Spiritual Groups Nurture Sacred Bonds with Nature
- Julie Peterson
- Jun 21
- 9 min read
Updated: 2 days ago
How the ‘Spirituality in Nature’ Movement Fosters Eco Stewardship
The advances of the industrial revolution, the technological revolution, and the information age have led many human beings to live as if the world is a free buffet of resources. At the same time, modern religions have taught that humanity is the highest achievement of a divine creator, distinguishing humans from other beings due to people’s unique capabilities of spiritual connection, free will, and reason.
There are many passages in religious texts that emphasize the special relationship between God and humanity, and most religions focus on responsible interaction with the world and stewardship of Earth.
Still, as humankind has made “progress,” exploitation of nature has caused Earth to suffer.
Humans Are Part of Nature
The suffering of Earth is a sad reality that has prompted some nature-loving spiritualists to rethink humanity’s primary place in the world—and to provide education and guidance on how people can have an “awakening” and reconnect harmlessly with nature.
“People mistakenly think that we are the pinnacle of evolution. But evolution is not a pyramid, it’s a tree, it’s dendritic. We are just one leaf, and all the other animals are leaves. We’re not better than them, we’re just different,” says Mike Mullins, founder of Soul Rewilding, a London-based facilitator of “immersive experiences in sacred nature.”
Some factions of religious communities are addressing environmental challenges and offering guidance for followers to protect the natural world. Examples include Christian churches teaching about stewardship; Islamic leaders emphasizing harmony between humans and nature; Hinduism recognizing the divine in all of nature; Buddhist principles of mindfulness toward the interconnectedness of all life forms; and Indigenous traditions that include humans as part of the natural world.
Not everyone follows these factions, and some follow no religion. While estimates vary as to how many people worldwide identify as irreligious (atheist, agnostic, secularist, non-religious spiritualist, or religious skeptic), a 2010 data set from Pew Research Center estimated the number of religiously unaffiliated people to be just over 16% or 1 in 6. Two years later, Pew released a report describing the sharp increase in the percentage of Americans who are religiously unaffiliated, with one-fifth of the US public and a third of adults under 30 as religiously unaffiliated.
“People are questioning some of the traditional beliefs of the Christian church and have a sense of dissatisfaction with how the church is responding to modernity and the climate and biodiversity crisis,” says Mullins, who has a background in Catholic mysticism and psychology. “If you look back at the earlier mystic Celtic Christians, it was much more nature-centric. It was about the sacredness of nature, rather than the hierarchical model.”
“I think that what we’re seeing across the world—and not just in Christianity but also in Islam and Judaism—is people struggling with uncertainty experiencing a lot of fear,” says Mullins.
The Situation Today
People’s sense of what it means to have dominion over all things may have led to the difficult environmental issues everyone now faces. At the same time, a sense of smallness—the idea that individual actions couldn’t possibly cause harm to such a large system—could also be to blame.
Regardless, effects of climate change include increasing severity and frequency of storms, drought, coastal erosion, melting glaciers and icecaps, wildfires, and quickly changing habitats leading to higher risk of extinction to plant and animal species. These things bring flood, fire, and wind perils to humans along with food shortages, health risks, poverty, and displacement. Beyond activism, some feel that there is nothing they can or will do; some are desperate to do something but don’t know how.
“Eco-activism isn’t enough. I realized that the ecological crisis is a spiritual crisis.”
“Eco-activism isn’t enough. I realized that the ecological crisis is a spiritual crisis. We are an animal that doesn’t want to be an animal. We somehow see ourselves as separate from nature and yet we’re not,” says Mullins.
Fortunately, there are “spirituality in nature” organizations growing to meet the needs of grieving, confused, yet willing environmental activists. These groups continue to take shape around the world as people become increasingly cognizant of the consequences that a warming climate is laying at their feet.
Spirituality in nature organizations utilize spiritual practice in and with nature, foster environmental activism toward societal changes, and build a community of people who follow and inspire sustainable practices. It is a panacea for people who desire to reclaim a healthy co-existence with nature, with each other, with their own inner world, and to do something toward climate change mitigation.
