# In the Heart of Nature: "Church of the Woods" Explores Spirituality in the Great Outdoors May 08, 2024 On Sunday, April 28, a diverse group of participants from the Harvard Divinity School (HDS), including students, faculty, staff and affiliates, embarked on a field trip to the unique spiritual community known as the Church of the Woods in Canterbury, New Hampshire, as part of the Center for the Study of World Religions (CSWR) Thinking with Plants and Fungi Initiative. This excursion served as an add-on to the Plant Consciousness reading group led by Rachael Petersen, MDiv candidate, and Natalia Schwien, PhD candidate in the Study of Religion, which explores themes of plant intelligence and ecological interconnectivity. The field trip aimed to provide an immersive experience where participants could directly engage with the questions posed by the initiative: exploring concepts of intelligence, matter, and the nuances of care in the natural world. On a rainy Sunday morning amid the early signs of spring, members of the Church of the Woods community and fieldtrip attendees gathered in the quiet woods to contemplate in an environment far removed from traditional church settings. "Good morning, good morning, good morning. This is probably the largest group we've ever had," greeted the church’s leader, Stephen Blackmer, welcoming the diverse assembly of attendees and setting a tone of warmth and inclusivity. The daylong experience that followed was not just a spiritual gathering but a journey into the woods that invited participants to engage with the environment and explore the intersections of ecology, spirituality, and human community. *This mini-documentary features the perspectives of Church Chaplain Stephen Blackmer and Rachael Petersen, Program Lead, Thinking with Plants and Fungi.* As the participants embarked about a hundred yards into the forest, the surroundings transformed into a serene chapel without walls, where tree stumps formed in a circle around a stump altar formed a humble congregation space. “One of the key characteristics of Church of the Woods is that the congregation is not limited to human beings," explained Blackmer, highlighting the community's belief that all elements of nature, from the birds to the trees, are part of their spiritual family. The tranquility of the setting was palpable as attendees were encouraged to embrace a spirit of gentleness, peace, and openness. "We human beings who have the capacity to take on vastly different energies at different moments," Blackmer speaker noted, urging all to adopt a posture of love and openness towards the non-human members of their congregation. A nod to the event’s inclusivity, Blackmer encouraged attendees to each share their names, origins, and their intention for the day, echoing reflective atmosphere of the woodland setting. ![Photo of close up of moss with tiny flowers](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/hds_cswr/files/20240428_103316.jpg) From Marta, a regular member of the congregation who felt “wonderfully surprised by many new faces," to Zakka Emmanuel, an MTS candidate at HDS who expressed appreciation for being in “the company of students and the members of the Church of the Woods," each introduction painted a picture of a community rich in diversity yet united in their quest for a deeper connection with nature and each other. Each participant, in sharing their thoughts and feelings, contributed to a collection of experiences that underscored the profound impact of nature on human spirituality and community. As the service progressed, the congregation's reflections included readings and sermons that wove together religious texts and ecological awareness. A poem by Mary Oliver posed the question, "Where does the temple begin, where does it end?"—a meditation on finding sacredness beyond traditional spaces, in the boundless temple of the natural world. Stephen Blackmer, the founding executive director of Kairos Earth and chaplain of Church of the Woods, who has dedicated his life to merging his environmental conservation efforts with his spiritual practice, offered a reflective sermon. "Everything in the world comes at least closer, and cordially," he preached, suggesting that divinity and the sacred could be found in every element of the universe, from a flying bird to a fish leaping out of the water. The service's highlight was an invitation to silent contemplation in the woods, where attendees were encouraged to find tokens from nature that spoke to them—an intricately gnarled fallen branch, a collection of tiny Hemlock cones, a smooth stone, a growth of Cladonia cristatella, lichen sprouting small red buds. These tokens were later shared with the group as offerings placed on an altar, symbolizing communal experiences and reflections. ![Photo of green shelf mushrooms growing out of a stump](/sites/g/files/omnuum4346/files/hds_cswr/files/20240428_135404.jpg) In a world increasingly disconnected from nature, the Church of the Woods offers a refreshing and necessary perspective on spirituality. It is a reminder that churches need not have walls, that congregations can include more than just humans, and that faith can grow and thrive under the open sky, among the trees that have stood witness to centuries of change. As the day concluded with a shared meal and continued fellowship among the participants, a Q&A session with Blackmer and CSWR fieldtrip attendees turned to queries regarding the relationship between non-human and human consciousness. Rachael Petersen inquired about Blackmer’s “invocation of the great chain of being," explaining that it is a philosophical subject the Plant Consciousness reading group has often questioned due to its inherent gradation of beings “up to the most perfect beings." Petersen’s question setting the stage for a deeper dive into these hierarchical concepts, and Blackmer’s response contextualized his belief in the great chain of being as having "two axes” in which “there is no hierarchy” in terms of proximity of any being to God, “but there is more active consciousnesses” in human beings than in non-human ones. This conversation underscored the fluidity and contested nature of such categorizations, hinting at the profound interconnectedness and possibly unrecognized capacities across the spectrum of life, suggesting that our traditional hierarchies may not reflect the true complexities of consciousness among all beings. Following the enriching discussion, Blackmer led the group on a guided hike through the forest trails he has nurtured over the past decade. The land, once used for logging, has been transformed under his stewardship into a space for spiritual and ecological reflection. Along the walk, Blackmer invited attendees to contemplate different spaces within the woods, each uniquely restored and maintained to foster conservation and connection with the natural world. At each stop, participants were encouraged to share their reflections with the group, creating a communal narrative of the experiences. This act of sharing gave attendees to share appreciation for the land’s history and its current embodiment of resilience and renewal. Blackmer’s careful curation of these trails not only demonstrated his commitment to ecological restoration but also provided a living space for contemplation where the concepts of interdependence and reverence for all forms of life were vividly illustrated. The Church of the Woods serves as a living example of how spiritual communities can contribute to environmental conservation, demonstrating a sustainable model of worship that respects and protects the earth's ecosystems, and stands as a testament to the power of innovative spiritual practices that embrace the earth as part of the divine. Church of the Woods is not just a place to visit; it is a place for profound reflection and connection with all beings alike. —*Story by Tristan Angieri, MDiv '26* See also:- [ Field Trip ](/topic-tags/field-trip) - [ natural theology ](/topic-tags/natural-theology) - [ Nature ](/topic-tags/nature) - [ Religion ](/media-topic/religion) - [ Thinking with Plants and Fungi ](/programming-threads/thinking-plants-and-fungi) - [ TWPF Programming ](/programming-threads/twpf-programming)