BRUNSWICK — First Parish Church is offering a little pilgrimage of its own on Good Friday.

Members of this large, historic United Church of Christ congregation in 2000 fashioned a labyrinth, which features a winding path. The labyrinth, which will be available to the public on Good Friday, provides one pathway in, one pathway out. It will be set up in the Fellowship Hall of Pilgrim House on the corner of Maine Street and Bath Road, from noon to 7 p.m.

The Lenten labyrinth, a canvas that measures 30 feet across, is for everyone.

“People can sit and read about it, and then walk the labyrinth,” said Susan Fitzgerald, who is in charge of the labyrinth at First Parish. “We’ll put out meditative readings. It’s a chance to integrate what you’re thinking.”

Fitzgerald emphasized that the church intends for everyone to be able to experience the labyrinth.

“We want to be very inclusive in the use of the labyrinth,” she said. “It’s open to the public using it in a way that’s best for them, religious or not religious. Sometimes it’s just purely peace and quiet.”

First Parish last offered the labyrinth on Feb. 6, and will again on Good Friday, March 29.

“It’s not very often in today’s world that we spend time in silence. We’re constantly bombarded with sensory input,” said Fitzgerald. “I think the labyrinth can be a sanctuary from all that stimulation. It lets our whole body downshift from being on hyper-awareness to stimulation. It’s a chance to take a deep breath and let our minds settle, which is important in today’s world.”

For some, the Good Friday labyrinth walk will help prepare them for the service of Tenebrae at 7:30 p.m. in the church sanctuary. There will be “hauntingly beautiful music and readings of the passion of Christ,” and then people will leave in silence.

Bringing the labyrinth to Brunswick

Church members spent five Saturdays putting together the labyrinth, patterned after the best known labyrinth of its type, the beautifully preserved pavement labyrinth in Chartres Cathedral in France. There are 11 rings, or circuits. The Chartres labyrinth symbolizes the long tortuous path that pilgrims would have followed to visit it, and other shrines and cathedrals, during the medieval period.

That’s quite different than the purpose of the First Parish labyrinth.

“The whole point,” Fitzgerald said, “is to let your cognitive brain relax, so you can be more meditative. “Pay attention to breathing and walking together.”

The congregation will have members available to explain how to use the labyrinth, Fitzgerald said.

The church offers some thoughts on “preparing to walk in silence.”

Take a moment before you start your walk to take a deep breath and begin to settle inward. When you are ready, enter the labyrinth, finding your own pace to match your breathing. As your mind wanders, bring it gently back by focusing on your breath and your footsteps. The journey toward the center is a time of letting go of everyday concerns. When you reach the center, pause in stillness for as long as you would like before retracing your steps back out. Let that time be one of integrating any insights that have come to you.

It can be walked with these three stages in mind:

— Release: Walking into the labyrinth — opening, emptying, shedding.

— Receive: Reaching the center — a place of meditation and prayer.

— Return: Re-connecting with the world — take out what you have received.

You may encounter other people on the path, coming and going. Simply step aside or pause as you pass each other. After your walk you may reflect on the life metaphors that were raised as you walked, recalling the rhythm and flow of the path, recalling what came up for you.

Some walking guidelines:

— There is no right or wrong way to walk a labyrinth.

— It’s a two-way street: You will meet people on the path, so do what feels natural. It’s easiest to pass people on the turns.

— Walk with an open heart and an open mind.

— Have no expectations. Experience your experience.

— Simply place one foot in front of the other.

— Walk at your own natural pace.

— If a first-time walker, an inten- tion might be to be “open to your own experience.”

— If an experienced walker, you may want to set an intention or ask a question.

Always a part of community

With a congregation of 850, First Parish Church is one of the largest UCC churches in the state, with a history closely tied to Brunswick’s. The church was established in Brunswick in 1717, and all who lived in Brunswick were automatically members of the parish. Taxes supported the church, and parish business was town business.

As the town grew, other churches were established. But First Parish continued to maintain its importance to the community, taking leadership in social and economic issues and acting as an anchor as Brunswick evolved from a sleepy country village to a busy manufacturing town.

A rich relationship developed between Bowdoin College and First Parish Church.

The Abolitionist Movement attracted many ardent supporters in the congregation. Harriet Beecher Stowe, whose husband was a professor at Bowdoin, was sitting in Pew 23 during a communion service when she had a vision of the death of a slave which became the pivotal element in her book, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin.” She was affected so deeply that she wept.

Joshua Chamberlain first came to Brunswick as a Bowdoin student. He married Fanny Adams, the adopted daughter of First Parish minister Dr. Adams, in the new meeting house. After graduation from Bangor Seminary, Chamberlain taught at Bowdoin College until he enlisted in the Twentieth Maine and won distinction commanding these troops in the defense of Little Round Top at the Battle of Gettysburg. Joshua Chamberlain later became governor of Maine and president of Bowdoin College. He was a faithful member of First Parish for much of his life, serving on various committees, moderating meetings and eventually donating the East Window behind the pulpit in memory of his fatherin law, Dr. Adams.

lgrard@timesrecord.com

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