Description, History and Evaluation (reprinted with permission)
by
Dr. Kenneth C. Harper
An Autobiographical
Preface
The cable car lurched up Powell Street in San Francisco; at the Knob Hill
stop we got off. We were attending the 1997 Evangelical Theological Society
convention, and had arrived a few days early to take in the sights. Entering
Grace Cathedral (Episcopal), we immediately encountered the labyrinth. Since
I knew but little about labyrinths, we did not walk it. It was not, however,
my first encounter with the labyrinth in a spiritual setting. Over two years
earlier, a Festival of Christian Art at Solana Beach Presbyterian Church (in
the San Diego area) had included a portable labyrinth, with the pattern
painted on canvas. Between those two incidents I had seen a few articles in
denominational publications touting the labyrinth as a powerful and
recently-rediscovered spiritual tool.1 I was determined to learn more, and
that day in San Francisco’s Grace Cathedral was the beginning. I read Lauren
Artress’s paean to labyrinth walking, walked both a portable labyrinth in
Orlando and an outdoor one in Saint Louis, and delved deeper than I would
have guessed into New Age spirituality and sacred geometry.2 The distilled
product of my research I now present to this gathering.
*Description and Definitions*
Labyrinths are elaborate, intricate, and sometimes bewildering patterns,
typically leading from an opening in the perimeter to a center or goal in
the middle and out again. Labyrinths may be unicursal or multicursal.
Unicursal labyrinths have but one single serpentine path; the walker, if he
or she moves continuously forward, will inevitably arrive at the center.
Multicursal labyrinths have false routes, dead ends, and one correct path
out of many; in theory, if the labyrinth were complex enough, a walker might
never reach the center, and might become hopelessly lost. Although by formal
definition the words “labyrinth” and “maze” may be used interchangeably, for
purposes of clarity in this paper the word “labyrinth” will be used only of
unicursal patterns or structures, and the word “maze” will refer only to
multicursal structures or patterns.3
Labyrinths and mazes may be enclosed or not. Those which are enclosed use
walls to separate the different paths or parts of paths, and blind the
walker to where he or she is relative to the whole pattern. These walls may
be the interior walls of a cave, cardboard and fabric (as in a child’s
fun-house maze), or topiary (as in the hedge mazes of formal gardens).
Labyrinths used in a spiritual context are never enclosed. The pattern is
flat upon the surface; the walker’s vision is not impeded. Indoor labyrinths
may be woven into wool carpeting, as at Grace Cathedral, embedded in stone,
painted on canvas, etc. The pathways of outdoor labyrinths may be marked
with lime, rows of stones, or simply mowed into the grass.4
*Labyrinths Ancient and Medieval*
In ancient mythology, Minos commissioned Daedalus to build a maze in which
to banish the Minotaur, offspring of his wife’s unfaithfulness.
Periodically, Minos would sacrifice Athenian youths to the Minotaur. Ariadne
took pity upon Prince Theseus when the lot fell to him, and gave him a ball
of thread to play out as he entered the maze. Thus was he able to find his
way out of the labyrinth once he had slain the Minotaur.5 Perhaps inspired
by this legend, the labyrinth became a common feature in Greek coinage and
mosaics. This seven-circuit labyrinth, though perhaps inspired by the
legend, is surely meant only to represent it. For one thing, it is
unicursal, and that precludes one from becoming hopelessly lost; for
another, it has only seven circuits. Indeed, the Cretan seven-circuit
labyrinth is one of the easiest to construct (see Fig. 1).
Descriptions of labyrinths and mazes show that the ancients were fascinated
by this figure. Pliny the Elder, in his Natural History, describes an
ancient labyrinth in some detail. Here are excerpts of his description:
There still exists, in the nome of Heracleopolites, a labyrinth first
built, it is said, three thousand six hundred years ago, by King
Petesuchis or Tithos. . . . This great mass is so solidly built that
that the lapse of time has been unable to destroy it, but it has been
badly ravaged by the people of Heracleopolites, who have always detested
it. To describe the whole of it in detail would be quite impossible, as
it is divided up into regions and prefrectures, called nomes, thirty in
number, with a great palace to each; in addition it must contain temples
of all the gods of Egypt and forty statues of Nemesis in the same number
of sacred shrines, as well as numerous pyramids. 6
Although these descriptions seem fabulous, they reflect the observations of
Herodotus, who lived in the fifth century BC, and who claimed to have
visited an Egyptian labyrinth not unlike that described by Pliny.7
Penelope Doob argues that the ancients’ fascination with mazes derives from
their dualistic nature. On the one hand, they represent chaos and mystery
for those trapped within. On the other hand, they represent order and
complexity when viewed from an exterior vantage point. Outside v. inside,
order v. chaos, rational complexity v. irrational mysterythese dualities
captivated ancient maze builders and those who wrote about them.8
Although some ancient and early medieval Christian writers knew about the
mazes of the ancients, there is no evidence to suggest that they themselves
ever used mazes or labyrinths in a spiritual context. Medieval labyrinths
were built in connection with pilgrimage.9 Pilgrimage as a spiritual act
became an increasingly popular form of devotion as the Middle Ages wore on.
