Crossroads II, Sunday, April 14, 2024 Practicing the Presence of God: Finding God in Nature. Held Session Room and on Zoom
We all have places and times where we have felt closer to God. Nature encounters often come to mind. The Celtics referred to these as thin places. This Sunday we will explore what Marcus Borg wrote about these moments and how to open our hearts to better experience Gods presence.
As examples, we will delve briefly into the works of nature poets and writers such as Wendell Berry, Langston Hughes, Mary Oliver, John Muir, Thomas Merton, and Maurice Manning. Participants will have the opportunity to share their own thin place experiences and to discuss how spiritual practices such as writing in nature, meditative walking, travel pilgrimages and gardening in our own back yard can help us all better experience the beauty of Gods creation.
Margaret Spontak will lead our discussion. Margaret is president of the Great Florida Riverway Trust, a political non-profit organization dedicated to reuniting the Ocklawaha and St. Johns Rivers and historic Silver Springs from Lake Apopka to the Atlantic Ocean. The Trusts goal is to provide the history, science, economics and facts to key local, regional, state and federal leaders for informed decision making on this critical restoration project. Prior to forming the Trust, she founded the Free the Ocklawaha Coalition for Everyone, involving more than sixty national, state, and local organizations. Margaret has a long history of protecting land and water resources in north central Florida and beyond. Her conservation career includes director of development for Audubon Florida, director of policy and planning for St. Johns River Water Management District, sales and promotions manager for Silver Springs and Weeki Wachee Springs. As a volunteer leader, she created the campaign that helped pass the $20 million Marion County land referendum, Pennies for Parks. She co-authored the book Protecting Paradise with Peggy Cavanaugh.
Please join us for coffee (and on Zoom) at 8:45 and class will begin at 9:00.
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