The nave is that part of the church where we spend most of our time in worship.

It includes the space that runs from the chancel step to the narthex.

The term itself is derived from the Latin navis, a ship, possibly with some reference to the "ship of St. Peter" or the Ark of Noah, and conveys that sense of the journey of our Christian life - reflecting both the calm seas and the stormy waters of our lives.

Together with the chancel and sanctuary, defined in the last weeks' lexicons, these three areas of the church are where the faithful gather to worship, to remember and enact the drama of salvation that comes to us through Word and Sacrament.

It is interesting to note that these three areas of our church architecture have been spiritualized to reflect our journey of faith.

In the medieval church, the nave became a metaphor for the Church Militant, that is us: the faithful who struggle and strive throughout our lives to do God's will.

The chancel became a metaphor for the Church Expectant, that is the spiritual state of the faithful departed, who wait in expectation to experience the risen life.

It followed that the sanctuary, as the most holy place, became associated with the Church Triumphant, the state where all God's creatures past and present come to their fulfillment and perfection in Christ's coming again.

Hence, spiritually as we make the journey from nave to sanctuary week by week, we are foreshadowing the journey that spans our whole life of faith.

This is embodied in the liturgy particularly at those times when, like today, we have a procession.

As you will notice, the procession stops at the chancel steps, symbolizing that, just as in death, we pause on our journey before we enter into the new life that awaits us.

In reviewing these three fundamental aspects of our church architecture and the symbolism they convey, there is a sense in which we are learning not only to talk the talk, but walk the walk as well.