A recent view of Chartres Cathedral, a Catholic cathedral in Chartres, France, about 50 miles southwest of Paris. Photo by Deacon Cynthia Biddlecomb

By Deacon Cynthia Z. Biddlecomb
(ELCA) retired

On a recent visit to France, with the help of knowledgeable guides, my eyes were opened to the symbolic way that churches were laid out in medieval times. Ancient church architecture was very specific and intentional: the medieval building is often cruciform in shape, and stained-glass windows were used to visually teach the faith. I learned there’s more to it.

As one enters a medieval church, the stained-glass on the north side depicts Old Testament stories. After entering the west portal, one would walk along the north aisle, around the choir, past the apse at the east end, and around to the south aisle, where the stained-glass on the south wall tells stories from the New Testament and the saints.

Ambulating around the church in this way was meant to physically move us from symbolic darkness into light. The Light of the World, Jesus Christ, enters the scene when we get to the transept, the crossing place of the cross-shaped church. Around the ambulatory and in the apse, chapels are built along the way where the faithful can light candles and pray.

In Chartres Cathedral, which we visited on our last day of the trip, the oldest part of the church is now the undercroft. It was built in the 900s, a place of pilgrimage. Here the faithful walked along the north aisle to the east end, remembering the stories from the Old Testament and the promise of redemption. From the altar to the south aisle, they remembered New Testament stories and Jesus’ promise of new life through faith. They would renew their baptismal promises at a font in the south aisle, the proceed to the west to exit. 

Subsequent fires and wars caused Chartres Cathedral to be rebuilt a few times. What survives from the 1200s is a famous labyrinth in the stone floor of the nave. Called “the Road to Jerusalem” in its day, this pattern in the floor offered the penitent an alternative to going on pilgrimage elsewhere, when they could not leave their responsibilities behind. One enters the path as it meanders nearer, then farther. Eventually one arrives at the center, and prays for newness of life, then leaves through an equally repetitive pattern, re-entering their life with new energy and purpose. At Chartres, the rose window in the west wall above the labyrinth is exactly the same size as the labyrinth itself; were the rose window to be superimposed on the labyrinth, the image of Jesus would be found right in the center.

We have pilgrimage sites today. Walking the Camino de Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain has become more popular in recent years (see the movie “The Way”). Many New Mexicans join in pilgrimage to the Santuario de Chimayo each year at Holy Week. Likewise, labyrinths have gained popularity among the faithful and even among non-Christians; there are a few in Los Alamos. Going on Pilgrimage is an accepted practice, beneficial for spiritual growth and deepening faith. What might you discover by going on a pilgrimage?

Editor’s note: ‘All Shall Be Well’ is a column written by local women clergy including The Rev. Mary Ann Hill, Rector, Trinity on the Hill Episcopal Church (momaryannhill@gmail.com); The Rev. Lynn Finnegan, Associate Rector, The Episcopal Church of the Holy Faith, Santa Fe (rev.lynn@holyfaithchurchsf.org); Deacon Amy Schmuck, Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church (deaconamy@bethluth.com); and ELCA Deacon Cynthia Biddlecomb, M.Div., retired (czoebidd@gmail.com).