Loading Events

The Labyrinth: A Path To Walk Together

Ashland’s 26th Community Labyrinth Walk to New Year starts December 31, 2024, 3:30 PM – 10:00PM and resumes at 10:00 AM January 1, 2025, until closing at 4:00 PM.

The event is in Wesley Hall on the campus of Ashland First United Methodist Church, 175 N. Main St., Ashland, Oregon. The Sacred Walk is an independent initiative, funded solely by participant donations. Everyone is welcome to the event which is free to all. Donations are gratefully accepted.

“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I will meet you there.” ~ Rumi, 13th Century poet

Welcome from the Founder

The Sacred Walk to 2025 is a path to walk together in an oasis of peace and beauty: where we walk alone yet together as we reflect on the end of what has been and what might be; where we remember, release, receive, return, and rejoice.

This cherished Ashland tradition arose in 1999 amid the world-wide concern about Y2K; it continues to offer respite in today’s troubled times. Now as then, it is co-created by volunteers: musicians, artists, sacred space designers, ‘labyrinth angels,’ and the hundreds of people who choose to include the Sacred Walk in their turn-of-the-year observances and celebrations. In this sacred space, everyone is invited to express and enjoy the values of peace, diversity, inclusivity, and personal freedom.

You are welcome here.

~ Elizabeth Austin, Founder of Ashland’s Annual Community Labyrinth Walk

Community Unfurling of the Labyrinth

You are invited to participate in the Unfurling of the Labyrinth, 1 PM – 2 PM, December 30, in Wesley Hall at the First United Methodist Church, 175 N Main St, Ashland, OR 97520. Unfurling is an interactive learning activity led by Elizabeth Austin, VIA Labyrinth Facilitator and owner of the portable canvas, and Co-Leader Cassandra Wass, author of “Meditative Mazes and Labyrinths.” Learn about labyrinths and assist in the unfolding of the three-piece, four quadrant 110 lb. Canvas replica of the labyrinth paved in the floor of the Chartres Cathedral in the 13th century.

Special Features

Traditionally, Ashland’s Sacred Walk to the New Year has featured altars dedicated to the four directions as well as the divine feminine and the divine masculine. This year, for the third time, there are two additional interactive altars: one honoring Childhood/Youth, and one honoring Community/World/Planet.

Videos on Facebook Visit our Facebook page to view videos created by Co-Leader Cassandra Wass: the History of the Sacred Walk, Unfurling of the Labyrinth, Temple Dancers, and Sacred Altars. Experience a graceful online meditation video – Virtual Labyrinth Walk, created by Cassandra Wass on Ashland’s outdoor Trinity Garden Labyrinth. ∞

Comments from past Sacred Walks to the New Year

“I have been coming to the Labyrinth since I was about 6. I’m 23 now! The Labyrinth is such an important part of my transition into the New Year. Thank You for everything!” – L.R. (2017)

“This is the perfect ending and beginning of each year. I look forward to it as the most meaningful part of the season.” – Anonymous (2011

Full schedule

Date & Time:

December 31, 2024 @ 4:00 pm - 10:00 pm

Cost:

Free

Wesley Hall on the campus of Ashland First United Methodist Church

175 N. Main St.
Ashland,97520

Share this event

Our Sponsors

Klamath Bird Observatory Experience the wonders of Souteast Brazil Ashland Oregon
Pronto Printing Ashland Medford Southern Oregon

Upcoming Events

Have an event?

List it for free at Ashland.news. Sign up for an account and you can submit your event immediately. Pending review, your event will be included in the community calendar.

Already a user? Need to update an existing event? Sign in.

Our Sponsors

City of Ashland Public Notice Ashland Oregon
Ashland Parks and Recreation Ashland Oregon

Explore More...

‘Do No Harm, Be a Good Neighbor’: Community event on immigration Monday

The Ashland Sunrise Project is hosting an opportunity for community members to learn about current immigration issues and how to be in solidarity with those potentially impacted by the changing political climate on immigration. The event, titled “How To Do No Harm and Be a Good Neighbor,” is set for 6 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 24, at Rogue Valley Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (RVUUF), 87 4th St., Ashland.

Read More>

Obituary: Eliane Viner

Obituary: Eliane A. Mueller Trapp Viner, 86, died on Thursday, Dec. 19, 2024 — on her own terms and surrounded by loved ones — in Medford, Oregon, after three months of hospice care. A celebration of life will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, March 1, in Ashland, Oregon, and online.

Read More>

Bill Thorndike Jr. remembered as community titan, treasured friend

Family, community members and longtime friends of Medford native Bill Thorndike Jr. were collectively at a loss for words over the weekend at the sudden loss of a man they say had a hand in nearly anything good to happen in Southern Oregon for much of the past half-century. Thorndike, 71, suffered a heart attack early Saturday morning, just following a Valentine’s Day spent with his wife, Angela Thorndike, at a family cabin on Whidbey Island in Washington’s Puget Sound.

Read More>
ashland.news logo

Subscribe to the newsletter and get local news sent directly to your inbox.

(It’s free)