As a thank you to First Presbyterian Church for all the support for the LOGOS program and in honor of our church's 100th birthday, LOGOS presented FPC with a portable, Chartres-style canvas labyrinth. It was hand painted by Marty and Debi Keerman of Labyrinths in Stone, www.labyrinthbuilder.com.

On Wednesday, February 18, 2009, during LOGOS our children and youth enjoyed the opportunity to experience the labyrinth.  Debi and Marty Keerman and Karen Hoban provided the children, grouped according to age, with an introduction and brief history of labyrinths, the Christian aspect, and explaination of the difference between a labyrinth and a maze.  They facilitated the labyrinth experience for the children using our labyrinth, a Reflection labyrinth that was designed by Marty and Debi, and a spiral circuit labyrinth.  Our middle schoolers will have a chance to paint a Reflection labyrinth for our church at a later time.

Our new Chartres-style labyrinth is shown in these photos taken in the Ministry Center.  Our fifth, seventh, and eighth graders had the opportunity to walk this labyrinth at different times on February 18.

Labyrinths come in many forms and are completely different from Mazes.  A labyrinth follows a single path to its conclusion while a Maze has multiple paths and is meant to confuse the walker.  Down through the centuries labyrinths have evolved in many forms and cultures.  There are many different designs of labyrinths, and several were presented to the LOGOS participants on February 18.

The Chartres labyrinth is very specific as it is made up of 12  concentric circles, or 11 circular paths that are to be followed.  This labyrinth is in the cathedral at Chartres, France and has been at this cathedral since about 1200AD.   Many believe that it is helpful to walk the path, and to do so your eyes should be looking down and concentrating on where you are going.  This concentration helps you to clear your mind of extraneous thoughts.  After finally arriving at the center, which has a rosette design which has a rich symbolic value including that of enlightenment, your path has taken you to all quadrants, and you will notice that you are at the center of a cross.  Many find this helps them to look at themselves and evaluate their lives.  To leave, you walk the path in reverse; and as many can use the labyrinth at the same time, you will be passing those who are on the inward journey.