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  • Regular prayers in Australia
  • Canada: A Taizé brother in Canada in April 2018
  • Canada: Prayers
  • NZ: Prayers in Aotearoa-New Zealand
  • UK: News from Britain
  • UK: Prayers
  • USA: Prayer Contacts
  • Small Provisional Communities
    • Small Provisional Communities
    • Small Provisional Communities before 2018
    • News from the Small Provisional Communities
    • A Taizé Provisional Community on the Outskirts of Lyons
    • A Month in Morocco
  • Africa
    • Algeria: A meeting at Tlemcen: August 2011
    • Burundi May 2009: Building new relationships
    • Democratic Republic of Congo: A visit to Goma
    • Meetings and retreats in Nairobi : program for 2017
    • Mauritania: A journey from Dakar to Nouadhibou
    • Rwanda: Visits in November 2010
    • A Brother Visits South Sudan
    • Two Taizé brothers in South Africa
    • South Africa: Regular prayers
    • In South Sudan, summer 2013
    • Tanzania: Meetings in June 2010
    • Togo, Benin and Burkina Faso: Visits and meetings
    • Visits in Uganda
    • Africa 2006, 2007, 2008
      • February-March 2006 : In East Africa
      • February 2007 : In East Africa
      • November 2007: A visit to South Africa
      • April-May 2007: In West Africa
      • Malawi: "A house that’s complete"
    • 2008: Meeting in Nairobi
      • With 7000 young Africans in Nairobi Taizé creates a sign of peace
      • The meeting in Nairobi: Day by day
      • Nairobi: Meditations by Brother Alois
      • Photos: Meeting in Nairobi
    • 2012: Meeting in Kigali
      • Pilgrimage of Trust on Earth
      • How to prepare for the meeting
      • Kigali: Echoes from the Meeting
      • Preparation of the meeting
        • Practical information
        • Rwanda 2011: A new stage towards the meeting in Kigali in 2012
        • Kigali: The preparation in March
        • February-March 2012: Travel Log
        • June 2012: Travellog
        • Rwanda, September 2012 : News of the preparation
        • Kigali : Testimonies from Young People
        • Kigali Meeting: The last stage of the preparation...
      • Contacts
      • Photos
      • From Kigali to Rome
    • 2016: Meeting in Cotonou
      • Cotonou 2016: Photos
      • Benin: International young adult meeting in Cotonou
      • Cotonou 2016: Echoes of the Preparation in Bénin and Neighbouring Countries
      • Video clip: The preparation of the meeting in Cotonou
      • Spring 2016: The Preparation Continues in Cotonou and Elsewhere
      • Cotonou 2016: Looking for Paths of Hope Together
      • Cotonou 2016: Hope and joyful gratitude
  • Americas
    • Argentina: An important small step forward in reconciliation
    • Bolivia October 2009: Meetings in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Cochabamaba and El Alto
    • Pilgrimage of Trust in the Caribbean
    • Chile: A new stage in the pilgrimage of trust
    • Haiti: Messages from young people
    • Spring 2014: Pilgrimage of Trust in America
    • Mexico: Faith is alive everywhere
    • Visits in Peru
    • USA: Pilgrimage of Trust in St. Louis
      • Spring 2017: Pilgrims of Trust in Saint Louis
    • USA: Meeting in Pine Ridge
      • Pilgrimage of trust in the USA: Taizé at Pine Ridge: “Our pot is empty - you have to fill it”
      • Photos: Meeting in Pine Ridge
    • 2007: Meeting in Cochabamba
      • Day by day during the meeting
      • Photos: Meeting in Cochabamba
      • Taizé and Bolivia
    • 2010: Meeting in Santiago
      • Taizé and Latin America
      • The evening before Palm Sunday
      • A welcome that is warm, close and simple
      • Celebrating life with the people of Chile
      • In Argentina: An un-hoped for joy
      • For a fraternal world: Meeting in Santiago, Chile
      • In Chile: the pilgrimage of trust continues…
      • Photos
    • 2012: Meeting in Chicago
      • Meeting in Chicago: An interview with two of the brothers
