The Labyrinth has been used for thousands of years as a means of meditation and worship. The way of walking the labyrinth is not something to memorize, but something to experience. The labyrinth is not a maize, but is one continuous path winding into the center, and back out again. There are no tricks to it, and one can not get lost. Walking the labyrinth is a powerful experience which increases in meaning each time you do it.
When Unity Church in Charlottesville was constructed in 2006, a large, grass central area in front of the building was reserved for a labyrinth. Temporary markings were placed on the grass forming a traditional labyrinth, and it is in use now for walking and meditation.
The Church is now ready to construct a permanent labyrinth on this area. The new brick labyrinth will occupy the center of the existing circle, with a landscaped grass area on the outside. Church members, community members, and all others are invited to use the labyrinth and contribute to its construction with the purchase of memorial bricks.
GIVE THE GIFT OF PEACE...
Memorialize a loved one, or offer words of wisdom, and help build the Shalom Labyrinth at the Unity Church in Charlottesville, brick by brick. The Shalom Labyrinth, modeled after the Chartres Labyrinth in France, will be a beautiful celebration of peace -- the peace within each of us and the peace we seek collectively in our world. A labyrinth is a geometrically designed path within a large circle, intended for meditative walking. The Shalom Labyrinth will be a place to practice walking meditation, look within, quiet your mind, find inner guidance, resolve internal conflicts and "be here now". The Shalom Labyrinth will be a gift for the Unity community, as well as the entire Charlottesville/Albemarle community.
250 memorial bricks are available for a donation of $250 per brick, to fund the cost of the labyrinth. These bricks will help form the path to the labyrinth. The centerpiece of the pathway to the labyrinth will be the Shalom Labyrinth Medallion. It will be four feet in diameter and made from golden limestone. Part of the significance of the Medallion is that it reflects Unity's core value of honoring the truth in all religious paths, and it will show how all major religions are united in their desire for peace.
What you see on the inside of the perimeter of the circle is the symbol for the ten most practiced faiths, as well as a symbol for all other known and unknown faiths, and also a symbol for secular humanism. In the center of the Medallion is the Unity symbol and the Hebrew letters for the word "shalom", meaning peace. Around the outside of the Medallion will be one foot square bricks engraved with a peace quote from each religion. For example, on one brick we will have the Unity Symbol, the word "Unity" and the quote: "Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me".