One of St. Aloysius High School’s most popular community events is getting close and the deadline to sign up is getting closer.
On April 16, the senior class at St. Al will host a Luminary Prayer Service in remembrance of loved ones and for the community to gather and pray.
“This year they’re going to set it up in a labyrinth,” said Ann Roberson, development director with the Vicksburg Catholic Schools. “The history behind it is that, as you pray, you make your way through to the middle. It’s sort of a meditative process.”
She said the event is not limited to alumni or students at St. Aloysius and encouraged anyone in the community to purchase a luminary in honor of someone.
“It’s not just for the school, so anybody can purchase a bag and join us,” she said.
For the past three years, the senior class at St. Al has hosted the prayer service.
The class of 2014 chose to create the labyrinth that will be set up on Balzli Field across Grove Street from the school.
It is modeled after early Christian labyrinths, such as the first one discovered in the fourth-century Basilica of Reparatus in Orleansville, Algeria.
Medieval labyrinths began appearing in the 13th century with paths woven between quadrants.
The most famous is located at Chartres Cathedral in France and was built about 1200 C.E.
The labyrinths reached their peak popularity during the Crusades and were often referred to as the Road to Jerusalem. Serfs or impoverished people who were unable to afford a pilgrimage to the Holy Land used them most often. Catholic authorities commissioned the construction of labyrinths in seven of Europe’s largest cathedrals for local Christians to make a symbolic, spiritual journey through the labyrinth.
Luminaries are $10 and must be purchased by April 7.
To purchase one, contact the school at 601-636-2256.