      • Meeting in Chicago: Taizé-Chicago: Three-minute version
      • May 2012 meeting: Taizé in Chicago
      • Photos of the meeting in Chicago
    • 2018: Upcoming Events in North America
  • Asia Pacific
    • Japan, spring 2016: "How to awaken in us the courage of mercy? "
    • Video: An introduction to Taizé
    • Australia: News of prayers, meetings and gatherings
    • Cambodia: Visits of Brothers
    • Taizé and China
    • Taiwan: Meetings with a brother from Taizé in April 2015
    • Hong Kong: Prayers and meetings to "uncover the wellspring of trust in God"
    • Hong Kong: Preparatory Prayers for International Meeting 2018
    • Visit by two brothers to Indonesia
    • Indonesia: October 2011: At the World Christian Forum in Manado
    • Visits of Brother Alois in Asia
    • Japan 2014: Meetings with a brother from Taize
    • Kazakhstan : A visit in August 2010
    • Laos: Young Laotians and the pilgrimage of trust
    • East Malaysia: Easter in Kuching
    • A visit in Mongolia
    • Myanmar: “What is the source from which we draw life?”
    • The Courage of Mercy in the Philippines
    • The Philippines, 2016: Living the Courage of Mercy
    • India, February-March 2013: Visits to Vasai and Mumbai
    • Sri Lanka: Visits in 2012
    • Thailand: Next prayers in Bangkok
    • Timor Leste: Visits in 2012
    • In Vietnam
    • Regular prayers in Asia
      • Regular Prayer in the Philippines
      • Regular prayer in Macau
      • Regular prayers in Hong-Kong
      • Regular prayers in Indonesia
      • Regular prayers in Singapore
      • Regular prayer in Malaysia
      • Japan: Regular prayers in Japan
      • Regular prayers in India
      • Prayers in Vietnam
    • 2018 Meeting in Hong Kong
      • August 2018: Pilgrimage of Trust in Hong Kong
      • Meeting in Hong Kong, August 2018: Practical information
    • 2010 Meeting in Manila, Philippines
      • Philippines: Meeting in Manila: "Most simply I am grateful for life"
      • Pilgrimage of trust meeting in the Philippines
      • Meditations by Brother Alois
      • Photos
      • Brother Alois 2010: Liham mula sa Ttsina
      • Brother Alois 2010: Sulat gikan sa Ttsina
    • 2006 Meeting in Kolkata, India
      • Pilgrimage of Trust in Kolkata: On the Road of Trust, Towards a Future of Peace
      • Kolkata: Meditations by Brother Alois
      • Taizé and India
      • Photos: Meeting in Kolkata
    • September 2017: Visits and prayers in India
  • Meeting in Cape Town
    • Taizé and South Africa
  • Europe
    • European Meeting in Basel
      • Next European Meeting: At the end of 2018 in Madrid
      • Video clip: A Short Introduction to the European Meetings
      • Video clip: The preparation of the European Meeting
      • Basel 2017: Next European Meeting of Young Adults in Basel
      • Programme
      • Practical information
      • Meeting in Basel: The list of workshops
      • Message from Brother Alois: In recent weeks, a great burst of generosity
      • Information for Registered Participants
        • Information for registered participants
        • Accommodation
        • Don’t forget
        • The journey, arrival and during the meeting
        • Arrival and Departure by Coach
        • Arrival by other means of transport
        • Welcome place on 26 December and arrivals on 25 and 27 December
        • Welcome Place on 28 December and Departure Point on 1 January for English-speaking countries, Scandinavia and Finland
        • Detailed Programme
        • Concerning Health
      • Meditations by Brother Alois
      • Basel 2017: Photos
      • Messages received for the meeting
    • At the end of every year
      • Riga 2016
        • A novel European meeting at Riga in Latvia
        • Riga 2016: Film
        • Riga 2016: The afternoon workshops
        • A short history of Latvia (1)
        • A short history of Latvia (2)