It may be remembered that Geoffrey Chaucer’s (1343-1400) Canterbury Tales
uses the literary device of stories told by pilgrims en route to the shrine
of Thomas Becket at Canterbury Cathedral. The capture of Jerusalem in 1099
by the forces of Christendom opened those ancient holy sites to pilgrims
from the west. However, the Moslem recapture of those sites in 1187 closed
that window of opportunity. To provide a meaningful substitute, several
cathedrals were fitted with labyrinths. The pilgrim walked that winding way
as the culmination of his travels. In Chartres, the glorious rose window on
the west wall of the cathedral was mirrored in the labyrinth laid in the
pavement at his feet. Indeed, the center design of the labyrinth mimics the
center design of the rose window.10 As Jaskolski puts it, arriving at the
center “felt” like an arrival in the Heavenly City.
Going through a labyrinth seemed like a symbolic pilgrimage to
Jerusalem, the then unreachable goal of the Christian pilgrim’s journey,
but at the same time it seemed to bring an inner realization of the
meaning that the actual pilgrimage in this marvelously built cathedral,
lit mysteriously by the colorful glow of its windows, possessed in the
here and now: arrival at what was, in terms of salvational history, the
midpoint of the world, the earthly and heavenly Jerusalem, as a
representation of which the cathedral was constructed.11
Jaskolski then speculates on the symbolism inherent in the labyrinth’s
design (see Fig. 2).
Instead of the seven concentrically nested loops that we have had up
till now, the figure now gets eleven of them. According to Christian
number symbolism, eleven stands for sin, trespass, and intemperance
(since it exceeds the number of the commandments) and for imperfection
(since the perfect number twelve has not yet been reached). It
identifies the labyrinth as a world of sin. But the eleven concentric
circles have the sign of the cross laid over them, and this organizes
the figure in such a way that the path must turn when it reaches the
axes of the cross and thus makes it into a Way of the Cross. Thus the
world of sin is placed under the saving sign of Christ, which conquers
Satan.12
Of those original cathedral labyrinths, only those at Reims and Chartres yet
survive. Pilgrimages declined with the rise of world exploration,
colonization, and trade which began in the fifteenth century and flourished
in the sixteenth. Perhaps those with wanderlust turned to more secular
motives for travel.
*The Modern Rediscovery of the Labyrinth*
With the Enlightenment came, once again, an upsurge of interest in mazes.
These were invariably multicursal (which is one reason why we, the children
of modernism, think of a maze when we hear the word, “labyrinth”) and were
designed more out of fascination with geometry and mathematics than from
spiritual motives. Garden mazes were a feature of country houses of the
rich. Maze designs were utilized in decoration, and became a fad of the
1920’s.
While it seems labyrinths never disappeared entirely from the scene, they
were relegated to the fringes of spirituality. In 1992, Dr. Lauren Artress
walked a labyrinth at a spiritual retreat. At about the same time she
learned of the Medieval labyrinth laid into the floor of Chartres Cathedral.
She secured the support of the Dean of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco to
install two eleven-circuit, Chartres-style labyrinths on that site. The
first was woven into a wool carpet and is centered at the entryway of the
cathedral’s nave adjacent to the baptismal font. The second is a terrazzo
labyrinth, laid in the pavement of an outdoor patio.
Several factors converging seemed to have a synergistic effect. The first
was the support of labyrinth walking by a legitimate (and wealthy!)
ecclesiastical entity. The second was the vivacious and winsome personality
of Dr. Lauren Artress, who has traveled the world over to promote the
labyrinth as a transforming spiritual tool. The third factor is the coming
of age of the baby boomers and their rekindled interest in spiritual issues.
The result has been an exponential increase in interest. The ministry
founded by Dr. Artress, Veriditas, catalogues 270 labyrinths in the U.S. on
their web page.13 In addition, more labyrinths are being built, and the
effort to promote them is increasingly vigorous, as well.14
*Evaluation*
_Why Does It Work?_
What happens when one walks a labyrinth? Here are a few brief accounts from
those who have felt the greatest impact.
