Question 2

In Chapter 3 Berry discusses how nature becomes a sacred space where Christians use to get a closer spiritual relationship with god. He mentions how mountains and forests become a sacred place because they seem to hold sacred qualities and according to Nicolson they "have been the ultimate model for beauty". Mountains moved from being ugly and scary places where evil lives to be sacred and beautiful places of worship. This change is also reflected in the fact that in the Hebrew bible mountains were seen with positive imagery of security, height and fertility. Many sacred places in the Hebrew bible a sacred places like Mount Zion, Mount Carmel, Mount Ararat and Mount  The adaption of the National Park system aided to the belief that these spaces were sacred "the idea that mountains and forest landscapes were endowed with their own intrinsic power to affect the lives of humans wandering among them." America being a place with a wealth of natural resources and landscapes lets Christians embrace the spirituality of these mountains and forests. This connection to nature was mostly found in Protestants. They merged with the belief systems of the Native Americans and their connection to nature  to create something uniquely American. While nature may still have some religious connections in modern Protestantism it isn't as connected to nature as it was during this time. Protestantism mostly has stayed in churches and urban settings but nature is still seen as a spiritually refreshing place.