        • Riga 2016 : A sign for the environment put into action
        • Riga: Photos
        • Riga 2016: A letter by brother Alois after the meeting at Riga
        • Meditations by Brother Alois
      • Valencia 2015
        • Meditations by Brother Alois
        • Photos
      • Prague 2014
        • Prague: Some clips on the European Meeting
        • Meditations by Brother Alois
        • The meeting from day to day
        • Photos
      • Strasbourg 2013
        • Strasbourg: 30,000 young Europeans make “a large community of friendship” visible
        • Strasbourg meeting: Meditations by Brother Alois
        • Words of welcome from representatives of the Churches of Alsace and Ortenau
        • Strasbourg: Echoes from the Strasbourg Meeting
        • Photos
      • Rome 2012
        • Rome, January 2013: Some weeks after the European Meeting
        • The meeting from day to day
        • Meditations by Brother Alois
        • 45 000 young people in Saint Peter’s Square to pray with Pope Benedict
        • Rome 2012: The faith of a scientist - one of the afternoon workshops
        • Photos
      • Berlin 2011
        • Meeting in Berlin: 30 000 young adults on the road towards a new solidarity
        • The Meeting Day by Day
        • Meditations by Brother Alois
        • Photos
      • Rotterdam 2010
        • 30 000 young people invited to reflect on joy and solidarity
        • The Meeting Day by Day
        • Meditations by Brother Alois
        • “The party is over but the legacy remains.”
        • Photos
      • Poznań 2009
        • Photos
        • “Poznań, capital of European Christian youth”
        • Meditations by Brother Alois
      • Brussels 2008
        • From the newspapers
        • Meeting in Brussels: Meditations by Brother Alois
        • Two addresses by Cardinal Danneels
        • Photos
      • Geneva 2007
        • Geneva elated to have welcomed the 40,000 young adults of Taizé
        • Photos
      • 2006: 40,000 young Europeans fill up with hope
      • 2005: Milan filled with the spirit of Brother Roger
      • 2004 Lisbon: The Urgency of Peace
      • 2003 Hamburg: The Face of the Church as Communion
      • 2002 Paris: A Larger Europe Breathes the Good News
      • 2001 Budapest: Hospitality, A Face of God
      • 2000 Barcelona: Sharing a Hope
    • Lviv 2018
      • Lviv 2018: Provisional programme
      • Lviv 2018: Practical information
      • Lviv 2018: Prayers with songs from Taizé
      • Lviv 2018: End of April, First Taizé Meeting in Ukraine
    • Albania: “Visits from abroad”
    • Austria, March 2011: Meeting in Vienna
    • Austria: Meeting in Graz
      • Graz 2018: Graz 2018: Sharing the Future
      • Graz 2018: Practical Information
      • Graz 2018: Provisional Programme
    • Belarus, September 2014: Discovering the Source of a Unity Beyond Borders
    • Autumn 2016: A Visit to Belarus
    • Bosnia-Herzegovina: After the meeting in Sarajevo
    • Bulgaria: 2010: Welcomed as long lost friends
    • Croatia: “Something that they want to share with others”
    • Czech Republic: Preparing “Vigils of Trust” in Prague, November 2012
    • Denmark: Visits in May 2010
    • Estonia 2012: Renewing trust
    • Hamina, City of Peace
    • Finland : A Chain of Friendship
    • Finland: Meeting in Helsinki
    • Germany, 2012: A visit to Cologne
    • France, All Saints 2016 : The testimony of refugees in Taizé
    • Present day Greece: a land of contrasts
    • Spring 2016: On the island of Lesbos with those who had to leave everything
    • April 2016: A Volunteer on a Boat Saving Refugees in the Mediterranean
    • Hungary: Accompanying the refugees
    • Hungary Octobre 2009: Meeting in Pécs, October 2009
    • Ireland: News from Ireland
    • Italy: March 2011: Prayers and visits
    • Mantova, September 2012: Brothers and volunteers visit a sorely tried region
    • Riga, September 2014: To the Baltic Countries as Pilgrims of Peace and Trust