As I stood waiting my turn to enter the labyrinth, I began to weep. I
had no idea why. I still had no idea why as I walked, overcome by
periodic waves of weeping, nor did I have any insight as I finished my
walk. As I got outside, however, I suddenly felt as if my older sister
was talking to me, and I realized that I was in the midst of a healing.
. . . [She then describes how her dying sister had laid a “deathbed
wish” upon her which she was unable to fulfill; now she felt she had
peace with her sister’s memory.] 15
Beneath my feet, I had the strange sense of the stone being alive. In
the past, pilgrims visiting the church had actually slept on the floor,
and though my twentieth-century bed was much softer, I shivered with a
sense of kinship. They would have journeyed by donkey cart or horseback
or on foot, while I had come by airplane and bus. And yet, throughout
the centuries our desires had been the same: to make our way to the
center of something larger than ourselves, to the core of life, to God.
Following the stone path, I moved inside the curving pattern. . . . I
felt myself not saying a prayer, but being in a prayer, part of a
prayer. . . . I stood transfixed, perhaps minutes, perhaps more. 16
I had been impatient with people lately and it was beginning to affect
my work. My hope, once I admitted it to myself, was to get insight about
this. I figured if I got any help at all it would be a reminder to stop
being impatient, so I entered the labyrinth not expecting to receive
much. Frankly I expected a Zen meditation stick reminder on how
important patience is. Instead, I received three clear messages, none of
which seemed to speak to patience directly. The first was “Spend time
with the people you love.” The second was “Make time for creativity” and
the third was “Take time out for retreats.” I didn’t intellectually
understand how this guidance related to patience. However, the message
seemed crystal clear and it felt right. Later I realized that my
impatience was from not taking care of these parts of myself. . . . The
labyrinth was a great help in getting me to see this. 17
Of all people, we who are evangelicals should recognize the place and power
of testimony. We appeal to others to “taste and see that the Lord is good”
(Psalm 34:8). However, as evangelical scholars we do not idolize experience,
but rather believe that all experiences are subject to the audit of God’s
Word. To begin this Scripture-informed evaluation, let us begin by asking
why many find the labyrinth to be an effective spiritual tool.
The first thing that happens when one enters the labyrinth is a quieting of
the chattering, distracting “self talk” which continually buzzes in our
brains. The labyrinth walk serves as a centering device–an exercise to
quiet the mind and to replace it with a calm and relaxed state. Some
psychologists recommend breathing exercises, relaxation techniques, Yoga, or
other exercises to achieve this physiological and emotional state.18 And
many Christians find it helpful to prepare for their devotions by following
a predictable, set routinefor example, brewing a cup of coffee, sitting in a
particular place, opening one’s Bible or devotional book, saying a prayer of
preparation, etc.
Further, the act of walking the labyrinth draws in the body. Motion and
posture become aides in the spiritual exercise. Many have recognized the
fundamental unity of the person as body-plus-mind-plus-spirit, and many
others have reported how such physical conditions as illness and exhaustion
can take their toll on spiritual vitality. 19 In a more positive vein,
bowing, kneeling, folding or raising hands, can aid in prayer.20 High church
evangelical-turned-Catholic Thomas Howard argues persuasively that we ignore
the physical dimensions of our spirituality to our peril.21
The power of the labyrinth is enhanced by its connection with pilgrimage.
The experience of pilgrimage is so widespread that Jungians Jean and Wallace
Clift regard it an archetype of the collective unconscious. We’re meant to
go on pilgrimages. They nourish a deep part of the soul. Pilgrimages have as
their common features that they are journeys, of some distance and/or
difficulty, which are undertaken to nourish the spirit. Almost any site can
become a pilgrim’s destination. Many Americans feel a surge of patriotic
feeling when visiting the Capitol, or Lincoln’s Memorial, or any other of
the “shrines” in Washington, DC. A generation of baby boomers made
pilgrimage destinations out of JFK’s eternal flame at Arlington National
Cemetary, Dealey Plaza in Dallas, or John Lennon’s apartment building in New
York City. New additions to the catalogue of secular pilgrimage sites are
sites connected with Princess Diana and JFK, Jr. There is a power in
pilgrimage, a power which the labyrinth taps. Artress elaborates:
At Grace Cathedral, we had been working with the theme of pilgrimage for
three years through Quest. Our setting seemed perfect. The trustees,
dean, and chapter on which I serve are custodians of a grand and
beautiful sacred space. It is located in the center of one of the most
welcoming and intriguing cities in the world. Our canvas labyrinth had
been available to the public for six months by then. Each time it was
open, at least one hundred and fifty people from various spiritual paths
turned up to walk it. It had captured the imagination of believers and
nonbelievers alike. I realized the labyrinth was not just a symbol for
pilgrimagewe were providing sacred space for anyone seeking
transformation. We were providing a destination for modern pilgrims. 22
As the mind and body relax on this symbolic pilgrimage, many report that the
“right brain,” intuitive, imaginative, and creative parts of life awaken.
