I’ve been thinking about paths and the impact, both physical and spiritual, they have on our living experience. Efficient circulation that is easy to follow (especially in public spaces) is the hallmark of a well-designed and truly functional space. Civilization and culture, trade and protection followed the roads of the ancient world just as they continue to do today and express humanity’s passion for movement and connection.
Whereas the experience of a path may vary, paths share typical components. These physical qualities of the path develop a character that have a great influence on the path’s follower.
Paths tend to be longer and narrower than other spaces.
Paths limit space. For us as cultural children of the Modernist movement, limit tends to be a dirty word, but limits are essential to freedom. Paths create order from the chaos of vast openness, allowing us to focus.
He deprives the leaders of the earth of their reason; he makes them wander in a trackless waste.
Job 12:24
I run in the path of your commands, for you have set my heart free.
Psalms 119:32
Ironically,the spatial limit of the spiritual path gives us the freedom to navigate the truths of our human condition.
We travel paths in a line.
We see some view at the end, straight ahead and some distance away. It gives us a direction, just as God’s path gives us a life direction. The way to the goal is clear; distractions minimized.
John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, Make straight the way for the Lord.”
John 1:23
There is a demarcation between the path and its edge.
Which make sense, since we need to see the edge clearly, in order to remain on the path. I have a nasty habit of accusing the Brits of designing their cars all catawampus, but surprisingly, even though Americans have always driven on the right hand side of the road, initially American cars had the steering wheel on the right hand side just like the Brits. Why? Because it allowed the driver to better see where the wheels were in relation to the drainage ditch at the side of the road, or the edge of a bridge which at that time very rarely had guardrails. An important feature as cars, of that era, were difficult to steer and easy to flip. Right hand steering also allowed the driver to more safely pass the slower horse and buggy, without catching wheels. Understanding what is at the edge of our path is critical to remaining safely on the path.
Dan will be a snake by the roadside, a viper along the path that bites the horse’s heels so that its rider tumbles backward.
Genesis 49:17
You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.
Psalms 16:11
Paths serve as a transition from one point to another.
Paths are to journey. They connect us to the future God has intended for us, they connect us to what is at the end. But just as Bilbo Baggins said: “It can be a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step into the Road, and if you don’t keep your feet, there is no knowing where you might be swept off to.”
With 76 verses in the Bible including the word path, I think we can be sure God does not intend us to stand at our door, fearfully refusing to take a step. The French word for the future is “l’avenir.” It is derived from the Latin verb “ad venire,” which means “to come.” It is also the same root used in the words “l’avenue” and “l’aventure.” Conceptually, the French express their future as an idea of events yet to come; in other words, there is a sense of movement and active participation inherent to the process. The historical meaning of avenue was not physical, but conceptual, – the “way” in which one approached destiny i.e. the future. Inferring a journey, “l’aventure” was the expression of risk and excitement this movement to the future engendered. These concepts contrast sharply with the other romance language cultures. Their concept of the “future” is based on the Latin verb “essere,” (in the “fut” form) which means, “to be.” By nature it is passive, with no movement. God calls us to actively take our path, asking us to make our journey, allowing us the freedom to move within the sanctity of his grace and transition to greater humanity.
When you walk, your steps will not be hampered; when you run, you will not stumble.
Proverbs 4:12