Table of Contents
History of the Labyrinth
The CHARTRES Labyrinth
Sacred Geometry of the Labyrinth
Suggestions for Walking the Labyrinth
Experiencing the Labyrinth
Spiritual Significants of the Labyrinth Walk
Blessing of the Labyrinth - March 4, 2007
Labyrinth Walk During Holy Week - April 2-6, 2007
Schedule of Labyrinth Walks at LUMC
Painting the Labyrinth
Email: Information Email
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Lexington United Methodist Church
Labyrinth Walk
Come! Walk the Labyrinth and Pray!
Labyrinth walk is available on the first Friday of every month 10 AM - 8 PM in Wesley Hall.
During Holy Week, the labyrinth will be open for walking on the following schedule:
March 17 (Monday) - March 21 (Friday) from 9 AM until 8 PM.
On Easter Sunday, March 23, the ANew Service at 11:00 AM in Wesley Hall will worship with the labyrinth in the center.
Introduction
A labyrinth is a sacred path and space used for prayer, meditation, and contemplation. Unlike a maze, a labyrinth has a single path to the center and back. It is walked in an attitude of prayer and meditation.
The CHARTRES Labyrinth at LUMC is thirty-six feet wide and is made of canvas. It was ordered from Labyrinth Enterprises and it was painted by a group of painters at LUMC. It was opened in May 2007 to the congregation and to the public. It will be open in Wesley Hall in the Ministry Center on a regular schedule for walking and the public is welcome and encouraged to walk the labyrinth regularly. You do not need to call the church office, just come in and walk. We only ask that you sign the guest register so that we have a record of your walk and can gage the impact of the labyrinth on our community.
Thank you for walking the labyrinth at LUMC.
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History of the Labyrinth
Labyrinths have been known to the human race for over 3,500 years, conjuring up such A Labyrinthimages as the legend of Theseus and the Minotaur. They have been used in many different religious ways by many peoples, and as solar and lunar calendars. In Arizona and the American Southwest the Hopi use a form of the labyrinth in their religious symbolism, and the Tohono O'odham "Man in the Maze" is actually a "seven-circuit" labyrinth and is part of an elaborate creation myth.
The oldest existing Christian labyrinth is probably the one in the fourth-century basilica of Reparatus, Orleansville, Algeria. And while Christians used labyrinths on pre-Christian sites and modeled their own after ones used by earlier cultures, the development of the high medieval Christian seven circuit labyrinth was a breakthrough in design. Its path of seven circles was cruciform (shaped like the Cross) and thus incorporated the central Christian symbol. Use of these labyrinths flourished in Europe throughout the eleventh and twelfth centuries and beyond, especially in the French cathedrals of Chartres, Sens, Poitiers, Bayeaux, Amiens and Rheims and in the Italian cathedrals at Lucca and San Maria-di-Trastavera in Rome.
Medieval pilgrims, unable to fulfill their desire to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, went instead to many pilgrimage sites in Europe or Britain. In many cases the end of their journey was a labyrinth formed of stone and laid in the floor of the nave of one of these great Gothic cathedrals. The center of the labyrinths probably represented for many pilgrims the Holy City itself and thus became the substitute goal of the journey.
The CHARTRES Labyrinth
The Chartres cathedral labyrinth, upon which Grace Cathedral's labyrinth in San Francisco is modeled (Grace Cathedral), has a particular, though probably typical, history. The majestic twelfth-century Gothic church a few miles west of Paris was built on an earlier, pre-Christian religious site, and became an important pilgrimage goal for medieval pilgrims. The astrological and pre-Christian origins were never entirely lost at Chartres, but became incorporated into the symbolism of the cathedral -- and of the labyrinth.
Chartres, like most medieval churches, is a cruciform design. The labyrinth is located in the nave approximately where the thighs of the crucified Christ might have been in this symbolic representation.
One of the most famous aspects of Chartres cathedral is the spectacular rose window over the great west doors. It has the same dimensions as the labyrinth and is exactly the same distance up the west wall as the labyrinth is laterally from the cathedral's main entrance below the window. An imaginary cosmic hinge located where the doors and floor intersect would, if closed, place the rose window directly on top of the labyrinth, thus the sparkling, colored light of the window and the darkness of the labyrinthine pilgrimage are combined.
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Sacred Geometry of the Labyrinth
The sacred geometry of the labyrinth involves the numbers four, seven and twelve, emerging out of the "paths" and "walls" themselves. The labyrinth is divided neatly into four quarters around a cross, standing in the medieval mind for the four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) and also for the four stages of the Mass (Evangelium, Offertory, Consecration, and Communion). Labyrinth meditation might be based on one of these or some other set of four, assigning each quarter section to one, and so forth.
Seven is the number of 180 turns there are in each quarter of the labyrinth. This relates to the seven Liberal Arts of medieval education, the chacras of the human body, or perhaps the seven paths of the classic medieval cruciform labyrinths.
Twelve is the total number of the labyrinth's paths and center, thus relating it to the twelve-month calendar. The "lunations" around the outside of the labyrinth are a lunar calendar and can be used to determine, among other things, the date of Easter, which falls on the Sunday after the full moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox.
