Pilgrimage to Taize

Sr Mary gives an account of the recent pilgrimage to Taizé.
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Sr Mary Kenefick and five students from LSE and a professional member of staff from Goldsmiths College made a pilgrimage to Taizé from 20-29 June 2009. As an English student group we were delighted to meet students from Keele and Warwick Universities. Later in the week, the UK contingent of thirty were joined by a group of eight parishioners from St Mary’s Church, Cadogan St, accompanied by their priest Fr Georgios Ntakgas.
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It could be called a spiritual holiday in sunny central Burgundy, France, given the prayer environment of this unique ecumenical community of monks founded by Brother Roger. The sun gave of its best for 7 days while on Friday we were reminded of God’s presence for five hours through thunder and intense rain reviving the earth, grass and flowers.
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Daily life at Taizé includes Catholic Mass at 7.30am, followed by Morning Prayer with the Eucharist followed by breakfast round 9am. There is a bible teaching/reflection at 10am for one hour. Midday prayer, lasting half an hour, takes place at 12.30pm followed by lunch. One is free for an hour and then either or discussions or workshops are available in groups. These were excellent because one got to know and share faith with Christians from around the world. In my case it was with Christians from Sweden, Norway, Spain and Great Britain. Their difference brought enrichment into our lives and some long lasting significant friendships have been forged.
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It was astounding how quickly we build community and significant relationships within a few days. Evening Prayer was preceded by dinner. Central to all the prayer times was an 8 minute silent period and, of course, the Taizé chants. The silence was respected and reached profound depths at times.
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There is a necessary element of penance, with regard to food at Taizé. It was sufficient and healthy. Taizé is a homely place and this is expressed through the inclusion of everyone in prayer, reflection and building community through household tasks.
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I was delighted to locate Brother Roger’s grave at the entrance to the old, local and first chapel of the community just outside the campus. Many people prayed here and I left some vocation literature there. The Taizé community bases its ecumenical living style on that lived by the early Christians in the first two centuries, loving and sharing Eucharist. They are influenced by the teachings of St Ignatius of Antioch and St Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, their neighbourhood.
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The spirit of Brother Roger lives on and this was affirmed by people who had made pilgrimages there during his lifetime. We were told one amusing story by one of the brothers. “When brother Roger lived he was old, not only in years, yes, but also in his mind. When he began to tell a story, which he often did, you knew after the first four words what the next ten minutes would be like!”
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This pilgrimage has been a defining moment in the prayer life of the students. While there, two volunteered to work in the kitchen cooking the dinners and two others made a silent retreat for 3 days. The discussions groups played a big part in broadening their faith and knowledge of it and the universal element of the Catholic and Christian Churches. They certainly discovered a new meaning and vitality for their life.
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There is a great opportunity at Taizé for volunteer work; in fact I would say they depend greatly on volunteers and I met some from all points of the compass.
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I would like to end with a quote from Brother Alois, current prior: “Yes, God is present in every person, whether they are believers or not. From its very first page, the Bible describes in a beautiful and poetic way the gift that God makes of his breath of life to every human being.”