A ministry that has wings

This article was published in the January to April 2026 edition of Rapport magazine.

Lee Abbey Devon has long been known for the beauty of its estate. Set in the surroundings of the Exmoor National Park, it is no surprise that nature lovers have felt a special connection to the site over the years.

Back in the 1970s, Community member Ursula Kay lived in what is now the Tea Cottage; she kept a nature diary that resulted in the 1978 publication of a book, He gave us eyes to see them. In more recent years, Lee Abbey has entered into a partnership with the Christian environmental charity, A Rocha, and arising from this, Chris Baillie began to take a count of the birds seen on the estate on a month-by-month basis.

Listening up for birdsong

When I joined the Lee Abbey Community in January 2012, I had no idea about any of this, or what would develop as a result of my being there. As Community members, we were encouraged to come up with ideas for workshops that could engage guests, as an extra activity during gaps in their week or weekend programme.

I soon discovered that Lee Abbey’s woodland was alive with birdsong in spring, and this was something I was keen to share. ‘Bird listening’ walks became a very popular workshop (because birds are much easier to hear than to see, amongst the trees). However, I was soon presented with the dilemma of what to do after the spring breeding season, when the woods become much quieter. This led to the creation of an audio-visual PowerPoint presentation, which I could share all year round. It featured some of the most regularly encountered birds from all around the estate – not just the woodland birds but others too, such as seabirds – including their songs or calls to help identification.

I was able to keep a birdwatching interest going with Lee Abbey guests over the next couple of years and in 2014, with the help of other contributors, I was pleased to be able to publish The Birds of Lee Abbey Devon, a small handbook that people could use as a guide when they walk around the estate, and take away with them as a memento of their visit.

When my Lee Abbey contract came to an end in 2015 and I moved away, I wasn’t sure what would happen to keep birds as an ongoing interest amongst the guests at Lee Abbey. At that time it was the role of the Community’s Environmental Coordinator to maintain a bird feeding station by the windows in the orangery; also, the book continued to be sold on the Lee Abbey bookstall. However, about a year later, an unexpected call from Lee Abbey came, that changed the course of my life: ‘We have a space on our programme that needs filling – would you consider leading a week on birdwatching?’ As it happened, this was a seven-day summer holiday week – a time of year when the bird world is at its most silent, after all the activity of the breeding season!

Travelling further afield

I realised that we would need to travel further around Exmoor to have the greatest opportunity to see more species, so we procured the use of a minibus, which took us to some of the key sites in the area. In that summer week, we spent as much time observing butterflies and other wildlife as we did birds, but people really appreciated being out and about in the stunning surroundings of Exmoor. I didn’t realise it at the time, but this was to become a blueprint for future birdwatching weeks – with the proviso of holding them in spring to give us the best opportunity to see and hear the birds.

At the same time, in my local area, I had started up a birdwatching group, which slowly began to gather momentum. Typically, the group visited some local sites on half-day trips and a keen core of people came back for more. Just as I started to explore possibilities for venues further afield for our local group, we were struck by the announcement of the Covid-19 outbreak, which also put a hold on activities at Lee Abbey. I was able to continue some group activities in a limited capacity during those difficult two years, thanks to being an outdoor group that could be capped in numbers. Thankfully, since then things have recovered and I was soon being asked to come back to take a second spring birdwatching week each year, as this was proving to be a popular option. I’ve also been encouraged that, when I advertised Lee Abbey weeks to my local group, a number of its members have signed up to come – many of whom would never have visited otherwise, and several have even returned in subsequent years.

Seeing birds in varied habitats

So what of the birds themselves, and what might you expect to see and do on an Exmoor birds week? As well as the opportunity to explore the estate and the Valley of Rocks, we have had the unforgettable joy of spotting cliff-nesting birds from the sea on a boat trip. This is always dependent on weather and tides but it has proved to be a real highlight for many guests. We also visit sites along the estuaries, into the woodlands and across the moors on Exmoor. We have had thrilling encounters with peregrines chasing their prey, as well as getting up close to razorbills, guillemots, kittiwakes and fulmars along the coast. We have been able to work on our spring warbler song identification too, as well as tracking down some of the more elusive species connected with the local area, like the redstart and pied flycatcher, with varying degrees of success!

I have always had an interest in birds but it’s only in latter years, and thanks largely to Lee Abbey, that I’ve been able to take my passion further and share it with others. For me, the greatest thrill is when someone captures the same enthusiasm and finds pleasure in their birding experience. Birds give us pleasure, as part of God’s creation, and this is how it is meant to be.

Birdwatching for well-being

During Covid-19 lockdowns, many people remarked that the natural world provided real solace for them at a difficult time, and much research has provided evidence of the benefits of activities, such as birdwatching, for people’s health and well-being. People were forced to slow down, and then they began to both see and hear the natural world around them. That’s exactly what happens when birdwatching, for I always emphasise it’s as much about hearing as about seeing the birds. The spiritual parallels are obvious – how tuned in to hearing God’s voice are we, or are we lost in the clamour of the world around us? Do we take time to reflect and give thanks to God when we see how he works in or through us or in the lives of other people, or are we in too much of a hurry to notice?

Look at the birds

I find it the greatest possible endorsement that Jesus himself exhorts us to ‘consider the birds’ (Matt. 6:26 CPDV). There are references to sparrows, eagles, ravens and other types of birds in Scripture, and the Holy Spirit is often depicted as a dove. For further exposition, I recommend John Stott’s wonderful book, The birds our teachers (1999). The renowned Bible scholar was a lifelong birder who enjoyed travelling the world and discovering lessons in birds more exotic than our British species, then sharing his findings with others.

I gain great pleasure from leading others in birdwatching and consider it part of my worship; I’ve come to realise, as I see people start to engage with God’s creation, that it’s also a ministry that has wings!

Andrew Mann

See the video produced in conjunction with the Diocese of Oxford as part of a resource on Creation Care (on Vimeo; opens in a new tab):

The Birds of Lee Abbey Devon (2014) ISBN978-0-9926201-2-7, £3, available from Lee Abbey shop