The Tree of Life (9/19/21) | Music & the Spoken Word

Music & the Spoken Word broadcast with The Tabernacle Choir and Orchestra at Temple Square. With conductor Mack Wilberg, organist Richard Elliott, and Lloyd Newell as announcer.

Opening Credits (0:00)
1) Redeemer of Israel (1:13)
Freeman Lewis, arranged by Mack Wilberg, lyrics by Joseph Swain, lyrics by adapted William W. Phelps
2) I Know That My Savior Loves Me (5:08)
Tami Jeppson Creamer and Derena Bell, arranged by Ryan Murphy
3) Praise and Thanksgiving (Organ Solo) (9:53)
Dale Wood
4) Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin', from Oklahoma (11:45)
Richard Rodgers, arranged by Arthur Harris, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II
5) The Tree of Life (Spoken Word) (14:32)
6) Tree of Life (17:08)
Mack Wilberg, lyrics by David Warner
7) The Morning Breaks (22:55)
George Careless, arranged by Mack Wilberg, lyrics by Parley P. Pratt
The Tree of Life
By Lloyd Newell

For all of their differences, there are some things that many of the world’s religions share in common. One of these is the symbolic tree of life, representing a connection between heaven and earth and our longing for the eternal. Somewhere deep inside, we all want to know that life continues, that our existence has meaning beyond the here and now, and that its purposes do not begin with birth or end with death.

Not long after a young family moved into their first home, they planted a tree in their backyard. It was exactly the same height as their two-year-old daughter, so they called it her tree. For a time, the tree and the little girl seemed to grow at about the same rate. But before long, as the girl helped water and care for the tree, it quickly outgrew her. She and her friends spent many summer afternoons playing beneath and around the tree, climbing its branches and sometimes leaving her toys near its trunk. As she got older, she often sat to read in its shade. And sometimes, when she wanted to be alone, she went to the quiet of her tree to think.

Eventually, the girl became a woman and went away to college. Now she has a home of her own, but the tree remains—and she still comes back to visit it from time to time. As she gazes at the branches stretching heavenward and leans against the thick, sturdy trunk that grasps the earth so firmly, she remembers that she and her tree were once the same size, and she thinks back on all the living and growing they both have seen—and will yet see in years to come.

In some ways, this tree has become her tree of life. It doesn’t bear fruit promising immortality, but it does help her feel connected to heaven. And it links her past with her future. It can be difficult to see the growth in ourselves, but when we look at a mighty tree that we once knew as a sapling, we are reminded of the potential inside each of us. No matter how small we may feel now, we were created to grow, to spread our branches, and to bear life-giving fruit.

Episode aired September 19, 2021, Broadcast Number 4801.
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Видео The Tree of Life (9/19/21) | Music & the Spoken Word канала The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square