I am convinced that pilgrimage is still a bona fide
spirit-renewing ritual. But I also
believe in pilgrimage as a powerful metaphor for any journey with the purpose
of finding something that matters deeply to the traveler. With a deepening focus, keen preparation,
attention to the path below our feet, and respect for the destination at hand,
it is possible to transform, even the most ordinary journey into a sacred
journey, a pilgrimage. –Phil
Cousineau, “The Art of Pilgrimage”
It was the
second day of our trip to Paris, our first full day in France. The skies were thick with dark clouds hanging
low and threatening rain. It was not an
ideal day for visiting the cathedral in Chartres, so famous for the amazing
colors, vibrant blues and deep purples, of its stained glass windows. But this is Friday and the only day when
there is a “possibility” of walking the labyrinth inlaid in the floor of the
central nave. There is no
guarantee. Normally chairs cover the
entire nave, arranged in cathedral seating with a center aisle and two sections
of wooden chairs for people to rest, to sit and pray, and to worship. But Friday is the one day when, unless
something else is scheduled to take place in the nave, they will push back the
chairs and expose the labyrinth.
Thus it
was that I found myself sitting in the amazing Cathedral Notre Dame of Chartres
watching about 20 people walking the labyrinth.
(That’s right; there are actually many Notre Dame Cathedrals in France,
which translates “Our Lady,” for they are usually dedicated to Mary.) As I began writing my thoughts in my journal
to prepare myself for walking the labyrinth, it slowly dawned upon my how
important this experience was to me. We
did not go to France so that I could walk the labyrinth in Chartres. This was not a pilgrimage. Yet at that moment, sitting in that
Cathedral, gathering my thoughts and beginning to listen deeply to my own
spirit, it became clear walking this labyrinth was something I very much needed
to do. At that moment, as Cousineau
suggests, my trip to France became a pilgrimage.
When did I
become enamored of labyrinths? I cannot
recall. Dianne and I visited San
Francisco in 1995 which is home to Grace Cathedral, an Episcopal church where
Lauren Artress serves as Rector. Lauren
is one of the founders of Veriditas, the organization promoting the resurgent
use of labyrinths as spiritual prayer tools.
Dianne actually visited Grace Cathedral while I was in General Synod
meetings and walked the labyrinth they have, but I did not. I do recall an outdoor labyrinth at the
retreat center in Lake Worth, Florida which I visited often in the late ‘90’s
to see a Spiritual Director. But that
labyrinth does not feel like my first labyrinth. I can remember walking the outdoor labyrinth
at Ghost Ranch Retreat Center in New Mexico sometime before 2005. And of course I helped build a labyrinth on
the Christ Church campus in August of 2005.
Most of
these labyrinths were all patterned after the Chartres labyrinth, an 11-circuit. While it is not the only pattern for a
labyrinth, it has become one of the most well-known. At one time there were 17 labyrinths laid in
the floors of cathedrals across medieval France. The labyrinth in the Chartres cathedral,
placed in the floor sometime between 1194 and 1220, is the only one which
remains. No one is quite sure why
labyrinths became popular in medieval Europe.
Some feel it was to provide a “virtual” pilgrimage to Jerusalem for
those who could not make the actual journey themselves. There is some suggestion that pilgrims would
walk the labyrinth on their knees to heighten the experience.
Some think
of a labyrinth as a maze, but it is not a maze.
A maze is a puzzle, with dead ends and little reason or rhyme to the
path. A labyrinth is a path representing
a journey. There is one way in to the
center and one way out and you cannot get lost (at least not intentionally) on
the path. It is a simple spiritual
prayer tool; it offers a way to physically pray, not so much or just with
words, but with one’s whole being – body, mind, heart and soul. Every time I have ever walked a labyrinth it
has been a powerful spiritual experience.
And so it
was this time! The opportunity to walk
THIS labyrinth, in the Chartres Cathedral, at THIS moment in my life, was truly
a Divine gift. I arrived in Chartres
after a very difficult summer in my ministry and my life. I arrived carrying many burdens and many
questions. As I sat in that sacred
space, I was able to focus my thoughts, gather up my emotions, my burdens, the
experiences of my life in the past few months, and offer them up to God as I
walked into the labyrinth. Surrounded by
the symbols of faith, the altar, the Communion Table, the beautiful stained
glass windows telling the stories of the Bible and the Church; moving with
other pilgrims, experiencing their devotion, adjusting my pace and rhythm to
their pace on the path, pausing for them to pass; realizing I was walking the
very same path hundreds of thousands if not millions of other pilgrims had
walked since the 13th century, nevertheless I was totally immersed
in the moment, opening my heart, mind, and soul to the presence of God to allow
God to lift my burdens and to speak to me God’s Word and God’s Wisdom.
I have no
concept of the time I took in the labyrinth.
I did not rush through it, but I did not dawdle. I moved at a steady pace, but I paused when
it seemed appropriate and I drank in the amazing surrounding environment of the
Cathedral. I spent significant time in
the center rosette, specifically sharing my questions and seeking God’s
guidance and wisdom. When I moved back
outward on the path away from the center toward the entrance I did so with the
intention of moving back to my life and back to the world. I did not hear a “voice” or direct message
from God, but I clearly had a sense in my heart and soul that God had lifted my
burdens and God was giving my guidance.
I experienced the power of the labyrinth once again. And the labyrinth ministered to my heart and
soul as I needed at that moment. I came
away from that experience with a deep peace about myself, about my life and
ministry, and about the future.
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