Some remember dreams and experience flashes of insight into what they mean.
Others see new solutions to old problems, solutions to which they were
previously opaque. Yet others seemed to gain an internal peace or sense of
harmony and love.
_For Whom Does It Work Best?_
Not all who walk the labyrinth find themselves equally moved. The examples
quoted above were from those who felt a powerfully spiritual experience.
Others find the event only mildly interesting. Why is this the case? In an
effort to quantify the labyrinth experience, the Education Committee of
Central Presbyterian Church, Miami, Florida sponsored a labyrinth workshop
on October 10, 1999. A portable labyrinth, a full-sized replica of the
Chartres labyrinth on canvas, was borrowed from the Presbyterian Youth
Connection, the PCUSA’s national youth ministry. Some fifty people walked
the labyrinth; of these twenty-nine filled out a questionnaire on the
experience (see Fig. 3). An attempt was made to correlate response to the
labyrinth with several different parameters: Generation cohort, 23 each of
the four scales of the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator,24 the Keirsey-Bates
Temperaments, 25 and gender. Use of the Chi-Square Goodness-of-Fit Test
failed to establish a statistically-significant correlation between response
to the experience of labyrinth walking and any other tested function.26 It
may be that the sample size (N=29) was too small; Chi-Square is most
effective when n? 5 for each cell. 27
Anecdotal data suggests that there should be a more positive labyrinth
response from those who are “NF’s” ( la Keirsey).28 Intuitive-types are best
able make the connection between walking a labyrinth and imagining a
spiritual pilgrimage. Feeling-types are most adept at harmony issues, and
tend to enter into experiences; Thinking-types tend to objectify
experiences, keeping them at arms length. Larger scale testing is clearly a
research need.
_Guilt By Association?_
If we were to indulge in the constitutionally proscribed practice of guilt
by association, surely the labyrinth project would be vulnerable to
indictment. In the first place, it is housed in San Francisco’s Grace
Cathedral (Episcopal). It may be remembered that the Episcopal Bishop of
California in the 1960’s was The Right Rev. James Pike, co-founder of the
ecumenical effort COCU, and liberal cleric extraordinaire. It could be
argued that his posture of scorn towards historical orthodoxy would
influence its current ministries.29 Might the sins of the fathers visited
upon the ecclesiastical sons and daughters?
The second “guilt by association” issue comes when one sees the kinds of
people praising the labyrinth. They largely are more in tune with New Age
spirituality than with the gospel. In an Internet “netcast,” one participant
described laying out a labyrinth in his back yard, utilizing a dowsing rod
to place the center of the labyrinth over a water source and aligning the
entrance with “maximum power flow.” Another participant spoke of entering
the labyrinth and being hit immediately with waves of nausea and feelings of
horror, which she attributed to the triggering of a “past life” memory.30
Faced with this kind of unconventional spirituality, evangelical Christians
might well be gun-shy.
_Three Yellow Caution Flags_
Fortunately, one needn’t resort to such expedients to raise cautionary flags
over the labyrinth. Three criticisms are germane. The first is that it is
contentless. There is no underlying world view. Each walker takes to the
labyrinth their own philosophical and religious perspectives. In fact, there
is a deliberate effort to divorce the internal/personal response to the
labyrinth from any external/historical reference. Although the following
quotation from Jungians Jean and Wallace Clift refers to the medieval
pilgrimage site of Santiago de Compostela, one can apply it also to
labyrinth walking.
The view that the bones of St. James the Apostle were miraculously
transported to a remote corner of northern Spain to be discovered in a
field of stars by a miraculous vision centuries later seems to us
historically unlikely. Yet there is absolutely no possibility of
questioning the connective, trans-formative meaning of Santiago de
Campostela for centuries of pilgrims who still walk, ride bicycles,
horses, and donkeys, as well as cars, including some rather unlikely
Protestant pilgrims. . . And there they fulfill their “quest for
something more and new and better.” 31
While this is absence of content is touted by those who champion the
labyrinth, Christians are not likely to be quite so content to bypass
Christ. Lauren Artress rhapsodizes about a world knit together by tens of
thousands of labyrinths, and the commonality of those who walk them. Peace
will come. Conflict will abate. However, one cannot simply suspend
epistemology. C. S. Lewis, writing to his friend Dom Bede Griffith, O.S.B.,
a missionary in India, says “Your Hindus certainly sound delightful. But
what do they deny? That has always been my trouble with Indiansto find any
proposition which they would pronounce false. But truth must surely involve
exclusions?” 32 Furthermore, those of us who read our Bibles know that there
is no eternal peace without the Prince of Peace, and that conflict will not
end until The Final Conflict and our Lord’s return. Nor is such
contentlessness necessarily neutral. Jesus warned that the life from which
one demon was cleansed, being empty and inviting, drew in seven, so that
“the last state was worse than the first” (Matthew 12:45).
