Honouring a Creation Activist and Mystic

 

I've written about Father Charles Brandt a couple of times in the past, as recently as 2018. Father Charles was ordained a hermit many years ago and took up residence on the Oyster River, which is up the east coast of Vancouver Island in the Comox Valley.  While he moved  there for solitude and to make a living as a rare book restorer, he discovered that the river had been seriously degraded and fish stocks had declined because of logging upstream. He began an organization of residents which began working with the forestry company to change its practices, and together they restocked the river with salmon. 

I sought out Father Charles while on Vancouver Island for a United Church conference perhaps 25 years ago. He was featured in an episode of the CBC television program Man Alive and they provided contact information. He graciously welcomed me to his little abode which has its own chapel. He showed me his workshop and shared smoked salmon and wine -- very genteel!I thought he was rather old then, although he was in his early 70's (he's still alive at 97). While he still lives on his 27 treed acres he has established a conservation trust to ensure protection for the property when he's gone.

I admire Father Brandt as a Creation activist and mystic, an inspiration both then and through the years for my own commitment to the Earth which God has brought into being. 

I was delighted to see that Father Brandt has been honoured with a lifetime achievement Nature Inspiration award from the Canadian Nature Museum. In response to the news of the award Father Charles wrote, “With Thomas Berry I can only say that the human community and the natural world must go into the future as a single sacred community. This is a step in that direction. Thank you.” 

Berry was an eco-theologian, or "geologian" as he described himself. 

Thank you Father Brandt for your witness through the years. The award is well-deserved. 

https://www.hakaimagazine.com/features/the-oracle-of-oyster-river/