    • Latvia 2012: Seeking signs of hope
    • Lithuania: Meeting in Vilnius in May 2009
    • Malta: “A silent cry that no one hears”
    • Moldova, February 2016: Come Back in the Spring!
    • Norway, Spring 2013: "We are truly one in Christ"
    • Pilgrimage of trust in Norway: Weekend meeting in Oslo and Trondheim
    • Pilgrimage of Trust: Sweden: Meeting in Jönköping for Young Adults
    • Taizé in Brussels: New paths of trust
    • Poland, October 2014: „Days of Communion” in Katowice
    • WYD 2016: Praying with the Songs of Taizé in Kraków
    • Portugal: Evening prayer in Porto
    • Romania, Easter 2016: Pilgrimage to Bucharest
      • Pilgrimage to Bucharest
      • Getting ready to take part
      • Celebrating Easter in Bucharest: Day by Day
      • Echoes from participants: To the Wellsprings of the Romanian Orthodox Tradition
      • Pictures from the Pilgrimage
    • Romania: Brother Alois’ visit in May 2008
    • Russia: Pilgrimage to Kemerovo
    • Russia, Easter 2015: A Pilgrimage to Moscow, in the Light of the Resurrection
    • Russia: Easter 2011
      • Easter Celebrations in Taizé and Moscow
      • A Pilgrimage to Moscow
      • The pilgrimage to Moscow day by day
      • Pilgrimage to Moscow: Saturday 23 April
      • Pilgrimage to Moscow: Sunday 24 April
      • Message from Metropolitan Hilarion
      • Words of thanks of Brother Alois to Metropolitan Hilarion
      • Short film of the pilgrimage
      • Russia: Easter 2011: What did you experience in Moscow during the pilgrimage?
    • 2016: Continuing pilgrimage in Russia
    • Ljubljana, May 2012: A mosaic of encounters in the midst of the Slovenian springtime
    • Spain: Meeting in Seville: May 2009
    • Sweden 2016: Refugees, coffee and prayer
    • Sweden 2016: Prayer with Brother Alois in Lund
    • Istanbul, January 2013
      • Taizé and the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
      • Pilgrimage, day by day
      • A word of welcome by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew
      • Meditation by brother Alois
      • Photos of the pilgrimage
      • Young People’s Impressions
    • Turkey: Prayers in Istanbul
    • UK: Birmingham 2017
      • Echoes of Birmingham 2017
      • Workshops
      • Birmingham 2017: St. Chad’s Sanctuary
      • Birmingham 2017: Changing Tunes
      • Birmingham 2017: “Bringing Hope”
      • Birmingham 2017: Meeting Christ in the discarded
    • UK: Weekend in Edinburgh
      15-16 March 2014
    • Ukraine, October 2014: Faces of Hope
    • Ukraine, April 2015: An Eastertide Pilgrimage, between suffering and hope
    • Europe 2006 2007 2008
      • Austria: A journey through Austria
      • Bosnia-Herzegovina and Taizé
      • Denmark: “The great day of prayer"
      • Germany: In the North of Germany
      • In Greece and the Republic of Macedonia
      • Kosovo, Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina
      • In Latvia and Estonia: 2008
      • Russia: Brother Alois in Moscow in 2006
      • Russia: In Moscow in 2006: Taizé’s gratefulness for the Russian Orthodox Church
      • Russia: A visit in October 2006
      • Russia: A visit in November 2007
      • In Spain: 2008
      • Sweden: 2007 Meeting in Stockholm
      • Sweden: 2007 Stockholm meeting day by day
      • UK: 2006: Prayers in Bradford Cathedral and Westminster Abbey
      • Ukraine 2006: Just before the elections
  • Middle East
    • 2017: Pilgrimage of Trust in Egypt
    • Egypt 2017: Taizé on Pilgrimage to Egypt with Coptic Christians
    • Egypt 2017: Pictures of the pilgrimage
    • 2017: A Christian-Muslim initiative of hope in northern Lebanon
    • A Jew’s prayer for the children of Gaza
    • Prayers in Jerusalem
    • Israël, Palestinian Territories, Lebanon: Journal of a pilgrim of trust
    • Lebanon 2013: Visit of a brother
    • Autumn 2015: Two Brothers in the Middle East
Prague
 