A corollary of this contentlessness is the absence of moral striving as part
of the labyrinth experience. There is no sense that one must repent of sin
before or during the labyrinth walk. Nor is there any hint that there must
be preparation before walking, neither that some may not be worthy to walk.
It is a come-as-you-are experience. 33 Indeed, a crucial ingredient for the
Medieval pilgrim, penitence, is absent from New Age spirituality, as is
difficulty.
The second criticism is related to the first: Walking the labyrinth is
experience driven. Granted, there does seem to be a kind of mysticism
generated by the labyrinth. But, mysticism, as C. S. Lewis points out, is
like an ocean voyage. All crossings are fundamentally similar; what makes
them particular is the destination.34 A danger of the labyrinth project is
that it confuses the journey with the destination. Thus, there is no
awareness that one may make wrong choices; that one’s experience may be
misleading. The labyrinth’s design may even lend support to the old
syncretistic and universalist clich that we’re all on the same journey,
regardless of our religious or philosophical convictions. One could argue
that a multicursal maze is more compatible with the Christian message than a
unicursal labyrinth, as Doob herself muses.
. . .[T]he labyrinth often represents the course of life from birth to
death and the fixed order of God’s creative universe. In this context,
the multicursal model makes an orthodox statement about man’s
relationship to God and to his own fate: God designs the master plan,
the paths and laws within which individuals, aided perhaps by grace,
ecclesiastical instruction, or the sacraments, choose their own course
and thus their own ends: entrapment and damnation or extrication and
salvation. This model illustrates the interactions of divine ordinance
and human free will. The unicursal labyrinth, on the other hand, is
potentially heterodox, more appropriate in a classical, fatalistic
context: God establishes an inevitable pattern that all who enter must
follow, so that individual free will is irrelevant.35
In response, I would argue that the unicursal labyrinth can be just as
“Christian” as the multicursal maze, for it may speak to the walker of the
necessity of making one’s way to the foot of the cross, the center of human
history and the core of all meaning. Then the Christian must find himself
back into the world, where both sin and the Spirit are found.
But another fundamental weakness of experience-driven religion, is that the
experience becomes stale over time. A recent internet posting described a
Washington, DC labyrinth which has added driving music, electronically
projected images, and strobe lights to the experience. Apparently, the
labyrinth by itself is no longer a captivating enough experience for these
pilgrims.36
A third criticism is that the event is fundamentally a solitary one. At a
recent luncheon, historian Martin Marty contrasted “moored” spirituality
with “unmoored.” Moored spirituality is anchored in a faith community, its
Scriptures, and its traditions.37 Unmoored spirituality takes a buffet
approach to life, picking and choosing according to individual whim and
current fashion. The labyrinth is an expression of “unmoored” spirituality;
each walks the labyrinth by oneself, in glorious isolation from other
pilgrims.38
*Conclusion and Challenge*
Despite, these cautionary notes, this writer urges careful consideration of
the labyrinth, and recommends its use in a Christian context. It is true
that there is no specific Christian content or message inherent in the
labyrinth. However, Christians, evangelicals included, utilize a number of
spiritual disciples which are not unique to the gospel. Note this paragraph
from management gurus Terrence Deal and Lee Bolman, in their book, _Leading
With Soul:_
To aid in the journey inward, every religious tradition has developed
spiritual disciplines, or exercises. One is prayer. . . Others include
meditation, studying scriptures, singing hymns, following prescribed
rituals, journeying to sacred places, and contemplating nature. Similar
practices have evolved independently in many different places and eras.
There is a meditative tradition, for example, in almost every major
religion, including Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and
Judaism.39
Even though these exercises are not exclusive to Christianity, there are
few, if any, here who would advocate the giving up prayer, reading of
Scripture and devotional books, giving alms, performing acts of mercy,
singing hymns, etc. because we share them with those of other faiths. Each
activity must be evaluated in its own right for potential conformity to the
gospel rather than dismissed (as we noted earlier) through “guilt by
association.”
There are two powerful motifs, unique to Christianity, which Christians can
bring to the labyrinth experience, and which will infuse it with
distinctively Christian content. The first is this: We need to rediscover
the biblical category of pilgrimage. In the great roll call of faith which
is Hebrews 11, we read
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that
he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where
he was going. By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been
promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob,
who were heirs with him of the same promise. For he looked forward to
the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God (vv.
