Life is a journey of comings and goings, twists and turns. At times we’re on the path to our goals. At other times we couldn’t be further away. The labyrinth, an ancient prayer form, not only symbolizes that journey but also offers a place of meditation, insight and serenity. “The labyrinth is an archetype of the divine imprint. It symbolizes unity and wholeness and helps us achieve better balance spiritually, emotionally, physically,” said Humility of Mary Sister Therese Pavilonis, facilitator of labyrinth walks at Villa Maria Community Center, on the grounds of the motherhouse of the Sisters of the Humility of Mary, in Villa Maria, Pa. The grass labyrinth there was created in 1998.
Unlike a maze with its dead ends, a labyrinth is a single, winding, unobstructed path to the center and back. Labyrinths are found in all religious traditions. For 13th century European Christians, labyrinths emulated a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. “When we walk the way of the labyrinth, we connect with Jesus,” said Eileen Novotny, who offers spiritual direction at the Ursuline Center in Canfield. This metaphorical journey serves as a reminder that the search for God and self-knowledge always involvesventuring into unknown territory. “I think now more than ever people are looking for ways to pray,” said Ray Novotny, chairperson of the Ursuline Center board. The concrete, handicap-accessible labyrinth at the Ursuline Center, on the grounds of the motherhouse of the Ursuline Sisters of Youngstown, was constructed in 2009.
“The interpersonal reflections people have during and after they walk the labyrinth are profound and practical,” noted Jim Merhaut, president of Villa Maria Education and Spirituality Center. Walking a labyrinth is not a cognitive exercise, he stressed. “You just experience it and it touches a person at levels deeper than thinking.”
People of all ages, abilities and needs have experienced the transforming power of labyrinths. At Villa Maria, a team of athletes, a youth bereavement group, a business conducting leadership training, an organization serving those with mental disabilities, the staff of a wellness center, a religious sister dealing with breast cancer as well as countless individuals are among those who have found nourishment, direction and renewed vitality through the labyrinth.
Some have marked milestones, tracing this invisible thread to the sacred. One woman celebrated her 90th birthday by walking the labyrinth at Villa Maria. Another expressed gratitude for those who sustained her after the sudden death of her husband by inviting supporters to join her at the labyrinth. A young couple walked the labyrinth two weeks prior to the birth of their first child returning two weeks after their daughter’s birth to walk as a new family. “People who have used the labyrinth say they feel an energy as they walk and as they pray,” said Ray Novotny.
Both the Ursuline Center Labyrinth and the Villa Maria Labyrinth are modeled after the eleven-circuit labyrinth found in Chartres Cathedral in France.
Shortly after its completion, Sister Therese walked the Villa Maria Labyrinth with a measuring device and discovered that it was 1,864 feet from start to finish. “Our Sisters came to Villa Maria in 1864, so that was a very special moment,” she said.
The Ursuline Sisters are celebrating the 475th anniversary of the formation of the community of women (which later became the Ursuline order) by St. Angela Merici. “Angela wrote in her counsels that her community was to be like a piazza or gathering space. This [Ursuline Center] Labyrinth carries on that tradition,” said Eileen Novotny.
For the past 12 years, Sister Therese, who was also instrumental in the planning of the Ursuline Center Labyrinth, has facilitated group walks at the Villa Maria Labyrinth on a variety of themes, including non-violence, healing, peace, compassion and gratefulness. Since the Ursuline labyrinth’s dedication last November, neighbors, parents with toddlers in tow, high school groups and church organizations have used it for this form of walking meditation. “We pray with our bodies, and the labyrinth takes us to those roots,” explained Eileen Novotny. Both centers also incorporate the labyrinth into retreats and existing programs.
There is no right or wrong way to walk the labyrinth, said Sister Therese. Walking, running, dancing are all acceptable. Participants enter the labyrinth in silence, sometimes mindful of a question, yet not expecting a certain answer or experience. “Someone might come, trying to make a decision. Another may be dealing with a loss or is angry,” Eileen Novotny said. The first stage of a labyrinth walk is releasing or letting go of worries and concerns. The second stage is receiving illumination, clarity and focus as one meditates at the center. The final stage is integrating the insight received and becoming groundedas walkers move from the center to the exit. Traveling this spiritual path “is being open to what is, what’s present before you and what is yet to come,” said Sister Therese.
Guiding group walks has been a privilege and a source of enrichment for Sister Therese, she said. “I’ve had many experiences of people relating the peace they’re received from the labyrinth walks. Even as I facilitate these walks, I realize I’m simply a conduit to help folks connect with the God they know and love,” she said. In her own life, walking the labyrinth when her sister was dying of cancer was a way of expressing commitment to her sibling. “I remember walking so deeply into those turns that I dug my heels into the ground. It was my way of saying I want to make those [life] turns with my sister,” she said.
Eileen Novotny sought solace in the labyrinth when she was pondering retirement from full-time employment. “I love working for the Church and I love working with people. When I walked the labyrinth I was open to the voice of God in a different way and a peace came over me,” the spiritual director said. A decade ago, in the midst of a challenging family relationship, Merhaut received insight through a labyrinth walk in Texas. The time to reflect enabled him to understand his own role in the relationship, recognize God’s call to readjust his interactions and gave him a vision for something better. “The Labyrinth is a regular reminder of the things I need to do to be loving in my relationships,” he said. He called to mind the moments when individuals move aside for one another as they pass on the labyrinth walk: “When we both step out of the way, it’s like we’re saying, ‘to make this relationship work, we both have to give.’”
The Villa Maria and Ursuline Center labyrinths are open from dawn to dusk with guided programs offered May through October. There are brochures at the entrance to each labyrinth.
The first formal program for the Ursuline Center Labyrinth will take place from 2 to 4 p.m. May 16. Titled “Welcome to the Walk,” the program will consist of 10-minute ongoing presentations telling the story of labyrinths, followed by an opportunity to experience the labyrinth with facilitators. Individuals and family groups of all ages and faith backgrounds are invited. Information may be obtained by calling the Ursuline Center at 330-799-4941 or theursulinecenter@yahoo.com.