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Taizé is
an ecumenical community located near the small town of
Taizé, France. Founded in 1940 by Brother Roger,
who brought together brothers from all over the world,
the community has long been committed to promoting and
praying for reconciliation, peace, and unity. Each week
it welcomes up to 6000 people, mostly young adults, from
around the globe. They spend time in prayer, song, Bible
study, workshops, discussion, and fellowship.
This community has developed a style of worship that reflects its lifestyle commitment.
The worship is simple, beautiful, and more about praying and listening with the
whole self than with the mind only. It is inclusive of all who wish to participate.
By singing together simple chants that are short, easy to learn, and repeated
many times, those worshiping in the style of Taizé are able to let go
with their mind and to pray and listen to God with their heart. The chant becomes
the prayer, and the chant becomes lost in the prayer. Brother Roger wrote,
Nothing is more conducive to a communion with the living God than a meditative
common prayer with, as its high point, singing that never ends and that continues
in the silence of one’s heart when one is alone again. When the mystery
of God becomes tangible through the simple beauty of symbols, when it is not
smothered by too many words, then a common prayer awakens us to heaven’s
joy on earth. Prayer is a serene force at work within human beings, stirring
them up, transforming them, never allowing them to close their eyes in the face
of evil, of wars, of all that threatens the weak of this world. From it we draw
the energy to wage other struggles—to enable our loved ones to survive,
to transform the human condition, to make the earth a place fit to live in.
Taizé has become a model for the formation of community all over the world.
Many think that we need to come together as Christians and indeed as people of
any faith. Joining in prayer together, as in the style of Taizé, is one
small step we can take to begin the work of reconciliation, peace, and unity
here in our community, even in our own lives. |
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