By Don Corrigan
Kirkwood’s Brad Lyons has a long history publishing books with spiritual themes. His Chalice Press, once located at Eden Theological Seminary in Webster Groves, has published 240 titles on faith issues and spirituality.
In recent years, he has turned to writing his own books for Chalice Press including a 2026 edition entitled, “The National Parks Inspiration Guide: Your Journey to Connection, Meaning, and Discovery.”
“I grew up in a ‘Big Vacation’ family,” said Lyons, originally from Oklahoma. “One year we went to Los Angeles via Seattle and we stopped at so many parks on the way. This book grew from a natural curiosity into a passion.”
Lyons has carried on the “Big Vacation” tradition with his own family. He and his wife, Courtney, and their three children, Zoe, Summer and Blake, have made vacation memories that have focused on national park visits.
“Watching my daughters see Mesa Verde for the first time will be one of my favorite memories,” said Lyons. “We took a nine-park trip a few years ago, with horseback riding in Bryce Canyon; wading The Narrows at Zion; and hiking other national parks.
“We were at Glacier National Park in 2009, and my son was really wanting to burn off some energy, so I let him run down a path on his own,” recalled Lyons. “Watching him sprinting through the trees was a blast. He’s a history buff, so he also really engages with national park units focused on history.”
With his long-time role at Chalice Press, Lyons is a bit of a religious buff. Chalice Press is the imprint of the Christian Board of Publication, publishing house of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). A non-profit ministry, the CBP was founded in 1911.
Lyons interest in the spiritual life and in outdoor exploration merged naturally into book writing. He found a kindred spirit for his literary aspirations with friend and co-author, Bruce Barkhauer.
“Bruce grew up in Cleveland and attended Ohio University and Christian Theological Seminary. He lives in Indiana now. Bruce is a career minister, whereas I’m a layperson with an MFA in creative writing and a publishing background,” Lyons explained.
Barkhauer and his partner, Laura, love natural beauty and adventure. After a conference in Appalachia in 2015, Lyons made a stop in Indiana at his friend’s house. That’s when the two hatched the idea of travel guides with a spiritual dimension.
Spiritual Inspiration
Three books resulted from that 2015 Indiana visit: The first book was “America’s Holy Ground,” in 2018, which included scriptural references. A second book followed with one National Park Service unit in each state called “America’s Sacred Sites.”
“For our 2026 book, “The National Parks Inspiration Guide,” we omitted the scripture so we can reach a broader audience,” said Lyons. “But we will soon have a resource online that provides scripture connections as well.”
In “The National Parks Inspiration Guide,” Lyons offers a one-word key to inspiration in the new guide. For example, the key word for Death Valley is “Life;” for Mount Rainier, it’s “Revelation;” for Arches, it’s “Connection;” for Glacier, it’s “Consequences.”
“Some of the themes came really easily,” Lyons explained. “Carlsbad Caverns was the first national park I visited, while I was in elementary school. It’s so unlike anything we normally see, so ‘Imagination’ was a natural fit.”
Glacier National Park was tagged with “Consequences,” because the park is suffering from man-made climate change, according to Lyons. He notes the consequences of burning fossil fuel. In 1850, there were 150 glaciers in the future park’s 1,000,000 acres.
“Today, there are just 26 glaciers. Nearly 90 percent of the glaciers are gone,” said Lyons. “If climate change continues at its projected rate, then Glacier’s glaciers will vanish by 2030.”
Lyons noted other “consequences” from man’s indifference to being a steward of nature. Deep budget cuts to natural resource and conservation departments are having an immediate, devastating impact.
“What DOGE did to the National Park Service is simply a national tragedy,” said Lyons. “Go to the parks now and you will see the difference in lack of maintenance, a buildup of trash, and loss of safety protections because of reduced staff.”
Gateway Arch
“A lot of people don’t realize that St. Louis Gateway Arch is a part of the National Park Service,” said Lyons. “It’s a small park, but it’s right in there with Yellowstone. The key word for the Gateway Arch is ‘Art.’
“It’s a 630-foot sculpture that emphasizes the landscape to the West,” noted Lyons. “It emphasizes a river that’s often forgotten. The Mississippi is so much a part of our natural world, our geography, our history.”
Lyons said he finds it hard now to separate his stories from the sites. He said he loves Yellowstone, and its theme of “Integrity.” It’s a character trait he has identified as a core value that’s being depreciated and lost in America.
“Crater Lake is one of my favorites, and its theme of ‘Clarity’ resonates with me as an aspiration amid the fray of life,” said Lyons. “I love Mesa Verde’s theme of ‘Family,’ because I can picture it first-hand. I’ll always recall the astonishment as my daughters saw Mesa’s cliff houses for the first time.”
As president, editor and publisher at Chalice Press, Lyons reads a ton of manuscripts from writers seeking publication. He reads them all, well, religiously. He does know to rest his eyes periodically in natural settings.
“We produce about a dozen books a year,” said Lyons. “Religious books are generally ‘loss leaders.’ Nevertheless, our job at Chalice Press is to find ideas that are pertinent, important and that are needed now.
“We’re doing a couple of books on Christian Nationalism because I think people in America are beginning to realize what this really is – and how harmful it can be,” Lyons said.
Advocates of Christian Nationalism argue that America is a Christian nation and government must maintain this heritage. Critics warn that fusion of faith and government leads to disrespect for non-Christians, secular citizens and minority groups.
“Another topic that Chalice Press is looking at is: What is leadership?” said Lyons. “Too many people conflate leadership with authority. They’re not the same thing. Authority can command, but leadership is the ability to inspire.”
(For more information on “The National Parks Inspiration Guide,” or to order a book, check out: nationalparksinspirationguide.com )
Environmental Echo 