Walking as One: An Invitation to Experience the Labyrinth

I was surprised a couple of years ago at one of our Advent labyrinth walks to hear a long-time, very involved parishioner say that was his first time walking the labyrinth.  I have known and loved labyrinths since my early 20’s, when I first experienced the labyrinth at Grace Cathedral and reached the center three times on one walk (clearly having stepped over a line, but it was a spiritual experience nonetheless!)

Thanks to a dedicated group of vestry volunteers and Ruthanne Svendsen, who will be facilitating, we have the opportunity to experience the labyrinth this Saturday not only with members of our wider Napa Valley community, but with people all over the world, as we “Walk as One” for World Labyrinth Day.  The idea is that at 1PM local time, people will walk their local labyrinths with an intention for peace, creating a rolling wave of moving prayer for peace throughout the globe.

The labyrinth is an ancient tool for walking meditation.  Variations on the pattern are found in many cultures throughout the world.  In Greek mythology, the labyrinth was the prison of the Minotaur, which the hero Theseus had to enter to slay the beast.  He was only able to escape the maze because the ball of golden thread which the princess Ariadne gave him enabled him to retrace his steps.  The builders of medieval European Cathedrals took this ancient concept and Christianized it as a metaphor for the soul’s struggle against evil; Ariadne’s golden thread being the teachings and sacraments of the Church.  Remains of labyrinths have been found in many  cathedrals throughout Europe, particularly in France, where contemporaries walked them as a devotion, penance, or substitute for making pilgrimage.

The modern labyrinth movement was sparked in the early 1990’s, when clergy from Grace Cathedral, San Francisco “discovered” the 800-year-old labyrinth at the Cathedral in Chartes, France and created a replica of its fourteen-circuit pattern back home.  From there labyrinths have spread all over the world, and become an important spiritual tool for calming the mind while moving the body in our busy modern age.

Whether you are a labyrinth aficionado or have never walked before, come experience the labyrinth with others this Saturday, May 3 at 1PM!  While the labyrinth at Grace is always open, walking with others is a particularly moving experience; I can only imagine walking with the World will be that much more powerful!  Whether you walk or not, take a moment right now and at 1PM Saturday to offer a prayer for peace, that we may, as Jesus said, truly be one as he and the Father are one.  (John 17:21)

Rev. Amy