During Lent members of my parish church walked a canvas replica of the Chartres Cathedral labyrinth on the floor of the church on Wednesday evenings. The same thing is happening in other Episcopal churches throughout the United States.

Those involved in the labyrinth movement present the labyrinth as a form of meditation that transcends the limitations of still meditation. But that is only part of the story. The labyrinth is much more than a tool for meditation.

The labyrinth originated in prehistoric times. Crude drawings of labyrinths, "macaroni" symbols or meanders, have been found on the walls of caves in France and Spain. These drawings are one of the oldest forms of cave art. They have been dated to the Paleolithic period, based upon the evidence within the caves. Some are believed to depict the inner chambers of the caves themselves. The labyrinth's connection with the Mother Goddess begins in this period.

In at least one of these drawings the mouth of the labyrinth is closed by a triangular symbol, recognizably one of female fertility. In a number of the same caves have been found primitive stone images of the Goddess with her swollen breasts and swollen belly.

Labyrinths were a major feature of the great stone tombs of the Neolithic period, forming the entranceway to these tombs. In their winding passages have been found polished stone axes, votive offerings to the Goddess. Indeed, the labyrinth is named after the labyris, or double ax, an important icon of the Goddess, which is evident in its design. In France the labyrinth, the great icon of the Goddess, was carved onto boulders, doorways and tombs well into the Roman period. The most famous labyrinth of antiquity is that of the Minotaur at Knossos on the island of Crete. Ariadne, whose golden thread guided Theseus through the labyrinth, was the Goddess herself. Ariadne means "most holy." Aphrodite, one of the many forms of the Goddess, was worshiped by this name in Cyprus. Theseus set up an image of Ariadne at Delos and taught the Athenian young men and women to dance in honor of the Goddess before this image. The Athenian youth would perform this labyrinthine dance, also known as the "crane dance," every year to ensure the fertility of the land. Initiates danced the labyrinth in the Elesian Mysteries and then offered a sacrifice of pigs to Persophone, Queen of the Underworld, another of the Goddess' many forms. In neo-pagan and New Age circles this connection between the labyrinth and the Goddess is well understood and celebrated.

We have limited knowledge of the original purposes of the labyrinths in the French cathedrals such as Chartres. We have scant contemporary evidence for the claim that these labyrinths were used as substitutes for long pilgrimages. Much of how labyrinths are presently used in Episcopal churches is based on how some individuals have imagined how the cathedral labyrinths might have been used. Many of the cathedral labyrinths were destroyed or removed and their original purposes forgotten. Rather than being a revival of 13th-century practice, much of what is going on today is modern innovation, informed in some cases by neo-pagan beliefs and New Age ideas.

We do, however, know that turf labyrinths were used as a magical tool in European folk culture from prehistoric times to well into the 19th century. These labyrinths were cut into the turf and in Scandinavia those near the sea were walked to secure a good catch of fish and good weather. In Finland they were walked to secure protection from wolves and wolverines and to entrap trolls and evil spirits. Turf labyrinths have enjoyed something of a revival in neo-pagan and New Age circles during the past century. We also know that labyrinths are used as a magical tool in a number of contemporary religions such as the Wiccan religion and the modern-day worship of the ancient Egyptian pantheon and the Norse Vanar.

The labyrinth movement in the Episcopal Church has blurred the boundaries between Christianity, neo-paganism, and the New Age culture. The labyrinth has provided a gateway into the church for neo-pagan beliefs and New Age ideas. It has facilitated the migration of these beliefs and ideas into the church and their acceptance. It has fostered its own distinct spirituality, one in which the sacred design of the labyrinth is seen as possessing inherent powers of its own, powers to heal and to enhance the walker's ability to communicate with God. Walkers are encouraged to share their stories about the way they found the labyrinth and how it has intervened in their lives. The devotion of the movement to the labyrinth is almost cult-like.

Michael Lampen, archivist at Grace Cathedral, San Francisco, has compiled a list of scripture references which he claims apply to the labyrinth. However, the plain meaning of these texts has nothing to do with the labyrinth. Only by taking the texts out of context and by grossly twisting their meaning can they be construed to apply to the labyrinth. On the other hand, the Bible does have several passages that do apply to the labyrinth as the great icon of the Goddess. These passages condemn the people of Israel for raising up poles and planting groves on hilltops to honor the Goddess. They also condemn the Israelites for making offerings of cakes and wine to the Goddess.

The labyrinth is widely recognized in neo-pagan and New Age circles not only as a magical tool but also as geomancy, a form of divination. The Bible warns both Christians and Jews against all forms of divination and magic. They are an abomination to God.

The labyrinth movement is to some extent part of a contemporary fascination with mysticism. The subdued lighting, the atmosphere of mystery, the soft background music, and the movement around the labyrinth combined with silent prayer and meditation, all appeal to those who come to the labyrinth in hopes of a mystical experience. The labyrinth is clearly meeting a need that our own traditional forms of worship are not meeting. Some individuals may be attracted to the labyrinth because of the novelty of the experience or because of the healing powers attributed to the labyrinth. Some may be drawn even by its connection with the Goddess. Others walk the labyrinth because they desire an encounter with the Divine, an encounter that they are not experiencing in the Sunday Eucharist or the Daily Offices.

The labyrinth is a wake-up call for the Episcopal Church. Parish leaders - clerical and lay - need to examine and rethink the worship life of the parish. We need to explore traditional and alternative forms of worship that will help people to make contact with God, forms which, unlike the labyrinth, do not compromise the basic teachings of the Christian faith. o

Robin G. Jordan is a member of St. Michael's Church, Mandeville, La.