The Tree of Life

God planted the tree of life in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:9) 

The Tree of Life features in Genesis and at the end of the Bible in Revelation - On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations (Revelation 22:2, New International Version)
 
Your family tree tells the story of where you came from and two thousand years ago on page 1 of the New Testament, Matthew’s Gospel begins with the family tree of Jesus.
 
Trees surround our church and are a symbol of God’s care for us. Throughout the world, they hold together the land, protecting us from floods and landslides. Sir David Attenborough showed how trees are a superhighway for many interlinked, complex ecosystems in his series of TV programmes entitled ‘Wild Isles’. Many species of plants and animals are symbiotically linked with and by trees.
 
Richmond Park is a few minutes’ walk from HTR. It is a beautiful forested, healing environment on our doorstep. Nearby Kew Gardens is a wonderful arboretum containing trees from across the world.
 
Every tree is a metaphor for the abundant life God offers us. As a scientist, I am seeking constructive solutions to the problems deforestation and our human pollution are causing.
 
Human beings like you and me have been given a sacred commission, in the book of Genesis, to look after our environment in the way God intended.
 
A Rocha UK is one of the Christian organisations that suggests ways we can actively care for our unique spaceship Earth and all its trees. It’s our survival capsule, the only one we’ve got. We have a duty of care for all the species on Earth, including humans.