Reaching A Pivotal Point
People have long known about global warming and have been urged to change.
The first global treaty to prevent climate change came from the United Nations in 1992. Between 1950 and 1990, scientific understanding of global warming increased with consensus that human-caused emissions were the cause. Physicist Gilbert Plass formulated the Carbon Dioxide Theory of Climate Change in 1956.
In 2007, David C. Korten wrote The Great Turning, describing the transition from a doomed industrial growth economy to a life-sustaining civilization committed to the recovery of the world. In 2000, Thomas Berry wrote The Great Work, urging people to move from being a disruptive force on the Earth to a benign presence.
Humanity’s knowledge of the phenomenon began to accumulate about 200 years ago. According to NASA, mathematician Joseph Fourier calculated in 1824 that a planet the size of Earth, at the same distance from the Sun, “ought to be much colder.” By the 1860s, physicist John Tyndall recognized that “Earth’s natural greenhouse effect,” plus changes in atmospheric composition, might result in “climatic variations.” Swedish scientist Svante Arrhenius, in an 1896 paper, wrote that shifts in atmospheric carbon dioxide levels could “substantially alter” Earth’s surface temperature.
In summary, humans have had clues since 1824, evidence since the 1970s, and directives since 1994. Moving back to a healthy relationship with nature is not a new idea.
In summary, humans have had clues since 1824, evidence since the 1970s, and directives since 1994. Moving back to a healthy relationship with nature is not a new idea; however, people are now at a pivotal point to act.
Spiritual Awakening
Scholars have argued that a spiritual awakening is essential to addressing ecological crises, suggesting that recognizing the sacredness of the Earth can inspire sustainable practices. Spirituality-in-nature organizations are blazing various paths toward this awakening.
Different terms exist that are related to increasing mindfulness and awakening spiritually to mitigate environmental issues: spiritual ecology, ecological mindfulness, contemplative environmental practice, spirituality in nature, and more. Each takes a slightly different approach to a similar goal: teaching and inspiring people to have a deep connection with all of Earth in such a way that it fosters increased personal well-being and pro-environmental action.
Spiritual Groups Connecting with and Protecting Nature
Myriad organizations invite people of all faiths to join in actions to heal the Earth.
One Earth Sangha describes its mission as fostering “transformative” responses to environmental crises “based on the insights and practices of the Buddhist tradition.” The organization’s Virtual EcoDharma Network offers online classes, articles, calls to action, and retreats to inspire its members to end what it calls “ecological violence.” Its EcoSattva Training series is designed to take participants on a “a journey to cultivate wisdom, connection, and compassionate action.”
Victoria Loorz is a prominent figure in the nature spirituality movement, known for founding the Wild Church Network. The network supports communities that gather in natural settings to engage in spiritual practices, fostering a deep connection with the Earth. Loorz emphasizes that spirituality and nature are inseparable, advocating for a return to sacred earth practices. On their website, it says, “Wild churches are ecumenical and spiritual-but-not-religious and some are connected with existing religious institutions. There are no dogmas to recite, rules to follow, or step-by-step instructions. Rather, wild churches are organic organisms, with a life and intelligence of their own.”
There are currently Wild Churches across North America. Church of the Wild, by Loorz, is a guide for anyone who feels “the call from Spirit and Earth herself to create a spiritual community that reconnects us to the rest of the alive and sacred world.”
Beth Norcross founded the Center for Spirituality in Nature in Virginia to offer people spiritual guidance for developing loving relationships with nature and recently released her latest book, Discovering the Spiritual Wisdom of Trees (with Leah Rampy). The Center offers programs, classes, webinars, and online meditation sessions, and there are now more than 40 Spirituality in Nature Groups (SING) across the United States. Groups hold local events, using mindfulness, meditation, attentiveness, and exploration to deepen their connection with the natural world to heal themselves and renew the broken human relationship with the Earth.
