Soil and Spirit: Knowing Your Soil and Following Your Spirit
By Jean Golicz, Master Gardener and Mercy by the Sea Volunteer
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On a recent trip to Israel, I was struck by the efficient use of land for agriculture. Whether it was a swath of productive soil in the desert, a small fertile valley in the highlands or a sidewalk garden in the old city of Jerusalem, the land was productive. In Learning Our Place: The Agrarian Perspective of the Bible, Ellen F. Davis writes, “The need to serve and preserve the soil in its fertility was well known to the ancient Israelites, and if one looks at the land of Israel through a farmer’s eyes, it is easy to see why that garden ethos is established already in the second chapter of the Bible. The highlands of Canaan (later Israel and Judah) are a fragile ecological zone, much of which is marginal for agriculture.”
Davis goes on to point out that upland farmers were always dealing with threats of erosion and desertification due to thin topsoil, periodic droughts, heavy winter rains and strong winds. Additionally, the mountain slopes and small valleys presented “one of the world’s most varied agricultural landscapes.” Because the patterns of wind, rain, and sun changed so dramatically over a small area, “each Israelite farm family had to know their own small plot of land intimately and, further, to perpetuate that particularized knowledge through the generations.” Within this agrarian culture, the parable of the sower takes on new meaning because to be productive, the farmer had to truly know the soil.
“A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop — a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.”
- Matthew 13:3-8
There are many other agrarian references. For example, in Isaiah 28:24-25, one reads that careful attention to certain practices was essential.
When a farmer plows for planting, does he plow continually?
Does he keep on breaking up and working the soil?
When he has leveled the surface,
does he not sow caraway and scatter cumin?
Does he not plant wheat in its place,
barley in its plot,
and spelt in its field?
These are all questions for the gardener. What should I plant? Where should I plant? Should I till the soil and if so when? Should I grow a cover crop? The first place to start, as in the parable of the sower, is to be aware of your soil. Testing is available through the University of Connecticut.
And for the seeker, these questions: What is my calling? How and when do I serve? Should I continue to pursue this goal or is it a season of rest?
Perhaps another place to start is by visiting the gardens at Mercy by the Sea Retreat and Conference Center. There are a variety of programs that honor the earth as well as many opportunities to explore the grounds. You can find a schedule of events here.