All Church Camp 2013 (Above)
Nature and an Active Life
An active lifestyle is a big part of our spiritual understanding of life. Profound experiences in the wilderness, ocean, and through travel are very important to us, including those for whom travel is no longer easy or possible.
Explore this page to find resources about being active in God's creation, what Foothills Congregational Church programs will help you explore nature and travel as a spiritual practice, and links to places for further exploration.
Romans 1:20
Common English Bible (CEB)
20 Ever since the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities—God’s eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, because they are understood through the things God has made.
We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls. Mother Teresa
My profession is to be always on the alert to find God in nature, to know his lurking-places, to attend all the oratorios, the operas, in nature. --Henry David Thoreau, 1851
Explore this page to find resources about being active in God's creation, what Foothills Congregational Church programs will help you explore nature and travel as a spiritual practice, and links to places for further exploration.
Romans 1:20
Common English Bible (CEB)
20 Ever since the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities—God’s eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, because they are understood through the things God has made.
We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature - trees, flowers, grass- grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence... We need silence to be able to touch souls. Mother Teresa
My profession is to be always on the alert to find God in nature, to know his lurking-places, to attend all the oratorios, the operas, in nature. --Henry David Thoreau, 1851
Spend Time in Nature
Foothills Congregational Church Weekly Hiking Group
Come hike with us!
Meet at Hidden Villa at 9:00am on Wednesdays for a 1.5 to 2 hour hike. Our hikes are led by Sandra Overton, who is a knowledgeable naturalist and loves to tell us about the flora and fauna we see.
Click here for directions
Click here for a trail map
When one experiences Nature through the eyes of inner perception, there is nothing commonplace in this kingdom. Such an approach to Nature requires reverence. In contrast to a casual or indifferent attitude, the sensitive individual looks upon Nature as a sacred creation of God that deserves to be valued and revered.
–Flower A. Newhouse, Angels of Nature
Come hike with us!
Meet at Hidden Villa at 9:00am on Wednesdays for a 1.5 to 2 hour hike. Our hikes are led by Sandra Overton, who is a knowledgeable naturalist and loves to tell us about the flora and fauna we see.
Click here for directions
Click here for a trail map
When one experiences Nature through the eyes of inner perception, there is nothing commonplace in this kingdom. Such an approach to Nature requires reverence. In contrast to a casual or indifferent attitude, the sensitive individual looks upon Nature as a sacred creation of God that deserves to be valued and revered.
–Flower A. Newhouse, Angels of Nature
Hiking Group 2013 (Above)
Join a Eucharist Hike through Holy Hikes
Holy Hikes is a ministry of Saint Giles’ Episcopal Church serving the Diocese of California and the wider San Francisco Bay Area. All are welcome to join us for Holy Hikes the rings regardless of religious-affiliation. All baptized Christians, regardless of denomination, are welcome to receive communion at Holy Hikes services.
“There is no such thing as ‘human community’ without the earth and the soil and the air and the water and all the living forms. Without these, humans do not exist. In my view, the human community and the natural world will go into the future as a single sacred community or we will both perish in the desert.” -Thomas Berry
We gather for Holy Hikes the fourth Saturday of each month at 10am for a liturgical hike. We celebrate the Holy Eucharist in the context of a hike in nature areas within the following counties: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Mateo, and San Francisco. The location changes monthly.
You don't have to join a group to get out and enjoy nature.
Click here for a list of hiking trails in and around the SF Bay Area.
Holy Hikes is a ministry of Saint Giles’ Episcopal Church serving the Diocese of California and the wider San Francisco Bay Area. All are welcome to join us for Holy Hikes the rings regardless of religious-affiliation. All baptized Christians, regardless of denomination, are welcome to receive communion at Holy Hikes services.
“There is no such thing as ‘human community’ without the earth and the soil and the air and the water and all the living forms. Without these, humans do not exist. In my view, the human community and the natural world will go into the future as a single sacred community or we will both perish in the desert.” -Thomas Berry
We gather for Holy Hikes the fourth Saturday of each month at 10am for a liturgical hike. We celebrate the Holy Eucharist in the context of a hike in nature areas within the following counties: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Mateo, and San Francisco. The location changes monthly.