Meditations by Brother Alois

Every evening during the meeting, at the end of the prayer, Brother Alois will speak to the participants. The texts of these meditations will be published on this page.

Brother Alois, Prague, Thursday 1 January 2015

We have received such a generous welcome. I would like to thank the families, the parishes, the Church leaders, those in the administration of the city and the region who enabled our meeting to run so smoothly. Thank you for schools you have provided.

It is a joy that the European meeting has brought together Christians of different denominations as well as people who do not share faith in Christ but who seek to be peacemakers.

Christ gave his life to bring together all human beings into one great family. He calls his followers to be a sign of his peace in the world. It is in order to constitute such a sign that reconciliation between Christians is so urgent.

One question that we Christians urgently want to find an answer to is this: how to show by our lives that unity is possible while respecting pluralism?

There will always be differences between Christians. They will remain an invitation to frank dialogue; they can also be enriching. But has not the time come to give priority to the baptismal identity common to us all, which already unites us in Christ?

Today should not the Christian Churches dare to come under one roof, even before an agreement is reached on all theological questions?

These days, you, the various Churches of Prague, are welcoming us—Protestants, Catholics and Orthodox. I am particularly touched that we are living this sign of unity in the land of John Hus, whose violent death will be remembered next year. The responsibilities for that division of the Church in the fifteenth century are shared, but his personality, of such integrity, leads us all to repent and be reconciled.

Christ gives unity when and as he wishes. But if we do not wait for it together, how can he give us this gift? It is when they were gathered under one roof, with Mary as well, that the apostles received the gift of the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit always unites us in our diversity.

How can we come under one roof? I would like to make six suggestions:

- In a local community, we can come under one roof, among neighbors and families, as in "grass-roots communities", to pray together, to assist one another, and to get to know each other better.

- Local communities of different confessions are already collaborating in the study of the Bible, in social and pastoral activity, in catechesis. This could be intensified. Each community should do with Christians of other denominations all that it is possible to do together, and do nothing without taking the others into account.

- We are together in this beautiful Cathedral. Could not, in many cities, the cathedral or the main church become a common house of prayer for all the Christians in the area?

- Theological dialogue must continue. Would it be possible to do this more and more in a context of common prayer and with the awareness that we are already together? By living and praying together, properly theological questions are dealt with in a different way. Perhaps one could say the same for ethical reflection.

- All believers have received a portion of the pastoral gift to care for one another. The Christian family which is the Church also needs ministries of unity, at all levels. A ministry of communion at the universal level is traditionally associated with the Bishop of Rome. Could he not be recognized as the servant who cares for the concord of his brothers and sisters in their great diversity? Would it not be possible for the Churches to imagine different ways to relate to this ministry?

- Should not those Churches which emphasize that unity in the faith and agreement on ministries are required to receive communion together give as much weight to the harmony of mutual love? Could not they offer a wider Eucharistic hospitality to those who express the desire for unity and believe in the real presence of Christ? The Eucharist is not only the summit of unity; it is also the road to unity.

Let us agree to go forward on a road that we do not know in advance, rooting ourselves in these words of Isaiah: "I will lead the blind on paths they have never known." We place our trust in the Holy Spirit to guide us on paths still unknown. His inspiration prepares us to become authentic witnesses of communion.


Brother Alois, Prague, Wednesday evening, 31 December 2014

When you arrived in Prague, you received the “Proposals” for the coming year, centered on Jesus’ call to be the salt of the earth. He does not say “You must be,” but simply “You are the salt of the earth.” The salt is mixed with the earth of humanity. Christ sends us everywhere to bring the good news of God’s love.

How wonderful! God does not diffuse his peace magically from above, but through our lives. He puts his trust in us. He invites us to be a leaven of peace in the dough of humanity, this humanity tragically torn apart by conflicts, whether armed or not.

God awaits from us a yes to his love. A yes like the one Mary spoke, a courageous yes, expressing all our trust. In addition to her, countless other witnesses of God support us.

Brother Roger is part of that cloud of witnesses. During the coming year we will remember him. At Taizé, in addition to meetings every week there will be a meeting for young people living in community, and another one for young theologians. On the week of August 9 to 16 a “Gathering for a New Solidarity” will be held. Why “new solidarity”?

New, because it is a matter of deciding anew to live in solidarity. Everyone can make friendship between human beings and between peoples a priority, and contribute to this through the gifts they have received. The effort, or even the sacrifices that this entails, give joy and meaning to life.

New, too, because we are facing unknown challenges. How can we be part of globalization in a positive way, one that does not entail oppression of the poor or of minority cultures? How can we live in an increasingly technological world? Among the main issues too are undoubtedly migration and ecology.

New, finally, because solidarity involves a change in our attitudes. Helping the very poor will always be necessary. But respect for the dignity of every human being leads us to abandon a paternalistic attitude in order to live in reciprocity. Those who are poorer than we are have much to give; they make us more human, sometimes they help us better to understand the Gospel in all its depth.

In Taizé we do not have any ready-made solutions to these hard questions; our community wants rather to offer a platform for searching, for encounters between people and different initiatives. Mutual listening can cause projects to arise; it may lead some people to take far-reaching decisions for their future.

Brother Roger sought to live a life of brotherhood, not to remain on a theoretical level. At 25 he began in Taizé all by himself, and then the first brothers came. They made a life-commitment together. Brother Roger never could have imagined what would grow from this small seed. His life encourages us to begin with almost nothing.