8-10).
Though we who are evangelicals sing the gospel chorus, “This world is not my
home; I’m just a-passin’ through,” our actions belie our words. We are very
much at home in Babylon.
The second truth is this: We need to emulate the early Christians in calling
our faith, “The Way.” 40 Paul called himself a follower of the Way when he
testified before Felix, “But this I admit to you, that according to the Way,
which they call a sect, I worship the God of our ancestors, believing
everything laid down according to the law or written in the prophets” (Acts
24:14). To view our faith thus is to shed the notion of the Christian faith
as only a static treasure of doctrines, and to add the dimension of daily
obedience in the midst of the complexities and ambiguities of human life.
Evangelical Christianity has sometimes been criticized for failing to
account for the depth of human frailty. Yet all of us, Christian or not, are
subject to what novelist Frederick Beuchner calls the “tragedy, irony, and
absurdity” in life.41 The labyrinth bears powerful testimony to the fact
that life may bring us close to the goal, only to turn suddenly into a world
of troubles which sweep us far from the heavenly vision. If our faith is
overly dependant on circumstances, we will be perplexed. But if we remember
that our Savior walked to Calvary bearing a heavy load before he appeared to
the women on Easter morning, then we will realize that our ultimate hope is
in the one who alone is, “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6).
*Finis*
*Endnotes* 1. Gillian Gaynor, “An Amazing Journey,” Presbyterians Today
LXXXVI/1 (January/February, 1996): 11. Also: Lynn Penny, “The LabyrinthTake
a Walk on the Spiritual Side,” Horizons (July/August, 1998): 4-8.
2. Lauren Artress, Walking a Sacred Path: Rediscovering the Labyrinth as a
Spiritual Tool (New York: Riverhead Books, 1995), 201 pp. The Orlando
labyrinth was part of a spiritual life conference at First Presbyterian
Church of Orlando, Florida in February, 1998. The outdoor labyrinth was
located at The Sisters of Mercy Retreat Center. On spiritual geometry, see,
as one example out of many: Judith Cornell, Mandala: Luminous Symbols for
Healing (Wheaton, Illinois: Quest Books, 1994); Lauren Artress is quoted and
the Grace Cathedral labyrinth cited on pp. 136-37. Also, the Grace Labyrinth
poster uses the word, “mandala” in its text.
3. W. H. Matthews, Mazes and Labyrinths: A General Account of Their History
and Developments (London: Longmans, Green, & Co., 1922), p. 184-85. Matthews
also uses the terms “puzzle” and “non-puzzle.”
4. Otto Zingg, “Prayer In Motion: Walking the Labyrinth,” Hungryhearts News
(Winter, 1996): 1, 4.
5. Penelope Reed Doob, The Idea of the Labyrinth: from Classical Antiquity
through the Middle Ages (Ithaca & London: Cornell University Press, 1990),
pp. 10-12. Ms. Doob also provides an excellent summary of the myth.
6. As quoted in Matthews, p. 10.
7. Herodotus, The Histories, Book two, sections 148 and 159. See, for
example, the recent translation by Robin Waterfield (Oxford and New York:
Oxford University Press, 1998), pp. 154-55.
8. Doob, pp. 24-25.
9. It must be noted that Ms. Doob disputes this oft-repeated assertionan
assertion accepted as gospel by labyrinth walkers. She cites the absence of
Medieval textual evidence testifying as to the function of the labyrinths.
What few references there are to labyrinths in Medieval texts tend to be
inferential. For example, labyrinthine patterns adorn the margins of
liturgical texts pertaining to Easter Vigil; Doob conjectures that the
Minotaur has become a Satan figure and Theseus has become a Christ figure,
and walking the labyrinth becomes a re-enactment of the harrowing of hell.
In response, this writer would argue that the argument from silence is weak,
and that placement of labyrinths at popular pilgrimage sites (the Cathedral
at Chartres, for example, contains the supposed garment worn by Mary during
the birth of Jesus) show evidence of the connection (Doob, pp. 117-20).
10. Penny, p. 6.
11. Helmut Jaskolski, The Labyrinth: Symbol of Fear, Rebirth, and
Liberation. Translated by Michael H. Kohn (Boston & London: Shambhala,
1997), p. 73.
12. Jaskolski, Labyrinth, p. 63.
13. Furthermore, Lynn Penny says that over 700 versions of the labyrinth are
open to the public worldwide (Penny, p. 7.)
