Creating Sacred Space One Stone at A Time

In my proposal to the Lilly Endowment for a National Clergy Renewal Grant, I indicated that I would reflect upon the Labyrinth Project using my sense of touch.  So - the question that must be answered is this:  how does my sense of touch inform the significance of building a labyrinth? 

Here are a couple of things I thought of:

1.  Reconnecting with the earth in a hands on way - Each stone I dug up or picked up or moved to the site was a reminder of the the world that God created.  The same can be said for the roots I pulled from the ground, and the sand I spread in order to level the site.  We often get so pressured to stay close to our computers and cell phones that we often never find ourselves out in the woods, experiencing nature.  Thoreau railed about this disconnect between work and nature in his essay entitled "Nature."  Much more recently, Richard Louv also wrote about it with regard to children and their relationship (or lack thereof) to nature in his book entitled "Last Child in the Woods."  In building the labyrinth, I found the my spirituality, my connection to God, is enhanced when I am outdoors.  Working on the labyrinth (most often alone) gave me that quiet place of reconnection.

2.    The Physical Nature of the Projects and Events I Chose For This Sabbatical/Renewal Time - I always knew that my time in Peru would be a physical challenge, and our trek to Choquechirao certainly bore out that fact.  However, it did not occur to me that the other ways I have chosen to spend my renewal time also have a challenging physical component as well. 

I'm starting to realize that walking 10+ miles a day in the hills of Scotland won't be a picnic, especially if Joe and I run into any typically Scottish weather, i.e rain! 

However, I never gave the building of the labyrinth much thought in the pysical sense.  However, that project ended up with a signficant physical component as well - not only carrying stone to build the labyrinth either.  I am now remembering clearing the site - and the hours of raking I did, looping down small trees, and hauling branches away. 

I am also remembering the MANY wheel barrow loads of sand that I hauled a good distance to the site.  Then there were all the wheel barrow loads of mulch carried to the site and then raked on the pathways as well as  working with Joe to set up the solid granite bench in the center.  I never thought that I was putting such a physical spin on the grant proposal, but I guess physical challenges are important to me - and something that I actually enjoy.

3.  Sensing the Power of the Site - I feel that there is a certain power that is emerging at the site of the labyrinth.  For me, there is a deep sense of sacredness there, and I feel connected to something profoundly spiritual.  There is a sense of kairos rather than chronos time - a feeling of connecting with something ancient.