The six "petals" of the center of the labyrinth provide individual opportunities for symbolic representation and meditation. Moving clockwise from the entrance, they represent mineral, plant, animal, human, angelic and unnameable properties. In the very center of the Grace St. Paul's labyrinth, three consecrated hosts, representing the three persons of the Trinity, are embedded in the concrete inside a metal pix.
Walking the labyrinth models the classical three-fold spiritual path. Walking in: Purgation, emptying or letting go. Time in the center: Illumination, clarity, insight. Walking out: Union, initiative, integration, and action in the world.
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Suggestions for Walking the Labyrinth
The labyrinth is a path for prayer and meditation. Collect yourself before you start. Sit and rest along the low wall for a while. Walk around the outside once. Think of different people, events, situations, places or things in your life to develop a specific intention if you wish to use one in your meditation. Get centered.
There are two common ways of walking. The way of silence and the way of image. In choosing the way of silence it might be helpful to focus on your breathing. The way of image might be done by reciting a prayer or a name for God over and over to yourself. Ask yourself: How am I loved? How do I love? In either case or in some other manner best suited to you, be open to your heart and mind. Pay attention to your thoughts as they rise and then let them go.
The labyrinth is a place of presence; allow yourself to be present to yourself and to God. The labyrinth is a teacher; let it teach you through the mysterious power of God. As you walk the path, thoughts and ideas may rise up for you and in you -- often in refreshing and startling ways.
One way to feel more connected to the experience is to walk barefoot and slowly. There is no need to rush. Some people feel a sense of confusion as they first start, remember there is only one path in and one path out. You will not get lost. For some people running as quickly as possible to the center, resting there, and then running quickly out is a powerful experience.
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Experiencing the Labyrinth
People have different experiences walking the labyrinth. As with all practices of prayer or meditation, your experience will grow and deepen the more you do it. There is no "right" experience. Some people feel a sense of A Labyrinthpeace. Others find old memories rising up as they walk. Others find themselves thinking about an immediate situation or person. Others walk at varying speeds as different thoughts and emotions come and go. Some people experience physical sensations, perhaps become light-headed, or have a feeling of floating above, a feeling of weight, or of great warmth. Some people have profound insights. Others have very small experiences or none at all. The experience of walking the labyrinth is different for each person, each time. Whatever you experience, it is your experience. Relax and see what happens.
Sources: Lauren Artress, Walking a Sacred Path: Rediscovering the Labyrinth; Pamphlet, Church of the Redeemer, Shelbyville, TN; Sig Lonegren, Labyrinths: Ancient Myths and Modern Uses.
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Spiritual Significance of the Labyrinth Walk
The Middle Ages was a time of pilgrimages. Since most people could not make the grand pilgrimage to Jerusalem, considered by Christians to be the center of the world, and symbolizing the Kingdom of Heaven, they would make pilgrimages to important cathedrals such as Canterbury, Santiago de Compostella and Chartres. Once there, they would end their pilgrimage by walking the labyrinth to the center, and then slowly retracing their steps to regain the 'outside world' and return to their homes. The Chartres labyrinth was sometimes walked in place of the actual pilgrimage to Jerusalem and considered a holy experience. People believed that if you walked the labyrinth with the full dedication of a pilgrim, you would be transformed, the old you will be grounded at the threshold stone a purified you emerging, ready to tackle new directions in your life's journey.
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Blessing of the Labyrinth - March 4, 2007
On March 4, 2007 we had a short "Introduction to the Labyrinth" session to introduce the participants to the history and use of the labyrinth. Then a "Blessing of the Labyrinth" service was conducted with people seated all around the labyrinth. After the blessing the labyrinth was opened for walking and about 25 people walked. It was a very spiritual event.
Blessing of the Labyrinth &
Labyrinth Walk
Sunday March 4, 2007
7:00 PM
Wesley Hall in the Ministry Center
Introduction to the Labyrinth will be at 6:30 PM in Asbury Hall.
The Labyrinth will be available for walking until 8:30 PM.
Taizé Music was provided.
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Labyrinth Walk During Holy Week - April 2-6
Numerous people walked the labyrinth during Holy Week. These people came from the congregation and from the surrounding community. All people are welcome to walk.
Wesley Hall in the Ministry Center
Monday April 2 - 9:00 am - 4:00 pm; 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Tuesday April 3 - 9:00 am - 4:00 pm; 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Wednesday April 4 - 9:00 am - 4:00 pm; 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Thursday April 5 - 9:00 am - 4:00 pm; 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm
(Holy Thursday Communion Service - 7:00 pm in the Sanctuary)
Friday April 6 - 9:00am - 4:00 pm; 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm
(Good Friday Service - 7:00 pm in the Sanctuary)
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Schedule of Labyrinth Walks at LUMC
Public labyrinth walks are scheduled for the first Friday of every month. All walks will be from 10:00 AM until 8:00 PM The dates for 2007 are:
- May 4
- June 1
- July 6
- August 3
- September 7
- October 5
- November 2
- December 7
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Painting The Labyrinth at LUMC
LUMC Labyrinth Painters
Meditative Concentration
The Finished Center Section