John Ballard Kirsch was a World War II veteran, rancher, and wildlife biologist before being ordained a priest at the age of 50 in 1969. A passionate outdoorsman and devout Catholic, he discovered a path during his seminary training that would enable him to combine his love of God and passion for nature. As a college chaplain for several years following his ordination he taught a course he called Eco-Theo that emphasized the sacredness of all creation. He continued this nature retreat program as much as his workload allowed during his years as a parish pastor in Montana, and retired from full-time ministry at age 70 to devote all his energies to retreat work.
Through the years he led hundreds of hiking retreats and developed a large number of friends who hiked with him regularly. He corresponded with people from around the world who had participated in his retreats.
The book is divided into three main sections. The first part, "Father John's Quest," is the story of his personal spiritual journey-the unfolding of vocation and his response to the call; the second, "On Retreat with Father John," provides descriptions of the hiking retreat locations he used, along with his reflections on special places and excerpts from his retreat brochures; the third part, "At the Well," is a selection of short passages from his homilies and writings that can be used for reflection/meditation. These reflections are collected under two headings: "A Sacred Universe" and "Becoming an Environmental Mystic." Also included are a section of maps and guides for following in his footsteps and an appendix containing his suggested reading list to aid the reader in "finding the Spirit in nature."