The Rata Tree

A couple of days ago I mentioned that Alan Jamieson responded to a question of mine by telling the story of a (Northern) Rata tree. He saw new expressions of church; new explorations and experiments in being church in today’s world as being the beginnings of a new tree. He talked of the new and the existing as being profoundly necessary for the other. He wondered if existing congregations (“rata trees”) were up to the challenge of nurturing, protecting, encouraging, and resourcing new expressions and ways of being church (“seedlings” & “young rata trees”). He talked of the alternative: the existing growing old and dying with nothing to replace it. He talked of the alternative: lone expressions of church starting from scratch together with all the ‘dangers’ and challenges that that entails.

Alan talked of the new being messy, but wondered if ultimately it was worth it for existing congregations and denominations to work through that phase; to stick with it despite the mess.

Northern rata (Metrosideros robusta) is a tree up to 30 m tall or more. The trunk looks rather like that of a pohutukawa and is commonly up to 2 m in diameter…The tree usually starts as a windblown seed lodged in decaying humus and leaf litter accumulated in the branch and trunk hollows of a large old tree.

From there it sends roots down to the ground where it finds additional nutrition. The rata also sends “clasping” roots around the trunk of the supporting tree for extra security. Eventually the roots all join up to form one single trunk. This takes considerable time and by this time the host tree will probably have died of old age, leaving a hollow on the inside of the rata trunk.

The northern rata was known as the “strangler rata” for a long time because people thought that the rata squeezed the host tree to death. However, research by Phillip Knightbridge has shown that seedlings only establish on large branches or in trunk hollows where humus has accumulated. A tree must be pretty old to have large branches and trunk hollows.

It could well be that the rata hastens the end of the host tree somewhat, after all the rata canopy shades out part of the host tree canopy, and the rata roots compete with the host tree roots for the same food and water.

(Rata information obtained online from here)

“The rata starts life reliant on the old. It only survives if provided with shelter and nurture. The rata of tomorrow's church, creating anew, dreaming afresh, calls out for support and sustenance, for nurture and for encouragement.” (Steve Taylor)

Comments

[Larry Boyle]

To Persons of Concern: I am finishing a book on evangelical Christian apologetics hoping to publish by years' end. With your permission, i would like to include your snapshot story of "The Rata Tree." If you would agree to telling me a little ditty on the rata and would grant me permission to include it, I'd be pleased. Thank you, Larry Boyle