Quiet Garden and Labyrinth

The Quiet Garden

The idea for a Quiet Garden at St. John's originated as a community project to celebrate the new millennium. Endorsed by the people of the Parish and the Richmond Village Association, the project has moved steadily forward thanks to an enthusiastic group of gardeners and helpers. Strangely enough, the project might never have seen the light of day had it not been for the Ice Storm in the winter of 1998! For it was only in the following months, while cleaning up the debris left by the storm, that a large parcel of land was "discovered". This meadow, surrounded by trees and bushes and flanked on one side by a creek, was quickly seen as a tremendous parish resource. Ideas were tossed about and finally the concept of a garden was agreed upon by everyone.

Since that time, some of the land has been cleared and mowed on a regular basis, old barbed wire fencing has been removed and the outline of a walking path has taken shape. Perennial flower beds, a lilac grove, two red maple trees, a blue spruce and several shrubs have been planted. A purple martin birdhouse has been lovingly constructed and erected at the centre of the garden. Many items have been gratefully received as memorial gifts, including four hand-crafted benches for visitors to rest in sun or shade. Professionally-designed signs have also been erected at all three of the garden's entrances. A water fountain and several rose bushes have been added recently, greatly enhancing the beauty of the landscape.

On June 23rd, 2002, a Service of Consecration of the Quiet Garden and Labyrinth took place, with some one hundred friends and well-wishers in attendance, and Bishop Peter Coffin formally blessing what was in fact, as he wisely pointed out, already "holy ground".

The Quiet Garden Movement

This world-wide movement was initiated in 1992 by the Reverend Philip Roderick in Stoke Pages, England. In essence, the concept of the Quiet Garden is about stillness. Whether you live in Australia, Kenya, Northern Ireland or Richmond, Ontario, we all need, and in fact crave, places of resourcement. Our lives are very busy, the claims on our time are endless, the stress for many is unbearable. The Quiet Garden is a return to simplicity and stillness, a sacred space where beauty and the cycles of nature provide a momentary respite from the hectic pace.
What a unique opportunity we in the community of Richmond have to join with others around the world who quietly offer a place of rest for the weary soul. The St. John's Quiet Garden and Labyrinth became an official member of the Quiet Garden Trust in the spring of 2002. To learn more about the Quiet Garden Movement, just follow the link.

" There are many ways of understanding the Labyrinth. It is a path of prayer open to all people from all walks of life. It is a walking meditation, a body prayer, a chalice of remembrance, a crucible of change, a tool of manifestation, a blueprint where psyche meets spirit, and a cosmic dance where many people walking the labyrinth together realize that we are all walking the path of life together." --The Reverend Dr. Lauren Artress
The earliest known labyrinths were constructed around 4,000 to 3,500 B.C. and are found on every continent and in virtually every spiritual tradition around the world. During the Middle Ages, church labyrinths were laid in several of the cathedrals in Europe. The labyrinth was used by medieval Christians to learn and develop their faith experientially. During the period of the Crusades, labyrinths also became useful as a symbolic replacement for the pilgrimage that Christians were accustomed to make to the Holy Land.
Today, Veriditas, an interfaith non-profit religious corporation begun by the Reverend Lauren Artress, contains and supports the World-wide Labyrinth Project. Veriditas has taken the labyrinth into prisons, hospitals, schools, parks, parking lots, retreat and conference centres, spas and countless churches and cathedrals around the world. The labyrinth was present as a tool for healing at the first anniversary of the bombing in Oklahoma City. The list goes on and on. Every day more and more people and institutions are reaping the benefits that this rediscovered spiritual tool has to offer.

The labyrinth in the Quiet Garden at St. John's was built in the summer of 2001. It is an eleven-circuit labyrinth, modeled after the one in Chartres Cathedral in France, and has a diameter of 52 feet. The outline is made of red paver stones, with a grass path in between.

Construction of a second labyrinth, located in the "contemplative garden" behind the rasberries, is currently underway. Its design is known as "classical" or "Cretan", with eight concentric rings defining seven pathways, and is one of the oldest known labyrinth designs.

Both labyrinths are open to one and all, as a tool for personal prayer and healing.