Patrick Gordon-Making Nature Sacred, Hawthorne's Religion

Nathaniel Hawthorne is not known as a nature writer; but while living in the Old Manse, he took the time to reflect on the former tenant and give us a glimpse into his view of God in Nature. The last owner was a Reverend (Surprisingly, Ralph Waldo Emerson’s Grandfather) who had tried to create a “legacy” for himself and glorify God through his writings. Hawthorne stumbled upon these writings and, since none of them “retained any sap”, threw them out. This was obviously no way to exalt God. In Hawthorne’s eyes, the only way the preacher actually accomplished his holy mission was by planting orchard trees on the property. While reflecting on the Reverend, he writes: “He loved each tree, doubtless, as if it had been his own child. An orchard has a relation to mankind, and readily connects itself with matters of the heart. The tree possesses a domestic character; they have lost the wild nature of their forest-kindred, and have grown humanized by receiving the care of man, as well as by contributing to his wants”. The live trees, not lifeless papers, themselves are the legacy the Holy man left behind. Nathaniel saw them, not as plants, but as an affirmation of God’s gift of life; nature as a mask of the holy. I draw from this reflection that one can see God’s grace in all aspects of nature; be it visiting the Grand Canyon or planting a tree. Hawthorne’s religion is not that of homilies and scriptures, but one of life and all of the beauty it has to offer; writing about it would merely make him a hypocrite.