All of us, in the places where we live, want to be pilgrims of trust. The trusting of faith is in fact what animates our lives each day. Large celebrations, like our meeting in Prague, are not an end in themselves but support us on our journey forward. For the future, then, we are preparing other stages of the pilgrimage of trust.

After the youth of America, Asia and Africa, young people of Oceania want to be a part of our pilgrimage. The next steps will take place already very soon, in February, in Australia and New Zealand.

A year and a half from now, in 2016, we will return to the continent so close to Europe and yet so little understood, to Africa. After the meetings in Kenya and then in Rwanda, young people from West Africa will come together and also invite people from other continents to this stage of the pilgrimage of trust. We will be welcomed in early September 2016 in Benin, at Cotonou.

And in a year, at the end of 2015, there will be the next European meeting. We will go to a Southern country well known for its warm hospitality, but one which is undergoing economic difficulties. From December 28 to January 1 we are invited to Spain, to the city of Valencia.

To conclude, I will say a few words to the Spanish people here.To the young people of Spain I want to say: you are spiritual sons and daughters of Saint Teresa of Avila, whose 500th anniversary is being celebrated, and also of John of the Cross. In their day they reawakened a mystical life in Spain. Your generation is called in its turn to light the fire of a renewed faith in your country. We will go to Valencia to be touched by that fire, so that it can burn across Europe.



Brother Alois, Prague, Tuesday evening, 30 December 2014

Having come from all the countries of Europe, and also from other continents, we are letting ourselves be inspired these days by the words of Christ: “You are the salt of the earth.” And we are looking in particular at how these words encourage us to be creators of peace on earth.

What joy to see our lives in this light! Our European meeting can make us more aware of the universal communion that Christ wants to create between human beings. Scattered throughout the earth, we can then help allow the peace of God to shine out in humanity.

Here in the Czech Republic, we are receiving a wonderful welcome. Certainly, the Christians are a minority. But there is also in this country a noble humanist tradition, nourished by art, literature, painting and music. In this way believers and non-believers together support a tendency that can resist the bland materialism which threatens our societies.

Christians are a minority here as they are in many parts of the world, and as the early Christians were. They are salt of the earth not by seeking power, not by imposing their views on society, but by being simple peacemakers and working for justice in the places where they live.

I would like to say to the Czech Christians: you really are salt of the earth. This is as true today as it was in the past. Our Taizé Community keeps alive the memory of so many witnesses to the faith in your country who fought for freedom and who were willing to pay the price with their lives. I think especially of Maria and Jiří Kaplan, who have already joined Christ in the life of eternity.

You young Europeans, do you know that Cardinal Duka who, as Archbishop of Prague, together with the leaders of other Churches has been so supportive of the preparation of this meeting, do you know that he spent time in prison because of his faith?

I also want to mention Pastor Alfréd Kocáb, the first Czech who came to Taizé with his wife Darja in 1967. For many years he was forbidden to exercise his ministry; he worked stoking the heating in a museum. In the cellar, beside the coal, he met with theology students in secret and taught courses, including one on St. John of the Cross. He is now ill and could not come to be with us, but we greet him through television.

To all the young people taking part in this European meeting, various concrete proposals have been made for the coming year. One of these proposals is to spend half an hour in silence every Sunday night, with others, for world peace.

This is half an hour devoted first of all to entrusting to God countries and people suffering from violence. It is also a time to welcome the peace of Christ into ourselves to prepare us to be, in the places where we live, peacemakers and creators of justice.

Last year our pilgrimage of trust took us to several countries of America, including Cuba. Many young Cubans told us that they felt too isolated. They asked me to greet the young people in Prague. So, you are warmly greeted by the young people of Cuba!

These young people have written short prayers of intercession they wanted to entrust to you. At the end of this prayer you will receive a small paper with one of these intercessions. Your prayer will support the youth of Cuba.

And finally, some news. Among us there are young people from Russia, from Belarus and from Ukraine, belonging to different churches. With them we know that Christ is our hope, our peace. So, with a few of my brothers and with young people from different countries of Europe, we will go on pilgrimage to celebrate the resurrection of Christ together with them in their countries during the Orthodox feast of Easter next April 12.

