manager for his entire career,
Syd House has studied the Fortingall Yew for many years.
The Fortingall Yew is a very special tree
because it's one of the oldest trees still living in Europe.
Some estimates have been as young as 2,000 years old.
It may be up to 5,000 years old, but because the centre of the tree
has disintegrated and disappeared, we're making our best estimates.
And something of the order of
2,000 to 3,000 years is probably realistic.
If you'd been around that time,
you're going to see a lot of history.
It would have certainly seen when Shakespeare wrote Macbeth,
and certainly a scene when Macbeth was here
in around the early part of the 11th century.
And I think you probably can go back another thousand years
before that to the birth of Christ.
This would have seen the Druids worshipping in the area.
It would have probably seen Roman emissaries
pass around about this way.
Whilst the Fortingall tree is extraordinary,
the site of a yew tree in a churchyard is less so.
They're the longest lasting of all the trees.
We don't have a lot of native evergreens in the British Isles,
so anything that was evergreen, like a yew tree,
tended to represent "everlasting", something that was eternal.
So it became a tradition to put them into graveyards
and around churches.
Taking care of the yew is the job of tree wardens like Fran Gillespie.
We get thousands of visitors to the yew, literally thousands,
and they're people coming from all over the world to see this tree.
People need to see something of that age
and it really moves them, I think.
People just are in awe of the tree because it's so old,
and people show their interest in different ways.
We have people who come and sing to the tree.
I say, "Well, what are you doing?"
They say, "Oh, we're just singing to the tree," which I think is lovely.
I get people say they're listening to the tree as well.
And for Fran, it's no surprise yew trees are such a common sight
in churchyards like Fortingall.
They represent life because they are able to go on
regenerating themselves.
Not only do they have berries from which seedlings will grow,
if a yew tree branch touches the ground,
then growth will come from that.
They have a number of ways of regenerating themselves,
so they were regarded as eternal, as a symbol of life.
I know that many generations have passed this way before me,
and will have touched the tree and will have stood underneath it.
And it's that sense of continuity, the natural rhythm of seasons,
that I find so comforting, reassuring and also quite exciting.
To protect the ancient tree, it sits behind a locked gate
and the church walls.
It's hoped that by carefully looking after it now,
the yew will continue to thrive for thousands of years to come.
Sometimes I feel it occasionally - when I've been working
under the tree, I do sort of feel it has a special aura.
A hymn that I'm very fond of is Great Is Thy Faithfulness
because it talks about God being eternal.
I see the link to the tree because the tree is also eternal.
Wow. I could listen to that soulful voice all day.
And when it comes to powerful voices,
there's no-one better than the iconic Sir Bryn Terfel.
Here's his version of trees,
which sets to music the poem by Joyce Kilmer.
As that song reminds us, only God can make a tree,
but it's up to us now to look after them.
The gardens here at Ushaw are kept looking so spectacular
by a team of dedicated volunteers.
But by putting in that hard work, they get so much out of it in return,
as one volunteer found out for themselves.
Judith Watson is tending to some of the many trees here.
Judith, Hi. Oh, hello, Laura. How are you? I'm fine, thank you.
Good. I'm just trimming the yew trees.
Would you like to give me a hand?
Yes, please. That sounds great. Excellent.
Judith, tell me, when did you start coming to Ushaw?
While it was still a Catholic seminary.
And then, of course, the college closed as a seminary,
so nothing was done in the gardens for quite a while.
and then in about 2012-13, they started
a volunteer gardening group.
Since then, she has been one of the team of volunteers
that keep these gardens looking as stunning as they do today.
It's a beautiful place. By working in the gardens,
you can make a nicer environment for people to come to visit.
Now it's open to the public and everybody can see
how wonderful it is.
Trees are a big part on the estate. The team have just planted
25,000 new saplings, and 12 iconic yew trees,
known as the 12 Apostles, line one of the paths here.
We're trimming 12 new yew trees.
Oh, hang on, I might have chopped a bit too much off there, Judith.
Oh, wow. Well, don't worry about it. It will grow back.
Yeah, you said it grows back, right? Eventually.
These trees have been here for... Some of them probably
hundreds of years, but they're still carrying on.
And I think your faith is like that. It's a... It's a lifelong journey.
I think we need to have a rest now.
As much as Judith has put into the gardens,
they've also given her something back.
Did that become part of your faith journey,
you know, getting involved as a volunteer in the gardens here?
Yes. I've always been a gardener at home,
but these gardens are special. They're special
because of the connection to Ushaw, to the Catholic Church,
and that's my faith. So when I volunteer here,
I can be immersed in the gardens, but feel the strength from it.
And these gardens took on a deeper significance at one point
recently in your life. Is that right?
I always come here on a Thursday morning every week,
and I had been going to visit my sister one Thursday morning
and unfortunately, I had a phone call from her son
the night before saying she had died unexpectedly.
I could have stayed at home, but the one thing I wanted to do
was actually come here.
I knew that would restore me if I was here in nature.
I would be able to cope with the emotion.
Do you feel that being out here in nature brings you closer
to your sister and those emotions that are so close to the surface?
Yes. I think coming here and looking at the trees
that are present in the garden, I can see in a tree
the strength in the trunk of the tree which supports the limbs,
the branches in the canopy of a tree,
and I feel that I can perhaps draw from that strength
and have a strength within me.
That helps me with my faith to support my family,
friends and a wider community.
There are lots of favourite hymns.
I think Make Me A Channel Of Your Peace.
The words are so evocative and I think it just causes
so many emotions.
You know, "Where there's despair in life, let me bring hope.
"Where there is sadness, ever joy."
It's just such a wonderful hymn.
Next week we stay in the great outdoors,
as I explore the theme of mountains and why they too are
so important in the story of the Bible.
But now, a prayer from some of the people we've met today.
God, thank you for trees and the beauty of your creation.
Root us deeply in your word. May we find shelter in your branches
and offer shelter to a world in need.
Remembering that even the smallest seed can grow
by your grace into a kingdom of hope.
Grant us the strength to flourish by your living waters
today, and always. Amen.
What's really stood out to me today is
how much trees really mean to people.
There's a deep connection, spiritually and emotionally,
between us as Christians, the story of our faith
and the trees that surround us every day.
We finish with a hymn of thanks from here at Ushaw.
Praise With Joy The World's Creator.
Until next time. Goodbye.