• Labyrinth Prayer-Walking

• Centering Prayer

Labyrinth Prayer-Walking

Second Sundays, in the Kennedy Parish Center, 2-4 pm

The Ravenna Labyrinth design invites us to begin and end our prayer-walk at the cross.

The problem with prayer is that often words fail to put our feelings and our experiences into perspective. Walking the labyrinth is a kind of whole-body prayer that quiets the chattering of the mind so that the spirit can be more expressive and more receptive.

The Labyrinth is an archetype, a divine imprint, found in various forms in all religious traditions around the world. In many ways, the labyrinth can be a spiritual tool for growth. It can aid healing, help in releasing grief, (people often shed tears during the walk), help guide through troubled times, aid in decision making, illuminate our purpose in life, and act as a tool of celebration and thanks. Walking the labyrinth as a simple spiritual exercise, not a magical tool

The labyrinth has only one path, so there are no tricks to it and no dead ends (as there are in a maze). The path winds around and doubles back on itself, becoming a mirror for where we are in our lives; it touches our sorrows and releases our joys. The pathway in and the pathway out are the same; only the pilgrim has changed in the process.

There are three stages to the prayer-walk: Emptying, Illumination, and Union.

Emptying, the first stage, is the journey into the center. As we begin the journey, we try to let go of our anger, self-pity,judgmentalism--those things that cut us off from the Divine.

Illumination, the second stage, occurs when we reach the center. There, we wait with an open heart and an open mind to receive whatever the Spirit has for us. It may be a sudden insight, or simply quiet peacefulness.

Union, the third stage, is the journey outward, following the same path by which we entered. Now we integrate our labyrinth experience and move out into the world with renewed energy and strength to do the work to which we have been called.

As we walk, we might want to use with a brief guided meditation.
Example, written by Debby Casey.

Words to Consider

Thus says the LORD: Stand at the crossroads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way lies; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.    Jeremiah 6:16 a

Meditation for Walking
 "Find rest for your souls."
Take these words with you into the labyrinth and find rest as you walk.  Let the peace of the Lord be with you in this holy place

Prayer at the End of the Walk

O Spirit, the Giver of life, I acknowledge that all of my life is a sacred journey and ask that you will be with me each step of my way, guiding my steps, calming my  fears, reviving my energies.  May my experience with the labyrinth be a means of making my life journey more spiritual and more sacred.  And may I find a way to bring the learnings of the labyrinth into the maze of my own everyday life.  Amen.

Centering Prayer

Every Monday in the Sanctuary, 6 – 6:20 pm

Centering Prayer is a method of silent prayer that prepares us to receive the gift of contemplative prayer, prayer in which we experience God's presence within us.  This method of prayer is both a relationship with God and a discipline to foster that relationship.

Centering Prayer is not meant to replace other kinds of prayer. Rather, it adds depth of meaning to all prayer and facilitates the movement from more active modes of prayer — verbal, mental or affective prayer — into a receptive prayer of resting in God.

The source of Centering Prayer, as in all methods leading to contemplative prayer, is the Indwelling Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The focus of Centering Prayer is the deepening of our relationship with the living Christ.

To visit the main site, click here.