Adult Formation at All Souls

Early Fall 2026

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Seeking and Finding the Beauty Of God

The desire to see beauty in the natural world arises from our desire to know God. Many of us find that water, the fragrance of pines, brilliant sunsets, and the starry night sky embrace us with a calm of eternity, a sense that all is well. When we experience beauty in God’s creation and in works of human creativity and imagination — in music, art, poetry, and literature — we may perceive how all these are mirrors of God’s love and perfection, and His invitation for us, His children in Christ, to participate in His transcendent life.

However, the encroachment of our use of technology and over-committed daily lives provide distractions that make it difficult for us to be attentive to the immense treasures of the created world. We carelessly encounter beauty — we forget the joy and wonder found in the true contemplation of it. We may fall into patterns that even stifle our hunger for God. Worship may become perfunctory, notwithstanding that in our Anglican liturgy we are surrounded by the beauty of Scripture and our Sacraments, attended with beautiful vestments, processions, chalices, music, walls, windows, and words.

In this series, we will explore the different aspects of beauty we experience as God’s creatures, to encourage each of us to live an attentive, contemplative life. We will learn more about the beauty of God, the importance of beauty in the various things that possess it, and the ways in which our worship reflects God’s beauty, allowing us to experience God in all His glory.