Glimpsing God in the Garden

By Anna Blinn Cole & Hannah Ebling-Artz

Posted April 22, 2016

Anna Blinn Cole is a third-year MDiv student. After graduation, she and her husband and baby daughter plan to return to their home in upstate New York, where they love to hike, raise farm animals, pick fresh blueberries, and cross-country ski. Anna looks forward to serving as a rural pastor in the Upper New York Annual Conference of The United Methodist Church. Hannah Ebling-Artz is a third-year MDiv student. She grew up in the delightful state of Kansas and now lives in Atlanta with her partner and two kittens, Hazel and Leo. Hannah is intrigued by the intersection of faith, community, and ecology. When she's not at school, Hannah enjoys sightseeing in the city, community gardening, hiking, nannying, and eating brunch with pals. During their time at Candler, Anna and Hannah served together as co-presidents of the Candler Creation Keepers, as well as members of the Candler Centennial Food (In)security Initiative.

Anna (left) and Hannah. Our organization, Creation Keepers, is a circle of eco-minded folks who live at the intersection of faith and environmentalism, ever-vigilant to ways we encounter God through God’s creation. We have weekly gardening at the Theology Garden (for gardeners of all skill levels), monthly hiking trips, yearly conferences, workshops, and documentary screenings. Additionally, every fall we host a garden warming party where people can drink hot chocolate and learn about what’s growing in the garden. In the spring we host a “kale-wrap-pop” party where we make wraps and sandwiches using the produce in the garden. These are great community events that get people gathered in the fresh green space.

We believe that God created all of the earth in God’s image and commends it to our care. Because of this simple mandate and our desire to contribute to a more healthy community, Candler reached out to Emory’s Educational Food Garden and asked to become a garden site a few years ago. The garden moved around during the construction, but is now in its permanent location on Dickey Drive, and is officially one of nine gardens across Emory’s campus. These gardens raise awareness about how food grows and remind those who pass by, eat its fruits, or tend its soil, that growing food locally offers an opportunity to take initiative in changing the way our society thinks about food. While our garden is small, it serves as a simple witness that we care and that we are committed to enacting our faith.

Digging in the dirt and picking a bouquet of fresh herbs or a handful of sun-warmed tomatoes in the middle of a theological education can be an enriching and transformative experience. In the garden, we raise “slow food” by taking the time to delight in the cycles of life and appreciating the natural processes that go into growing food. When we see food as only a means by which to fill our stomachs, hurriedly and without thought, we lose the ability to see food as the sacred gift that it is. The garden is a great way for students to stay grounded in the earth while in seminary. It’s here where practice and theory meet and that the sacred art of growing food becomes a testament to the power of patience, hard work, a little rain and a lot of grace.

Next time you are free on a Thursday at noon, come out to the Theology Garden and join a community of people working together to grow food slowly. You’ll most likely go home with a bag full of fresh vegetables, and you might even get a little dirt under your fingernails. If you happen to be free the first Saturday of the month in the morning, climb a hill with us or explore a new forest. We think you’ll probably get a glimpse of God in a new and surprising way.