Paper short abstract:

Within Scotland and Wales are two sites with ancient yews in which churches were built around them. However, as yews are considered sacred by multiple spiritualities, who is responsible and who is allowed to claim responsibility for protection of these yews?

Paper long abstract:

One of the oldest trees in the world, the yew tree is considered sacred by multiple spiritualities including Christians and pagans. The Celts of early Britain regarded it with reverence, utilising branches for their own religious purposes while also viewing it as tree that represented life and death. As Christianity moved, then settled, into Britain churches began to spring up around yews, incorporating their sacredness within the Christian framework. Although yew trees are contemporarily associated with Christianity, many neo-pagan groups are reclaiming yews into their own spiritual context. However, when a sacred element is physically housed within one spirituality's landscape, who is the proper steward? Utilising case studies from my own PhD research within Scotland and Wales, I explore the concept of who is responsible for ensuring the maintenance and protection of the sacred yew within the confines of the churchyard and how that responsibility manifests outside the governance of the church.