Both Fr Roddy Johnston, Vicar General of the Diocese of Argyll & the Isles, and parish priest of Our Holy Redeemer, Stornoway, and Marian Pallister, Justice and Peace Commissioner for Argyll and the Isles write our blog this week about the meaning and the journey from Stornoway behind the trees that commemorated the 40th anniversary of Justice and Peace Scotland.
When the Justice and Peace Commission decided last year that we should plant trees to commemorate its 40th anniversary, I suggested consulting Fr Roddy Johnston, parish priest in Stornoway, Isle of Lewis, and a former forester.
Fr Roddy’s knowledge of trees is as immense as a Scots pine and as intricate as a juniper. I knew he was the man to go to for advice. I took advantage of my visit to Lewis and Harris with the Rohingya refugee photographic exhibition to quiz him on the best trees to represent the work of Justice and Peace Scotland. He brought out a pile of books and shared a mountain of knowledge. He suggested the Scots pine for peace, the juniper for justice.
But his help didn’t stop there.
He offered to source the trees – eight (one for each diocese in Scotland) to be planted at Carfin Grotto and more so that each diocese could plant a 40th anniversary tree on home ground.
I was to transport them to the central belt, as the planting would follow closely on my next visit to Lewis and Harris – this time with my SCIAF badge in my lapel to deliver this year’s Lent talk. Fr Roddy gave me care instructions and dispatched me on the ferry with a Morrison’s bag for life containing the infant trees. I handed them over to Frances Gallagher, who organised the Carfin event (see elsewhere on the website), in the Costco car park in Glasgow’s Springburn. I felt like their mother.
And I also brought a message from Fr Roddy, who we can’t thank enough for his generosity. He says:
‘Happy 40th birthday to Justice and Peace.
There is always a need for people who care enough about the well-being of societies across the world and the Catholic Church in Scotland must continue to play an active role in promoting Justice and Peace.
As a symbol of the Church’s commitment to continuing this work, the Bishops of Scotland are planting Juniper and Pine trees. These trees are indigenous to Scotland:
- The Scots Pine (Pinus sylvestris) is the National Tree for Scotland and can survive in what is often a hostile environment. It was once the main species of tree in the Caledonian Forests which covered much of the Highlands.
- The Juniper (Juniperus communis) is a tree that is seldom planted today. Its timber is not favoured as being good to work with. In myth and legend, because of the way it grows, with twists and turns, it is associated with the way life is – often meandering but always returning to what is true.
For as long as humans have been on this planet, trees have come to symbolise something special, whether it is life, health, vigour, or the spirit of something. In the Garden of Eden there was a tree of life and a tree of knowledge of good and evil. It is the hope that these trees, planted at Carfin, will be a symbol of Justice and Peace for many generations to come.
“There is always hope for a tree.” (Job 14:7)’