Musketeer Meditation: The Meaning Behind Xavier’s New Labyrinth

Jul 7, 2023

Musketeers have a new space for reflection — just don’t call it a maze.

The Fr. Michael J. Graham, S.J., Legacy Labyrinth opened to the Xavier community this year. Established to honor Graham, who retired in July 2021 as the longest-tenured president in Xavier’s history, the labyrinth offers an ideal space for reflection and discernment, two cornerstone practices in the Jesuit Catholic tradition.

Community members had been discussing the possibility of a campus labyrinth for some time, said Vice President for Mission and Identity Debra Mooney, Ph.D.

“[We’ve been] talking about having a labyrinth for almost two and a half decades, and here we are in 2023 with our own campus labyrinth,” Mooney said.

More than simply an enhancement to campus beauty, the labyrinth is a tool to practice Ignatian Spirituality, which focuses on the active presence of God in everyday life.

Mooney credited Graham for working with architects on the project’s design.

“It's really his inspiration,” Mooney said. “He was [Xavier’s] longest-serving president, and I think he wanted to leave a spiritual legacy not only in his leadership and not only in his pastoral care, but also tangibly and literally something that we could walk, to see, experience and be closer to God as an important part of his legacy.”

The labyrinth features one continuous path leading to its center, unlike a maze, which contains multiple paths and dead ends.

Vice President for Facilities Bob Sheeran — whose team oversaw the design and construction of the labyrinth — called to mind a quote that sums up the distinction: “A maze is where you go to get lost. A labyrinth is where you go to find yourself.”

While the path is defined, the approach one takes when entering the labyrinth is up to the individual.

Whether they choose to say a prayer, repeat a mantra or word such as “peacefulness,” or ponder an important question about their life, there is no wrong way to wander through the labyrinth’s seven rings, so long as they enter with a clear mind and an open heart, Mooney said.