Christianity and Prayer Labyrinths - PowerPoint Presentation

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Christianity and Prayer Labyrinths - PPT Presentation

sharlyn menard rights 2016 menard sharlyn 2016 rights reserved labyrinth journey center path prayer spiritual experience life find god

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Slide1

Christianity and Prayer Labyrinths

Journeying Through It Together

Sharlyn Menard

Spirals show up in Creation

Labyrinths Are Spiral Patterns

What is a labyrinth?

The labyrinth is an ancient spiritual tool that is thousands of years old.

Classical Labyrinth

Most ancient of labyrinth designs

Unknown creators, found worldwide

Appear as petroglyphs in SpainOn silver coins from Crete

Laid out in rock in Northern Europe

Painted on bark in Indonesia

Classical Style Labyrinths

There are many ways to construct a labyrinth, in the snow, in the sand, with rocks.

The Man in the Maze

Native American origin

Appears as an image woven into baskets

Human figure at the entranceProduced by the Tohono O’odham and Akimel

O’odham tribes of southern Arizona

Man in the Maze pattern woven into baskets.

Chartres Cathedral Labyrinth

Medieval pavement labyrinth

Found within the nave of the Chartres Cathedral, France

Was laid in the early 13th

century (c.1200-1220 CE)

Organized in four quadrants, symbolic of the cross

Walked by pilgrims as a metaphor of the journey to Jerusalem

Chartres Cathedral

Labyrinth PracticeYour spiritual life is not your own unless you create practices that nourish you.

Not like a maze: no dead ends

Pace is up to you The same path going into the center is used to return to the outside

Represents the journey inward to our own true selves and back out into the everyday world Opportunity to slow down, relax, relieve stress, reflect, meditate© 2016 Sharlyn Menard – All Rights ReservedSlide12

Added Dimension for Christians

Can be part of a contemplative practice as a path of prayerPilgrimage

Deepen your walk with God

Right Brain Activity

Clear the mindCalm our anxieties during periods of transition and stress

Guide healingDeepen self-knowledge

Enhance creativityAllow for reconciliationRestore feelings of belonging to a communityLead to personal and spiritual growth

It is a tool that can:

A Metaphor for the Journey of Life

Full of twists and turns

Each of us is on a single path through his or her life

Each person’s journey is a separate and distinct qualitative experience“Metaphor is the alphabet of the invisible world.” ~ Reverend Lauren

Artress

Spiritual Formation

The journey to God is a path that leads along many deceptive twists and turns to the center.

Though it often feels like we’re getting lost, if we keep following the path, we’ll eventually end up where we’re supposed to be.

When we’re weary and feeling lost, all that is required of us is that we put one foot in front of the other and carry on.

Sometimes we get really close to the center, and think our journey is done, but suddenly we round the corner and there’s a whole new lesson we need to learn before we can rest.

Spiritual Formation (continued)

Each time we pass a familiar place, we wonder “haven’t I been here before?”

God is both the center we seek and the path that gets us there.

Walking the Labyrinth

You may think of walking in four movements:

remembering (the blessing)

releasing (the journey within)

receiving (at center)

returning (coming back to life)

Remembering – The Blessing

Before entering take a breath, ask for a blessing, experience gratitude or find something meaningful to ground you before starting

Releasing – The Journey Within

Let go of details, distractions and extraneous thoughts as you symbolically shed your skin. Open the heart and quiet the mind. Find a natural pace to engage in your experience.

Receiving – At Center

When you find yourself in the center of the labyrinth, stay as long as you like. Sit or stand. It is a sacred space for meditation and prayer. Receive what is there for you to receive.

Returning – Coming Back to Life

When you leave the center, follow the same path back out. It’s ok to leave some things behind. Allow the insights, lessons, intangibles to sink in. Re-emerge with what you have received.

Reflection

Please also feel free to take time for reflection after your walk and record any particular insights or intensions.

Story

Guidelines

There is no "correct" way to walk a labyrinth--the journey is very personal.

You walk the same path going in and coming out and you are likely to encounter other walkers going the opposite direction. Feel free to move around people.

Take your cue from passersby, and from your own process, about whether to acknowledge them with a nod or smile, or simply allow them to pass.Find a natural pace.

Experience your experience. Let go of judgment and expectations of yourself and others.

Questions?

“Monastic prayer begins not so much with “considerations” as with a “return to the heart,” finding one’s deepest center, awakening the profound depths of our being.”

―

You will have 10-15 minutes to make your way to the Prayer Garden and Labyrinth.

To get to the Labyrinth, exit Wooten Lobby and go to your left.When you get to the walkway, go right. At the next walkway continue to go straight, through the brick courtyard between the buildings.

On the other side of the courtyard, continue on the pathway, down the stairs toward the west parking lot. When you reach the sidewalk, go to your right. The Prayer Garden is visible from there.Slide29

Sacred Spaces – Interfaith Prayer Garden

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUdEpuy6hEU