When Geoffrey and Pam took the Labyrinth to
Hainault, Geoffrey described their experiences in the weekly Newsletter:
The Church wasn't specially atmospheric but
after a short introductory talk, the people began to prayer walk the
Labyrinth.
A little girl about 8 or 9 set off with
determined strides. A teenage boy walked more slowly absorbed in
thought. An elderly lady was soon deep in meditation.
People passed each other with courtesy and consideration as those
coming back from the centre met those on their way to it. At one
point there was as many as a dozen people taking this unique prayer
walk.
A single mum came back weeping, not with
sadness but with real joy. A lady who had an injured ankle told
me that as she walked the pain just slipped away. Another lady
told me how calm it had made her.
Then a lady set off followed by a small
procession - her own daughter aged about 6 and three of her young
friends. It looked like the Pied Piper! When the lady got
to the centre, she knelt in prayer. Her daughter and friends sat
around her. The daughter laid her head on her mother's lap.
It could have been a crib scene.
They were appreciative of the opportunity to
experience prayer in this way.
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St John's has had its own labyrinth since January
2008. The church regularly has the labyrinth out for walking,
which takes about 10 to 20 minutes. Each walk is a different
experience of prayer and there are many different ways of walking the
labyrinth. Suggestions for prayer - including a booklet on Praying
the
Labyrinth
in
Lent
-
are provided when the labyrinth is
out. The walk
towards the centre is like a metaphorical walk towards God. Sometimes
people take their troubles or perplexities, uncertainties or hopes. It
is useful to have a prayer sentence which can be uttered silently as
you walk—a few words of scripture, a psalm or hymn verse. Reaching the
centre you hand everything over to God and spend a few minutes in what
is a ‘sacred space’ (Geoffrey finds it helpful to turn towards the
Altar Triptych). The walk out, retracing your steps, can be a time of
blessing.
It was funded by donation and supplied by the Veriditas organisation,
a
not
for
profit
organisation
dedicated
to
introducing people to the
healing, meditative powers of the labyrinth. St John's has a
seven circuit labyrinth. It is, similarly to the 11 circuit
labyrinths, cruciform, in four segments or quadrants which can be seen
to be linked the by the cross.
The labyrinth at St John's Church is painted on canvas and
is based on the mediaeval labyrinth found at Chartres
Cathedral. In 1991, the Rev Dr Lauren Artress was inspired by
the labyrinth at Chartres Cathedral to take the idea back to Grace
Cathedral, San Francisco and encourage the development of labyrinths
around the world. Grace Cathedral now has two labyrinths, one in
the cathedral and one outside - more from the Grace
Cathedral website.
The journey as a metaphor dates back to the time when the
church was called 'The Way'. Walking and praying the labyrinth as
a symbol of that journey has been an important tool for Christians for
centuries.
Walk a
labyrinth online with Grace Cathedral
Online
labyrinth from the rejesus site
Labyrinths are getting more popular and there are many more to walk
around the country. We also use an outside labyrinth at
Gooseberry Hall
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