Sam has led immersive retreats, workshops, and teacher trainings in diverse settings across North and Central America. In these offerings, Sam invites participants into a deep, embodied experience of reconnection with the Earth, the Universe, and the Great Mystery at the heart of reality. He integrates novel insights from science, cosmology, and the humanities with contemplative practices rooted in lived experience, helping to activate each person’s creative purpose in building a thriving future. Such practices include nature-based meditation, forest bathing, and The Cosmic Walk, an interactive ritual developed by Sr. Miriam MacGillis tracing the epic, 13.8-billion-year journey of the universe. Sam is passionate about curating transformational experiences that rekindle wonder, awaken ecological consciousness, and cultivate soulful participation in the flourishing of the Earth for generations to come.
Upcoming Retreats
“Contemplative Ecology” at Mepkin Abbey, September 8-12, 2025
Join us for a restorative retreat on Contemplative Ecology at Mepkin Abbey, nestled among 2,000 acres of forested land along the Cooper River in South Carolina. In the company of live oaks draped with moss and the rich biodiversity of the Lowcountry—including herons, turtles, and the vibrant chorus of insect life—we will explore the sacred connection between our inner and outer worlds.
Through a range of outdoor contemplative practices—including forest meditation, labyrinth walking, and stargazing—we will deepen our communion with the living world and attune ourselves to the wisdom of nature.
Rooted in the Christian mystical tradition and open to all spiritual seekers, this program invites participants to reflect on how ecological spirituality can become a wellspring for inspired action. Together, we will engage in dialogue and discernment around how to respond to the urgent challenges of our time—climate change, biodiversity loss, and environmental justice—with courage, compassion, and contemplative insight.
Whether you are seeking spiritual renewal, ecological wisdom, or a more grounded path of action, this retreat offers a welcoming space to listen deeply—to the land, to the stars, and to the call of the Earth.
Included in this retreat are all of the sessions, a private rooms and bath in the beautiful St. Francis Retreat Center, three vegetarian meals, and all of the amenities of the center. Email mepkinguestmaster@gmail.com if you have any questions.
Retreat is currently full with a waiting list. Click here for more info!
“The Cosmic Walk”
September 16, 2025 | 6:00 – 7:15 pm EST
Hartford International University for Religion and Peace
The Cosmic Walk is an embodied ritual experience of the 13.8 billion-year journey of the Universe. In this practice, Sam King will guide participants as they walk along a 138-foot spiral-shaped rope marked with the major transformations necessary for life to emerge on Earth, followed by group reflection and discussion. Created by Miriam MacGillis of Genesis Farm, the Cosmic Walk is designed to evoke conscious connection to and care for our blue-green planet.
Click here for more info and to register!
Past Retreats
“Living Earth, Living Cosmos” will invite participants into an immersive day-long experience of spiritual renewal through deep connection with our planetary home. We will orient ourselves by watching the “Journey of the Universe” film, weaving together science with ancient spiritual wisdom to tell the epic story of cosmic evolution. Participants will then journey through the “Cosmic Walk,” an embodied ritual experience of the 13.8-billion-year Universe Story, held along a 138-foot spiral on the shores of expansive Long Island Sound. We will reflect together on what it means to be interconnected with life from cells to animals to stars bringing forth the elements of our bodies.
During our afternoon session, we will come into our Earthly being and touch into the aliveness that is present in every moment. Opportunities to connect with the land and ocean will be offered through a series of sensory meditations that invite us to awaken to the sacredness of life, renewing a sense of kinship and community with the natural world.
Our time together will conclude with a final reflection that will unite our Cosmic and Earthly interconnection, from stars to trees and the sea that laps the shores of time, expanding our sense of belonging in vast and intimate ways.
Learn more and register here.
On Monday, August 4th, Sam will host a unique online program with his friend and Yale Divinity School classmate Meredith Barges, a bird-friendly building policy advocate, chair of Lights Out CNY, and PhD student at the SUNY School of Environment & Forestry. Meredith helps people to appreciate the complex lives of birds and how our decisions about buildings and lighting affect bird populations.
This program will immerse us in the wonder of the night sky and our duty to protect it—for migratory birds and for ourselves. Guided by contemplative practice, scripture, and shared reflection, we’ll consider how light pollution disrupts natural rhythms—and how we can help preserve the beauty and integrity of the night for all who depend on its darkness.
The event is free and open to the public.
Zoom link: tinyurl.com/mepkinecology
The Cosmic Walk at the 2024 Transcendence in Nature Festival, hosted by Mission Farm in Killington, VT, USA
The Cosmic Walk at Iona University in New Rochelle, NY, USA (2025)
Planting a native pollinator garden at Marist LaValla Weekend in Esopus, NY, USA (2022)
Program on student environmental leadership at Liceo Guatemala in Guatemala City, Guatemala (2023)
The Cosmic Walk at Iona University in New Rochelle, NY, USA (2024)
Interactive film screening and discussion on Journey of the Universe in Guatemala City, Guatemala (2023)
The Cosmic Walk at Wisdom House in Litchfield, CT, USA (2023)
The Cosmic Walk at Wisdom House in Litchfield, CT, USA (2023)
The Cosmic Walk at the Graduate Conference on Religion and Ecology (GCRE) at Yale (2023)
The Cosmic Walk at the Graduate Conference on Religion and Ecology at Yale (2023)
The Cosmic Walk at Thomas Berry Place in Queens, NY, USA (2023)