14. See, for example, the magazine of Veriditas Ministries and The
World-Wide Labyrinth Project, Source (1100 California St., San Francisco, CA
94108), and such websites as: www.labyrinthsociety.org
15. Artress, pp. 75-76.
16. Mary Ann O’Roark, “A Walk Through Time,” Guideposts LIV/7 (September,
1999): 42-43.
17. Artress, pp. 118-19.
18. Archibald Hart, Adrenalin and Stress (Dallas, etc.: Word Publishing,
1988), esp. ch. 12.
19. C. S. Lewis, Letters, pp. 301-302.
20. See, for example, the excellent, and biblical affirmation in The Book of
Order of The Presbyterian Church USA: “In the Old and New Testaments and
through the ages, the people of God expressed prayer through actions as well
as speech and song. So in worship today it is appropriate (a) to kneel, to
bow, to stand, to lift hands in prayer, (b) to dance, to clap, to embrace in
joy and praise, (c) to anoint and to lay on hands in intercession and
supplication, commissioning and ordination” (W-2.1005).
21. Thomas Howard, Evangelical Is Not Enough (Nashville, etc.: Thomas
Nelson, 1984), pp. 42-45.
22. Artress, p. 34.
23. William Strauss and Neil Howe, Generations: The History of America’s
Future, 1584 to 2069 (New York: William Morrow, 1991), 538 pp. See also my
1994 ETS paper on the topic.
24. Isabel Briggs Myers, Gifts Differing (Palo Alto, California: Consulting
Psychologists Press, 1980), 217 pp. For a Christian perspective on and
utilization of the Myers-Briggs, see M. Robert Mulholland, Jr., Invitation
to a Journey: A Road Map for Spiritual Formation (Downers Grove, Illinois:
InterVarsity Press, 1993), 173 pp.
25. David Keirsey and Marilyn Bates, Please Understand Me: Character and
Temperament Types (Del Mar, California: Prometheus Nemesis Books, 1980), 210
pp.
26. John J. Timko, Statistics By Example (Orange, California: Statistics for
Management, 1989), pp. 165-69.
27. Therefore, numeric values were assigned to the labyrinth responses and
the data was analyzed again, using the two-sample Student’s t test for small
samples (Timko, pp. 123-38). Again, the null hypothesis was retained (i.e.,
no statistically-significant variation was found).
28. This emerged from an informal poll I took of participants in the meeting
“Labyrinths,” on Ecunet.
29. For a sympathetic treatment of Pike see: William Stringfellow and
Anthony Towne, The Bishop Pike Affair: Scandals of Conscience and Heresy,
Relevance and Solemnity in the Contemporary Church (New York: Harper and
Row, 1967). For a fictionalized look at Pike’s San Francisco years, see:
Philip K. Dick, The Transmigration of Timothy Archer (New York: Vintage
Books, 1991).
30. Log onto www.gracecom.org and follow the prompts to the Labyrinth
Project.
31. Jean Dalby Clift and Wallace B. Clift, The Archetype of Pilgrimage:
Outer Action With Inner Meaning (New York & Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press,
1996), p. 166.
32. C. S. Lewis, Letters of C. S. Lewis, edited and with a memoir by W. H.
Lewis (New York: Harcourt, Brace, and World, 1966), p. 267.
33. Apparently sensitive to this criticism, it has been suggested that the
sheer length of the labyrinth and the accompanying uncertainty as to where
one is in relation to the center constitute a sufficient challenge to reveal
the determination and moral fiber of the pilgrim (see: Doob, pp. 82-86). I
must disagree. A walk of an hour, usually in a comfortable and congenial
environment, hardly seems sufficiently rigorous to reveal moral character.
34. C. S. Lewis, Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer (San Diego, etc.:
Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1964), p. 65.
35. Doob, p. 62.
36. John Harris posted note number 593 to the meeting “Labyrinths,” on
Ecunet, June 14, 1999.
37. The luncheon was sponsored by the Religion Department of the University
of Miami, February 13, 1998.
38. The staff at Chartres leads a “procession” in and out of the labyrinth.
At least in that context one is joining with others in an organized and
communal activity. Apparently smarting from this criticism, Douglas
Burton-Christie argues that, appearances notwithstanding, the presence of
other people on the labyrinth makes the experience communal. See: “Into the
Labyrinth: Walking the Way of Wisdom,” Weavings XII/4 (July/August, 1997):
27.
39. Lee G. Bolman and Terrence E. Deal, Leading With Soul: An Uncommon
Journey of Spirit (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1995), p. 57.
40. Burton-Christie, pp. 21-24.
41. Frederick Beuchner, Telling the Truth: The Gospel as Tragedy, Comedy,
and Fairy Tale (New York, etc.: Harper and Row, 1977), esp. pp. 37-47.
