Welcome to Ascension > Worship >

Email | Print |  Share  Digg Facebook MySpace  Yahoo! Buzz Twitter

Our labyrinth is an indoor/outdoor canvas model created especially for us by the Labyrinth Company in Baltimore, Maryland and funded through generous donations to the Church’s Memorial fund. It is a six-circuit path loosely patterned after the labyrinth on the floor of Chartes Cathedral in France. 

The Labyrinth: Meditation in Motion

The labyrinth is a spiritual tool for prayer and meditation. It is not just a maze, which has dead ends and wrong turns which sometimes must be retraced. The labyrinth is designed to be moved through on a single path leading to the center and out again. Rather than to confuse, the labyrinth is designed to be an aid to spiritual clarity and meditation. It is a representa tion of our journey through life, a symbolism of a pilgrimage.

The labyrinth is ancient. It is found in religious traditions around the world, with similar patterns found in the designs of Buddhist mandalas. The most famous labyrinth from ancient times was the Cretan one, the supposed lair of the mythological Minotaur. Turf labyrinths still exist in England and northern Europe, and during the Middle Ages many cathedrals inlaid labyrinth patterns into their stone floors. In time, the labyrinth fell out of use and was almost forgotten, but it has been revived in recent years by such celebrated activities as the Veriditas Project at Grace Episcopal Cathedral in San Francisco.

Why do we Walk?

The labyrinth can provide a way to quiet the mind and to increase awareness of self and the relationship of the self to others and to God. It is a vehicle toward incised unity, wholeness and healing.

How to Walk a Labyrinth

The labyrinth has only one path. As you follow the winding path to the center and back out again, open your mind and heart and let it become a mirror for where you are in your life.

In general, there are three stages to a typical walk: Shedding, or Purgation, the first stage, begins as you enter the labyrinth. You are invited to release, to let go of, the details of our life and the distractions of your heart. The act of walking quiets and empties the mind.

Illumination, when you reach the center and linger there, is the second stage. This is the place where you allow yourself to receive guidance. It is a place of prayer and meditation. Stand there as long as you wish. Union, the third stage, begins as you follow the path out. Each time you walk the labyrinth, you can seek to be healed and strengthened for your work in the world.

Suggestions for your Walk

• Prepare for your walk by taking time to reflect on where you are in your life.

• Pose a question that you want to work on as you walk the labyrinth (not questions susceptible to a yes or no answer).

• Use repetition. Many people like to use a phrase or word, or even the Lord's Prayer, to repeat as they walk.

• Read scripture as you walk.

• Pray as you walk, a prayer of petition, intercession, praise or thanksgiving.

• Walk to celebrate or mark a special event in your life.

• Ask for healing as you walk.

Home | About Us | Worship | Outreach | Education | Parish Life | The Ascendant | Calendar | En Espanol | Contact Us