Life
Man spends 4 years of his life creating a majestic church out of living trees
This is so incredibly unique.
Winona Thomas
11.17.21

Building a home is never easy. Building a cathedral from trees is pure art! The time spent in perfecting each corner and designing the interior requires a lot of patience, dedication, and hard work.

But for Barry Cox, building the cathedral was his way of honoring God and pursuing his passion.

YouTube-Barry Cox
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YouTube-Barry Cox

Barry is a devout Catholic who dreamed of becoming a Pope when he was a kid. Instead of pursuing his lifelong dream of becoming the head of the Church, he pursued gardening where he found his true calling.

Through his passion and love for the Lord and gardening, he created the first-ever Cathedral made of trees.

YouTube-Barry Cox
Source:
YouTube-Barry Cox

Cox has always been fascinated with church architecture. He loved the high-arches and artistic columns of the old and new church. Cox believes that his love for architecture and Churches stems from his Italian roots.

With this, Cox traveled across New Zealand, Europe, and America to learn about Church architecture.

He would usually travel with his motorbike and visit different churches. During his travels, he would analyze the height, structure, and design of these buildings. Then, he would use this information in building an eco-friendly and unique church.

Connecting his love for nature, he built his own business called Treelocations wherein they move large trees using tree spades.

YouTube-Barry Cox
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YouTube-Barry Cox

“People know how much I love trees,” says Barry in an interview with Stuff, “so they call me when there are trees that would otherwise be cut-down or removed. I go and kind of rescue them.”

Mixing his knowledge of trees and architecture, he started his project.

YouTube-Barry Cox
Source:
YouTube-Barry Cox

“I walked out my back door one day and thought, ‘That space needs a church’ – and so it began,” he recalled.

YouTube-Barry Cox
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YouTube-Barry Cox

“I cleared the area in April 2011 and made the iron frame, drawing on all the research I had done over the years of studying churches. I wanted the roof and the walls to be distinctly different, to highlight the proportions, just like masonry churches,” he continued.

Natural materials were used in creating the structure.

YouTube-Barry Cox
Source:
YouTube-Barry Cox

The walls of the church are made from Copper Sheen which is an Australian tea tree that is thick and resembles a stone. The roof is made of Cut Leaved Alder tree while a Dublin Bay rambling rose circles its way to the top. The ground is green and the altar is made of marble from Lake Como in Italy.

It’s truly a luscious green wonderland.

YouTube-Barry Cox
Source:
YouTube-Barry Cox

Aside from the church, there is a garden maze that guests can visit.

Guests can also take a trip down the river garden. It’s not long before people began to flock to the Tree Church.

YouTube-Barry Cox
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YouTube-Barry Cox

Newly engaged couples began booking reservations for the Tree Church!

Pixabay-@olcay ertem
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Pixabay-@olcay ertem

“We wanted somewhere different and special, and the Tree Church is all of that and more,” says Donna, a friend and former colleague. “We are not religious at all, but felt that the Tree Church gave our wedding a sense of venerability in a natural, relaxed, and non-denominational way,” she adds.

So, if you are looking for a place to relax or you need to book your wedding, pick the Tree Church!

Watch the stunning grounds and Church that Cox worked hard on in the video below.

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