|
|
| |
| |
The Labyrinth – A New Focal Point
Sunday December 3rd, LOPC held a dedication service to celebrate the completion of the labyrinth, a new focal point connecting the Sanctuary, Chapel and Christina Life building.
The Labyrinth was constructed in early October by Labyrinth Enterprises of St. Louis, MO. Kathy Wesley, a labyrinth facilitator who assisted in the construction, participated in the dedication. Labyrinth Enterprises has constructed numerous labyrinths around the country and has an extensive web site at www.labyrinth-enterprises.com The web site includes extensive information on labyrinths including hundreds of links to other resources. An additional resource is the Labyrinth Society, known affectionately as "TLS," and is made up of labyrinth enthusiasts from all over the world.
Labyrinths can be traced back 3500 years to different cultures and times in places such as Crete, Scandinavia, Egypt, India and Sumatra. The labyrinths of Crete were depicted on their coins. Labyrinths are found in many faiths and have both sacred and secular expressions. Christian labyrinths date from the seventh century and are a feature of many cathedrals.
The most famous remaining labyrinth was constructed at Chartres, France in about 1200 and served as the model for the labyrinth at LOPC.
Much more than a decoration, labyrinths are tools for meditation, reflection and self discovery. The LOPC labyrinth is intended to be as a meditation aid to help us slow down and gain new understanding of who we are and our place in God’s world. It is intended to be an incarnational way of praying our confessions and receiving God’s forgiveness. And, it is intended as a way of praying scripture as we walk and receive new insight. Printed suggestions for walks of remembrance, prayer, reflection and meditation are available at the church.
Here is the etiquette for using the Labyrinth as well as several suggested walks
Labyrinth Etiquette
- At the entrance to the path (on the east side in line with the Sanctuary doors), pause for a moment and ask God, the Holy Spirit, to be your guide and offer this time to God to be at work in you.
- Many people can be walking the labyrinth at the same time, but as a courtesy, let a little space develop between you and the person who is entering the labyrinth before you.
- Shoes or no shoes - it doesn't matter.
- If the person ahead of you stops on the path, you may walk around them or not, as you choose. If you have stopped for awhile and someone is behind you, you may step off the path to let them pass and then move back to your place. How you respond to interruptions and others on the path may become an illuminating aspect of your walk.
- Most of all, enjoy this time of quiet and peace. Don't worry about "doing it right."
Remembering ...
Take a luminary and, holding it carefully so as not to burn yourself or the bag, pause at the entry to the labyrinth and ask God to help you remember, to support and guide you as you remember…say the name of the person you desire to remember.
Simply walk the path allowing yourself to be present to whatever memories arise. Be aware of the emotion or images or physical sensations that accompany the memories. Try not to censor what emerges but offer it all back to God.
When you reach the center of the Labyrinth, place your luminary somewhere on the edge of the inner circle and offer a prayer to God. You might want to thank God for this person's life, thank God for the memories that you carry, ask God to heal the hole that has been made in your life by this person’s death, ask God to hold with you the grief you carry, or simply pray as you feel led or need.
From the center of the Labyrinth you may walk out following the path, trying to be present to whatever God might want you to offer you or depending on the time you want to walk directly into the sanctuary. You’re invited to do whatever feels needful to you.
A Reflective Walk
If you have a question, an issue, a concern, or a desire to give thanks - bring that to the walk. As you enter, state what you bring as clearly as you can to God. Walk slowly or quickly saying whatever it is you need to say to make space in you for a response to emerge. Think of it as pouring out your full glass so there is room for a new insight or direction. You may want or need to spend the whole walk to the center doing this. In the center, pause again and specifically ask God to speak to you about what you have brought, perhaps providing new insight, wisdom, or guidance. Walk the path out slowly, trying simply to listen to what comes to your attention from the small still voice inside and from beyond that which you have conceived yourself.
 A Prayer Walk
Adding the kinetic to prayer is very powerful. Simply pray as you walk the path into the center of the labyrinth. You may choose to offer your prayer in cadence with your walking. Consider the walking itself a prayer so that you need not be offering something specific to God the whole time. It is interesting to simply walk slowly, see what comes up and let that become your prayer. When you reach the center, pause again, offer all that has happened or not happened back to God. You may have more to say to God as you walk out and that is fine. You have set this time aside and you know best how to use it. On the walk out of the labyrinth, you may want to ask God to help you listen for anything He might want to offer. Then, walk and notice anything that seems to come to you from beyond yourself - a thought, an image, a feeling, a memory - and wonder with God what that is and how it is connected to your prayer and life.
A Meditation Walk
Choose a scripture passage and bring it with you to your walk. Read it slowly with pauses between readings, even between phrases or words as you walk. Read and walk with different cadences as you choose. Listen for what catches your attention and notice what emerges in thinking and feelings about the passage. When you get to the center of the labyrinth, pause and read the scripture through one more time. As you walk out instead of reading the scripture simply let it now read you. Just be open to whatever comes up as you consider this scripture in your life.
|
| |
|
|
