Why Sempervirens?

Have you seen a Coastal Redwood before? They are awe inspiring trees, reaching around 350-380 feet tall, with a furrowed fibrous bark, soft flat needles and a deep red wood with a lemony scent. They have the shape of a plume left by a rocket as it blasts off the earth. Redwood branches are almost like trees and can be referred to as additional trunks because they are many times in excess of 140 feet. Mature Redwoods create the environment around them and are so complex that each tree can be a forest of its own.

Sequoia Sempervirens, the given scientific name, are strong because their roots are intermingled with their community. They have no tap root, no reliance on the depth of the earth, but instead their roots spread out more than 100 feet, lie 10-12 feet under the surface, and lock in with the trees around them to weather life. And weather life they do, as they survive more than 2000 years and then keep on living. When they do fall, new sprouts spring up from the roots. Hence, the name SemperVirens. Our favorite interpretation of this name is Ever Living.

In many ways, this is the story we are living as believers. As the Redwoods rely on moisture from fog, we rely on the Spirit. As Christ lives in us, the mycorhizzae (thread-like fungus) live inside of the roots of Sempervirens enabling it to receive the nutrients it needs to flourish. The redwood tree itself, even though it lives a long time, is just temporary, but it is rooted in the eternal.