The Gaia Foundation is an international organization with 35 years’ experience helping communities and movements around the world revive and enhance “bio-cultural diversity,” a state of healthy ecosystems and strong community self-governance. The organization follows a vision of “amplifying the voices of Earth defenders, restoring a respectful relationship with our Mother Earth, and upholding Indigenous wisdom.” Programs include seed saving, activism against mining, protecting sharks in the Atlantic Ocean, and protecting sacred natural sites from Africa to the Amazon.
Soul Rewilding is a not-for-profit collective based in London, reaching out to people who are feeling overwhelmed by the ecological crisis but want to move away from feeling uncertain, anxious, and disconnected from nature. Mullins has brought in additional facilitators to lead immersive experiences in nature designed to help people of all faiths (or no faith) reconnect to the sacredness of nature in beautiful natural settings.
“We’ve been taught to relate to nature as an object, as out there, as inanimate, as soul-less, as just a resource to be consumed.”
“We’ve been taught to relate to nature as an object, as out there, as inanimate, as soul-less, as just a resource to be consumed. I try to get participants to relate to the natural world in a different way, a more participatory, animistic way that sees all of nature as alive and in relationship with everything else, and us,” says Mullins. On tree walks, for example, he talks about the biology of the trees encountered, the ancient English folklore stories around them, and their spirituality. He helps people calm their minds, tune into their senses, wander in nature, and listen to their intuition to find a tree that they feel connected to. They take their opportunities, dilemmas, and questions to trees they're drawn to, engaging in a dialogue as their ancient ancestors did. “People are very moved by this,” he says.
Mullins runs three-day retreats in a friary set in Southern England in the beauty of the county of Dorset—Thomas Hardy country. “One purpose is to immerse people in the English countryside— trees, plants, animals—to re-experience the sacredness of nature, to question our modern way of seeing nature. The other aim is to create a collective, a social support group,” says Mullins. They cook together, eat together, get up at 4 a.m. to sit in silence in the wood and listen to the beauty of the dawn chorus, and share stories around a campfire about the sacredness and awe of nature and moving personal encounters with animals in nature.
“We allow people to express their grief at what’s happening in the world and give them a process to use to deal with nature loss,” explains Mullins.
The retreats also provide an opportunity to challenge beliefs.
“We’re listening to the wrong narrative,” says Mullins. “If you look at the 4.5-billion-year life of the Earth as a 24-hour period, humans appear in the last two seconds. So, how could we be the sole purpose of the divine, some higher power? I’d rather be one member of a big family of all beings that are all important to the divine. All creatures, all beings, trees…are important to God. The divine and nature are not separate. The divine is in all things. If you read the mystics, they have been saying this for thousands of years.”
Mullins believes that people of all faiths can agree on the importance and beauty of the sacredness of nature. It’s a way to bring people together and find commonality.
Becoming Spiritual in Nature
Going on a retreat helps but it's not essential to develop a sense of spiritual connection to nature. Mullins recommends having a sit spot, somewhere one goes regularly to be with nature. “That’s really powerful because you notice change over time,” says Mullins. Other ideas can be found in the author’s article: “How to Awaken the Human Bond with Nature.”
The Future
People are reaching toward ancient and new forms of spirituality about how nature influences well-being and how humanity must care for the planet. But the future also requires a change in the socioeconomic systems which people have grown accustomed to, but that are not working.
“We need to become more content with having just enough. Agriculture needs to be regenerative instead of based on an extractive model, which is all about herbicides and pesticides,” says Mullins. “How can we revitalize faith so that it’s less focused on our salvation but on the whole of creation? Let’s focus on others. The most oppressed, the most voiceless of all is the Earth.”
*Julie Peterson writes science-based articles about holistic health, environmental issues, and sustainable living from her small farm in Wisconsin. She recommends for further reading Active Hope by Joanna Macy, Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer, Sacred Nature by Karen Armstrong, The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben, and Spiritual Ecology by Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee.
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