By Naomi Kim-Yu
“Imagine the kids in your congregation growing up learning all the native plants in your area and how to take care of them, and being able to experience the divine in nature,” says Christopher Grundy, professor of worship and associate dean for the chapel at Eden Theological Seminary in Webster Groves, MO. This kind of ecologically embedded spirituality is Grundy’s dream—and it’s why he’s dedicated most mornings of his sabbatical to tending the seminary’s sacred grove.
Tucked away at the back of Eden’s campus, the sacred grove is a Miyawaki forest of about 600 native shrubs and plants, with seven shortleaf pines coming from Forest ReLeaf. The Miyawaki method involves densely planting native species to encourage faster growth. One day, when the trees at Eden’s sacred grove reach maturity, the grove will form an enclosed and peaceful space hidden from view.
The vision for the sacred grove stemmed from a 2023 design competition that brought together students from Eden Theological Seminary and WashU’s Sam Fox School of Design and Visual Art. The goal was to imagine a sanctuary for people and native plants. Various bits and pieces from proposed designs led to plans for the sacred grove. Growing the idea into reality, though, proved to be quite the process, involving serious soil remediation at the planting site. Grundy also worked with Shaw Nature Reserve, Missouri Botanical Gardens, and Forest ReLeaf to identify suitable native species for the grove. Multiple community plantings in 2025 brought together scores of local volunteers, and the sacred grove has taken shape with trees not only from Forest ReLeaf but also from the Missouri Department of Conservation and Forrest Keeling Nursery.
As the trees continue to mature, Grundy hopes to hold chapel services in the grove to provide seminary students and local churches with a model of worship that engages the local ecosystem and encourages them to undertake similar planting projects. He plans to experiment with a worship service that devotes part of its time to interacting with plants in the grove. “[Y]ou’re going to pick a plant and go weed that plant, or figure out what species it is,” Grundy explains.
Through this kind of interactive chapel service, Grundy wants people to understand their “mutual obligation” to the environment. We already enjoy many benefits from trees, and Grundy wants us to recognize that we might also have a responsibility to care for trees in return. “[T]his grove is producing oxygen for you,” Grundy says, “it’s sequestering carbon for you, it’s releasing chemicals that decrease your blood pressure as you stand out here.” In turn, he wants to help people “understand that this relationship is mutual, that they might need to take care of this and to give something back.”
Encouraging a more environmentally attuned spirituality is crucial to Grundy as he thinks about the many climate challenges we face. “How can we help people change?” he asks, focusing especially on Western Christians’ environmental impact. “I’m thinking about what more worship could do to form people who don’t just appreciate ecological concerns, but actually know something about their ecosystems.” He hopes that different forms of worship might help people develop deeper relationships to the environment around them.
In watering, pruning, and mulching each morning in Eden’s sacred grove, Grundy isn’t just growing a Miyawaki forest. He’s also tending to a spirituality that’s truly ecologically rooted.
“Imagine the kids in your congregation growing up learning all the native plants in your area and how to take care of them, and being able to experience the divine in nature,” says Christopher Grundy.
Since 1999, the Ferguson Volunteer Flower Department has been caring for two gardens in downtown Ferguson.
With Forest ReLeaf’s help, Park Commissioner Peg Crockett is adding more trees to Hunter Park, giving the local community more opportunities for play and leisure.
I am Elijah Belz, the Field Operations Coordinator for Forest ReLeaf. I am a certified arborist and the primary person in the field for Forest ReLeaf, maintaining roughly 1000 trees planted in the St. Louis City, and maintaining our equipment our equipment used to maintain our trees! This job is a catch-all position that carries different responsibilities during the different seasons. Fall and spring are our planting, tree delivery, and inventory season; winter is our pruning, mulching, and planning season; summer is our watering season where we lead a crew of interns getting into the green industry.
My background is bicycle repair! I was in that industry for almost a decade, including running a bicycle repair shop, before taking a job with a tree planting organization in Atlanta. From there I moved to an edible landscape company. I became certified as an arborist while working at Forest ReLeaf this February! Trees rock, bikes are cool too.
De’Nonna Jones graduated from Knox College in 2023 with a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies, driven by a commitment to environmental justice and community-based conservation. Since then, she has gained hands-on experience working across a range of green spaces throughout the St. Louis region, focusing on the care, restoration, and accessibility of urban natural areas. She began her journey at Tower Grove Park, where she developed a deep appreciation for public green spaces as vital community resources, before moving into a stewardship role with the Missouri Botanical Garden in partnership with Great Rivers Greenway. She now serves as the Stewardship Crew Coordinator at Forest ReLeaf. De’Nonna is passionate about creating inclusive pathways into environmental work and empowering tree lovers and emerging conservationists to see themselves as stewards of their communities. Through her work, she strives to strengthen connections between people, trees, and places in urban environments.
After 17 years in the non-profit and public sector, Jess remains committed to mission-driven work that tackles the challenges facing our communities. Their career began with a year of service as an Americorps St. Louis Emergency Response team member, responding to natural disasters and performing conservation projects. That foundation of service led to roles supporting the arts, affordable housing, mental health, and grassroots housing advocacy in St. Louis. During this journey Jess has worked to center the value “nothing about us, without us.” They do their best to ensure that the voices of people who have been marginalized guide the strategy and execution of work that honors their lived experiences. When they aren’t working, Jess is out paddling, hiking, working in their garden, or building something.
