Old Tennis Courts

Nov 9

Pickleball is the latest rage. Everyone is playing it, I guess. Years ago, tennis was the game of choice. At one point, we had 6 tennis courts on the property in Brant Beach. I can remember they were always busy. However, we lost three of those courts when the indoor pool was built and the remaining three were hidden between the pool and the bay. Those three courts are now defunct. The lines have faded, and the nets are long gone. That space, however, is a quiet area nestled in the northwest corner of our property with a beautiful view of the bay. I think it would be a great location for a memorial garden.

The centerpiece of the garden will be a labyrinth surrounded by bushes and trees. A pergola will sit on the bayfront to create a place for prayer or simply to sit and enjoy the beauty of the bay. With the unexpected death of Fr. John, the Pastoral Staff thought that it would be appropriate to dedicate the pergola to his memory. Fr. John had a very strong attraction to the contemplative life so we thought this place for prayer would be a great way to hold his memory here at St. Francis.

A labyrinth is a meditative path where one can make a sacred journey. Historically, the faithful would walk a labyrinth when they were not able to make a pilgrimage to a larger, more popular sacred place such as Santiago de Compostela, Rome, or the Holy Land.

The first labyrinth within the Christian context dates back to 324 AD and can be found in the ruins of the Basilica of St. Reparatus in Algeria. Probably the most famous labyrinth was built directly into the stone floor of the historic Chartres Cathedral, about 50 miles outside of Paris, in the late 11th Century. In the 1200s many cathedrals in Europe had a labyrinth. One might say it was the pickleball of its time.

A pilgrimage always has a unique and sacred destination. It is often a relic, like those of St. James in Compostela, or one of the many relics found in Rome. Likewise, the Holy Land was and is a popular destination for pilgrimage. One can only imagine how powerful it must be to walk where Jesus walked.

The center of labyrinth represents the sacred destination of the journey. Like life, or any pilgrimage, a labyrinth has many turns and there is no easy or direct path to the center. As it's center, our labyrinth will have the large copper cross that sat atop the original St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Beach Haven for over 100 years. We believe that our Christian pilgrimage of life leads us to God’s salvation and that salvation was accomplished through the Cross of Christ.

The truth about pilgrimage, however, is that although the goal is important, wisdom is always found on the journey. What will make our labyrinth unique is that we will create plots in the space between the walking path of the labyrinth where cremains can be buried.

The exact plans and details of the memorial garden, pergola, and burial of cremains are still to being worked out. The adjoining image is simply an idea of what it might look like. Because many donations were made in memory of Fr. John, I want to share with you that those gifts will be used to create this St. Francis Memorial Garden. More to come!

Peace and All Good.