MEMORIAL LABYRINTH

In October of 2016,  we added a labyrinth to preserve the memory of those we have loved and those who have gone before us.  It is a typical outdoor Classical Seven-Circuit Labyrinth which is located behind the Sanctuary (east of the building), and is open to the public.

 

The labyrinth is a tool to guide healing, deepen self-knowledge, and empower creativity.  It is viewed as a path to the center of the soul.  While the path is the same for all who walk it, our experiences are highly personal and individual leading to a different experience for everyone.  It is a tool for meditation, an experience of prayer, a trigger for growth, an opportunity for new questions.  The labyrinth should be approached with reverence and respect for the journey toward the center.

Often, those who walk the Labyrinth do so with a specific intention in mind.  They offer their concerns to God, letting go of them as they make the inward journey.  They stop in the center as a place to reflect on God's grace.  When ready, they make the journey outward, asking God's guidance as they go.

Some prefer to walk the Labyrinth with no thought but that of placing one foot in front of the other, spending some time in silence in the center, and journeying out in the same way.

So in walking the Labyrinth, you can either let go of all thoughts and trust that God will guide you or you might focus on a specific question or thought in your walk. 

Pause at the entry into the Labyrinth.  Allow what comes naturally to guide you. Be Yourself on the path.  You need not hurry nor plod along.  Walk naturally.  Remember you are not alone, so be considerate of others; you may nod or embrace others, or find yourself deep in meditation.

Don't expect anything to happen.  The experience may have immediate impact on you, or it may seem remote.  Spiritual practices are disciplines; rewards follow preparation, repetition and reflection.  There are no promises of revelation. It is a way of praying and it is a way of listening for God. As Lauren Artress said in Walking a Sacred Path, "It quiets the mind and opens the soul."  

At the center, you will find a cross.  Visual imagery or the repetition of a phrase as a tool for quieting the mind.  Use your own prayer or use the few examples provided with this picture of the center of the labyrinth. 

 

• "I accept this hour's grace."
• "I give thanks for light and life."
• "Blessed are you, O God."
• "Come, Lord Jesus."
• "God in your Grace."
• "Breathe in love, breathe out unrest."
• "Have mercy on me."

This labyrinth was made possible by "in memory" donations, as well as those who believed in having a labyrinth for all to walk.  We thank Rev. Will McGarvey for laying down the design and the volunteers who spent many hours lining up the bricks, filling wheel barrows with decomposed granite, pushing those to the site, and stamping down the decomposed granite.  A special thank you to the first volunteer who prepared the site by blocking it, pushing around and leveling landfill, and then tacking down weed-block prior to the design.