Nature is not separate from the sacred. It is one of the sacred’s most accessible doorways.

At OneSpirit, we are discovering what happens when we expand our understanding of spiritual practice to include the healing wisdom of the natural world.

“It is the peace of the forest that I carry inside.” — Dr. Jane Goodall

Beyond the Sanctuary Walls

Many people think of spiritual practice as something that happens within the walls of a building. A church, temple, mosque, or meditation hall. While these spaces hold profound meaning, we believe the sacred extends far beyond any structure we have built. The rustling of leaves, the rhythm of waves, the quiet persistence of moss growing on stone. These too are expressions of the divine.

Nature doesn’t ask us to believe anything. It simply invites us to be present, to breathe, to witness the endless cycles of growth and rest that mirror our own spiritual journeys.

Healing That Meets Us Where We Are

For some, organised religion has provided deep comfort and connection. For others, it has felt distant or exclusionary. But almost everyone has experienced a moment in nature that felt somehow sacred. Watching a sunrise, feeling grounded by old growth trees, or finding unexpected peace beside water.

At OneSpirit, we honour these moments as genuine spiritual experiences. The healing power of nature is not bound by doctrine or tradition.

It meets us exactly where we are, offering restoration to our bodies, hearts, and spirits without asking us to be anything other than human.

The Ministry of Presence in Wild Places

As we witness the current climate of division and disconnection in our world, we are reminded that healing happens not just individually, but collectively. Our ministers serve in many contexts. Some in traditional settings, others in hospitals, schools, and community centres. But increasingly, they are also serving in gardens, on hiking trails, by rivers, and in the quiet corners of urban parks.

This is ministry as presence: Being with people in spaces where they can breathe more deeply, where the artificial boundaries between sacred and secular dissolve, where healing becomes as natural as sunlight filtering through leaves.

Ancient Wisdom, Contemporary Need

Indigenous traditions worldwide have always understood nature as a source of healing and spiritual guidance. As we navigate the complexities of modern life, screen fatigue, urban overwhelm, the endless rush of deadlines, we are rediscovering these ancient truths through contemporary eyes.

The Japanese practice of shinrin-yoku (forest bathing), the Celtic understanding of thin places where earth and spirit meet, the Aboriginal concept of country as living teacher. These wisdom traditions remind us that healing in nature is not a luxury, but a birthright.

Where Your Path Might Lead

Perhaps you have felt that quiet pull towards something more grounded, more connected to the rhythms of earth and season. Perhaps you have found your most profound moments of clarity not in books or lectures, but in the simple act of standing beneath an enormous sky or placing your hands in soil.

This is where spiritual leadership is expanding. Not just in boardrooms and sanctuaries, but in the places where healing feels most natural, most accessible, most true.

An Invitation to Step Outside

If you have ever felt called to serve others, to offer presence and care in a world that desperately needs both, consider that your ministry might begin with your next step outdoors. It might begin with the recognition that the sacred has been waiting for you all along. In the morning light on your windowsill, in the weeds growing through pavement cracks, in the persistent hope of seeds that know how to find their way towards the sun.

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OneSpirit Interfaith Foundation offers a two-year Spiritual Development and Ministry Training for those called to serve people of all faiths and none. Our ‘Cherry Tree Pathway’ integrates the wisdom of nature with spiritual practice, offering both online and in-person experiences that honour the healing power of the natural world. The next cohort begins in October 2025, and enrolment closes on the 30th of September 2025. 

Written by OneSpirit Interfaith Foundation’s Communications and Marketing Lead, Kailee Smart.