By JAN LARSON McLAUGHLIN
BG Independent News
As Samantha Codding watched children weave their way through the new labyrinth behind First Presbyterian Church, she smiled.
“I’m just glad everyone in the community is enjoying it,” she said.
Samantha, who will be a senior this year at Bowling Green High School, built the labyrinth – with the help of her family, church members, and fellow Girl Scout and Boy Scout members.
The labyrinth, measuring 40 feet in diameter, was her project to earn the Gold Award, the highest award in Girl Scouts.
The idea for the labyrinth came from her church’s Green Team goal to turn its outdoor space into a place for fellowship, spiritual meditation and an appreciation of nature. The space is located right next to Wooster Green.
The idea also came from Samantha’s annual visits to Kirkmont, a Presbyterian Church Camp near Zanesfield. She is making her ninth trip to the camp this week with her fellow church youth. Campers always visit the labyrinth at Kirkmont, where they reflect and pray as they walk in silence.
Samantha designed her labyrinth with the same type of gravel base, so it would be similar to Kirkmont’s.
“It’s silent, no one’s talking. And all you can hear are footsteps on the gravel,” she said.
“The whole point was to make a space out here that the whole church and youth groups could use,” Samantha said.
But the labyrinth is also intended to extend beyond the church.
“We want the community to use it. This is a very nice place to connect,” she said. “It brings them to the labyrinth, and it also may bring people to the church.”
Samantha has heard from people who use the labyrinth as a place to find peace.
“I’ve heard a lot of good things. Everyone of all ages can use it,” she said. “I know there’s someone who uses it every day.”
The design for the labyrinth was inspired by the labyrinth at Chartres Cathedral in Chartres, France. That labyrinth dates back to 1205.
The First Presbyterian labyrinth may look like a maze, but it is not. Unlike a maze, there is only one path, and there are no wrong turns. It is intended to be a meditative walk during which people can be alone with their thoughts.
As youth are encouraged at Kirkmont, Samantha uses her steps into the labyrinth to think about problems and hardships.
“Once I get to the center, I just let them go,” she said. “On the way out, I think of good things in the future.”
The labyrinth does not have to be used for praying or praise.
“You don’t have to use it for religious purposes,” she said. “You can take time to enjoy the breeze and the birds.”
Labyrinths have long been used in the Christian faith, explained Pastor David Montgomery, of First Presbyterian Church in Bowling Green.
“It’s a long-time Christian tradition of spiritual formation and discipline,” he said. Labyrinths still have a place in current times.
“Anything in this hectic world, where you can find time to be quiet,” Montgomery said.
Montgomery said he was pleased that the church youth had been so moved by a feature at Kirkmont, that they wanted to replicate it back home.
“The youth are getting touched by something we can’t even put a word to. They wanted to bring it home to share with others,” he said.
And he is thrilled to see children using the labyrinth.
“My heart is warm when little ones are out there,” Montgomery said.
Montgomery and many others at church helped with the labyrinth construction, as did Samantha’s parents, Jen and Chuck Codding, plus scouting groups.
The base of the labyrinth is 1 ½ inches of gravel – using 10 tons of stone. The pathway is formed with 820 pavers. In the center is a piece of granite, plus stones unearthed during construction – most likely pieces of the former junior high that previously sat on the location.
“I definitely could not have done it without all those people,” Samantha said. “I did not expect this to be such a big project.”
Samantha said she learned some life lessons about frustration from her project.
“Not everything went according to plan,” including her fingernail that is still blackened from a paver falling on it. “But it all worked out,” she said.
The dedication of the labyrinth by the church included small amounts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh being placed in the center. A sign will be posted at the site in the future, explaining the purpose and origin of the labyrinth.
