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Summer 2006 | |
 Lauren Artress |
Using the Labyrinth to Build Bridges by Lauren Artress
The act of walking labyrinths together is understood in many ways, but the results are the same. For instance, when a labyrinth is available at a conference, I often hear reports that things go smoother, organizers solve problems easier and participants have more inward depth available to them. When participants become exhausted from thinking and planning in the face of conflicts, they flock to the labyrinth and find that people are friendlier. The Golden Door Spa offers another example: I've had the privilege of teaching there for nine years. The staff loves "Labyrinth Week" because things flow easily and people are gracious and openhearted. So, what is going on? Walking the labyrinth together—or even having one in our midst—creates a unified field. People connect in a respectful, non-verbal way. Silence among people unites and builds a well of sympathetic resonance. My friend François Legaux, Rector Emeritus of Chartres Cathedral in France, describes the labyrinth as a "lesson in tolerance". We have to carve out our own physical space when walking together and in the same moment, share it with others. Words are what get us in trouble, unless we are expressing out thoughts from a unified understanding and that is what the labyrinth creates. The Editorial Board has reached out to those working with labyrinths to capture their experiences of this phenomenon. Our "Little Miracles on the Path" story comes from South Africa, where the labyrinth is used to bring together blacks and whites. Gillian Cochran writes about using labyrinths for Building Peace and Nela Moore describes Walking Together: Being Different, Being One, a program designed to bring together the diverse groups in Santa Fe, NM. Elizabeth Blackman reports on the momentous dedication of the new labyrinth in New Orleans. A recent highlight with the labyrinth was being invited to New Orleans to dedicate the Audubon Park Labyrinth with François Legaux. It was an occasion for renewing long time friendships and sharing—however briefly and inadequately—the suffering the people of that dear city have gone through.
Facilitators were with me at the Governor's Mansion in Baton Rouge and again when we took a bus into the Ninth Ward and other areas destroyed by Katrina. We rode for two solid hours and saw only a fraction of the destruction. Each house in shambles became an icon of the loss and misery families continue to experience. We exited the bus and walked a short distance in silence. Then we gathered in a circle of prayer that we closed by singing Swing Low, Sweet Chariot. Although the press has focused on the losses of lower income people, at the yacht club we saw an example of how the middle class people had been affected as well. We saw boats—many mid-sized ones—strewn about the grass like toys. We learned that it will cost $10,000 just to move each boat back to the water, let alone find someone able and willing to do costly repairs. After the storm, flooding covered 80% of the city. We live in times of unprecedented challenges. It demands each of us to have a spiritual practice that sustains us. And if what we do for ourselves does not hold us steady during either an outer or inner crisis, it is not an embarrassment, a weakness or a shortcoming to reach out to others who are walking the path more steadily than we are able. We must find strength, as well as joy, in one another. Summer is quickly approaching and there is a lot of exciting travel ahead. The labyrinth continues to bring adventures into our lives. May we all have a safe, fruitful summer as we walk the Path. Blessings to us all,
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e have chosen the theme of Building Bridges for this Summer Newsletter because that is exactly what labyrinths do: they build bridges. They open avenues between individuals, among communities and with groups of people who want to work together.
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Journal Navigation Main - p. 2 - p. 3 - p. 4 - p. 5 |
in This Issue...
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Announcements March Auction Report
The March Veriditas Online Auction was a great success with fundraising goals exceeded by over 50%!
Auction items ranged from exotic vacation getaways to hand crafted Labyrinth themed items. Thank you to everyone who donated and participated with special thanks to John Ridder of Paxworks and Susan Caffey.
Our online auction was such a success that Veriditas plans on doing it again in October! The auction will run from October 3 to October 31st and you can make donations now at veriditas.cmarket.com.
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Upcoming Events Walking a Sacred Path and School of the Sacred Feminine at Chartres Cathedral, France in September, 2006 Alaska Labyrinth Cruise with Lauren Artress, July, 2006 Books New books by Lauren Artress: Walking A Sacred Path (Revised) and The Sacred Path Companion |
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