You don't have to join a group to get out and enjoy nature.
Click here for a list of hiking trails in and around the SF Bay Area.
connect WITH THE ocean
Being in the ocean is also like being in the hand of the creator. It can caress you and give you a feeling that you are one of the blessed creatures under his care... Does the ocean remind us of the womb? We lived in embryonic fluids for nine months. Three and a half billion years ago our DNA lived in the ocean. Do we remember?
Recently a baby dolphin came within ten feet and surfaced to stare at me. Dolphins are mammals that once lived on land and evolved to be sea creatures. Amphibious creatures came from the sea and evolved to be dinosaurs. Do we hear the call of the sea sirens seductively urging us to come back? When dolphins come close to surfers, push stranded sea farers to land, or come up just to look at us, do we realize how closely connected we are on so many levels? - Mark Kaplan
Recently a baby dolphin came within ten feet and surfaced to stare at me. Dolphins are mammals that once lived on land and evolved to be sea creatures. Amphibious creatures came from the sea and evolved to be dinosaurs. Do we hear the call of the sea sirens seductively urging us to come back? When dolphins come close to surfers, push stranded sea farers to land, or come up just to look at us, do we realize how closely connected we are on so many levels? - Mark Kaplan
Blue Theology Retreats (link)
with
UCC Minister, Rev. Deborah Streeter
run through the Pacific Grove First Christian Church,
Disciples of Christ
Click here for a list of the best beaches for swimming around the SF Bay Area
with
UCC Minister, Rev. Deborah Streeter
run through the Pacific Grove First Christian Church,
Disciples of Christ
Click here for a list of the best beaches for swimming around the SF Bay Area
Volunteer in Nature
Follow this link to CalAcademy's Bay Area Environmental Volunteer Opportunities page
Follow this link to learn about the places where our youth have volunteered in nature
Follow this link to learn about the places where our youth have volunteered in nature
Travel
Why Spiritual Travel?
Lori Erickson
(Picture is from Window Rock, Arizona. Mission Trip 2011)
Spiritual travel has long been a source of fascination for me. I’ve gotten up at 3:00 a.m. to chant in Buddhist monasteries, lingered over morning coffee with nuns in Iowa, walked part of the Camino de Santiago in Spain, splashed myself with holy water in Lourdes, and gathered holy dirt from the floor in Chimayo, New Mexico. In 20 years of experiencing such sites and writing about spiritually oriented travel, I believe there are several reasons why growing numbers of people are interested in this type of journeying:
Spiritual tourism is relatively inexpensive.
Holy sites are often found in beautiful places.
Spiritual sites are multiplying.
Spiritual sites appeal to baby boomers.
Read More
Lori Erickson
(Picture is from Window Rock, Arizona. Mission Trip 2011)
Spiritual travel has long been a source of fascination for me. I’ve gotten up at 3:00 a.m. to chant in Buddhist monasteries, lingered over morning coffee with nuns in Iowa, walked part of the Camino de Santiago in Spain, splashed myself with holy water in Lourdes, and gathered holy dirt from the floor in Chimayo, New Mexico. In 20 years of experiencing such sites and writing about spiritually oriented travel, I believe there are several reasons why growing numbers of people are interested in this type of journeying:
Spiritual tourism is relatively inexpensive.
Holy sites are often found in beautiful places.
Spiritual sites are multiplying.
Spiritual sites appeal to baby boomers.
Read More
Use the email link at the top of this page to send your favorite hiking, ocean, or travel photo to be included on this page. Make sure to include your name and the location where the photo was taken. They will be loaded onto the bottom of this page as we receive them.
Photo Gallery of our Travels
(left) John Miller's photo of Trout Fishing in Alaska. Pictured: John Files & Guide. (center) Ann Jones' photo of the Noah's Ark story at Chartres