*Bibliography* _Labyrinth Bibliography_
Artress, Lauren. _Walking a Sacred Path: Rediscovering the Labyrinth as a
Spiritual Tool_. New York: Riverhead Books, 1995.
Burton-Christie, Douglas. “Into the Labyrinth: Walking the Way of Wisdom,”
_Weavings,_ Vol. XII, No. 4 (July-August, 1997), 19-28.
Clift, Jean Dalby and Clift, Wallace B. _The Archetype of Pilgrimage: Outer
Action With Inner Meaning._ New York and Mahwah, New Jersey: Paulist Press,
1996.
Corbett, Peter. “Pathfinders: Walking Medieval Labyrinths in a Modern
World.” Veriditas Ministries. www.gracecom.org.
Cornell, Judith. _Mandala: Luminous Symbols for Healing_. Wheaton, Illinois:
Quest Books, 1994.
Doob, Penelope Reed. _The Idea of the Labyrinth: From Classical Antiquity
through the Middle Ages_. Ithaca, New York and London: Cornell University
Press, 1990.
Gaynor, Gillian. “An Amazing Journey,” Presbyterians Today, Vol. LXXXVI, No.
1 (January-February, 1996), 11.
Herodotus. *The Histories*. Trans. by Robin Waterfield. Oxford and New York:
Oxford University Press, 1998.
Jaskolski, Helmut. T_he Labyrinth: Symbol of Fear, Rebirth, and Liberation_.
Trans. by Michael H. Kohn. Boston and London: Shambhala, 1997.
Matthews, W. H. _Mazes and Labyrinths: A General Account of Their History
and Developments._ London: Longmans, Green, and Co., 1922. Also the reprint
edition: New York: Dover Publications, 1970.
O’Roark, Mary Ann. “A Walk Through Time,” _Guideposts_, Vol. LIV, No. 7
(September, 1999), 40-44.
Penny, Lynn. “The LabyrinthTake a Walk on the Spiritual Side,” _Horizons_
(July/August, 1998), 4-8.
Zingg, Otto. “Prayer In Motion: Walking the Labyrinth,” _Hungryhearts News_.
A publication of the Office of Discipleship and Spirituality, Presbyterian
Church USA, Louisville, Kentucky. (Winter, 1996), 1, 4.
_General Bibliography_
Beuchner, Frederick. T_elling the Truth: The Gospel as Tragedy, Comedy, and
Fairy Tale_. San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1977.
Bolman, Lee G. and Deal, Terrence E. _Leading With Soul: An Uncommon Journey
of Spirit._ San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1995.
Dick, Phillip K. _The Transmigration of Timothy Archer_. New York: Vintage,
1991.
Harper, Kenneth C. “Strauss and Howe’s Generational Theory: Some
Implications for Theology and Church.” A Paper presented to the Evangelical
Theological Society, Lisle, Illinois, November 18, 1994.
Hart, Archibald. _Adrenalin and Stress_. Dallas, etc.: Word Publishing,
1986.
Howard, Thomas. _Evangelical Is Not Enoug_h. Nashville, etc.: Thomas Nelson,
1984.
Keirsey, David and Bates, Marilyn. _Please Understand Me: Character and
Temperament Types._ Del Mar, California: Prometheus Nemesis Books, 1980.
Lewis, C. S. _Letters of C. S. Lewis_. Edited, with a Memoir by W. H. Lewis.
New York: Harcourt, Brace, and World, 1966.
Lewis, C. S. _Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer_. New York: Harcourt,
Brace, and World, 1964.
Mulholland, M. Robert, Jr. _Invitation to a Journey: A Road Map for
Spiritual Formation._ Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1993.
Myers, Isabel Briggs. _Gifts Differing_. Palo Alto, California: Consulting
Psychologists Press, 1980.
Presbyterian Church (USA). _The Constitution of the Presbyterian Church
(USA), Part II: The Book of Order, 1999-2000_. Louisville, Kentucky: The
Office of the General Assembly, 1999.
Stringfellow, William and Towne, Anthony. _The Bishop Pike Affair: Scandals
of Conscience and Heresy, Relevance and Solemnity in the Contemporary
Church_. New York, etc.: Harper and Row, 1967.
Strauss, William and Howe, Neil. _Generations: The History of America’s
Future_, 1584 to 2069. New York: William Morrow, 1991.
Timko, John J. _Statistics By Example_. Orange, California: Statistics for
Management, 1989.
Dr. Harper is Pastor and Head of Staff, Central Presbyterian Church, Miami,
Florida. He is also adjunct Facutly, South Florida Center for Theological
Studies, Miami