One hundred young people from other countries can take part in this pilgrimage in Russia and in Ukraine. Those of you who would like to come with us either to spend five days in Moscow or five days in Kiev and Lviv will find information on the sheet you have received and can come and talk about this tomorrow at 5pm in Hall 6.

Tomorrow morning, in groups, you will reflect on these words of Christ "Blessed are the peacemakers" and you will think about what concrete steps to undertake both near and far away in order to create peace.



Brother Alois, Prague, Monday evening, 29 December 2014

It is a great joy to be here together in the Czech Republic, at the center of Europe. Already on this first day, we want to thank all those who have prepared such a generous welcome.

We already held a European meeting here in 1990, a year after the unforgettable “velvet revolution,” that moment of freedom when borders fell. At Taizé, and I think that we are far from alone in this, we remain grateful to the people of Central and Eastern Europe for having shown that the unexpected was possible.

The memory of this great liberation offers hope that even today, at this moment of tension in the world, a peaceful future is possible. Our meeting clearly shows that among every people there are women and men who want peace.

These days we will pray for those suffering from violence and war—in Ukraine, the Middle East and elsewhere. The Lebanese who are here with us bear within themselves the trials of their region. Their country hosts thousands of refugees from Iraq and Syria. I would like to tell them: remember that all of us are close to you in prayer and in our hearts.

During our meeting in 1990 the President of the Republic, Václav Havel, told us: "The ‘pilgrimage of trust on earth’ comes to help us search for the sources of the faith and the new spiritual values lost during the decades of the totalitarian regime.”

This is still so true today! To live in peace and to contribute to world peace, Europe must of course be built up by closer economic and political relations. But the motivation must spring from a deeper source.

For us, this source is in the peace that Christ communicates to us. We want to be a leaven of peace in humanity. For this it is indispensable to welcome the peace of God in our hearts.

In the coming months, we shall be guided by the Gospel words: “You are the salt of the earth.” Christ warns us: make sure that the salt does not lose its flavor! We must not give in to discouragement and pessimism.

But how can we welcome the peace of Christ that God wants to give us? We cannot always feel the presence of God. A believer can also experience the night of faith. Our trust in God can be combined with doubt in the face of a mystery that is so far beyond us.

Does not welcoming the peace of Christ mean having simple trust in a presence? A child can show this trust naturally. We adults have to choose it. This choice is made with all our being, with the mind and the emotions.

Our trust remains fragile throughout our life; it grows when we share it with others. Then there can be moments of light, of clarity, of joy. We understand that this is the presence of the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of the Risen Christ, who dwells in our hearts.

These days we will renew our faith in the Holy Spirit, who communicates the peace of Christ. We cannot keep this peace for ourselves alone; it becomes kindness towards others, refusal of injustices, and commitment with all our strength to make the earth a place fit to live in for all.

There are a great many ways to reach the source of Christ’s peace. There is prayer, even when it is poor. There is also beauty, that of nature, that which art reveals to us.

To be salt of the earth, it is indispensable to keep alive in us the “zest for life”. But how? You will speak about this tomorrow morning. Joyfully and with all our energy, let us try to find some answers. Jesus assures us: “Seek and you shall find.”

Last updated: 1 January 2015

Daily Bible Reading

Thu, 19 April
While we live, as when we die, we belong to the Lord. For Christ died and returned to life that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.
Romans 14:7-15
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For the Diary

27 April - 1 May, Ukraine:
Lviv 2018
5 - 8 July, Taizé:
Weekend of friendship between young Christians and Muslims
8 - 12 August, Hong Kong SAR China:
2018 Meeting in Hong Kong
19 - 26 August, Taizé:
Reflection week for 18-35 year-olds
28 December 2018 - 1 January 2019, Spain:
At the end of 2018 in Madrid
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Podcasts

2018-04-11 : Confitemini Domino /Alleluia 7 + Psalm 104/ Matthew 11:28-30 / Kristus, din Ande / Prayer by Brother Alois / Gib mich ganz zu eigen Dir
IMG/mp3/taize_podcast_2018-04-11.mp3
11 April 2018
2018-04-05 Easter Day: Introduction / Prayer by Brother Alois / Lumen Christi / Maranatha / Exultet / John 20:1-9 / Christus resurrexit
IMG/mp3/taize_podcast_2018-04-05_easter_day.mp3
11 April 2018
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New CD: «LAUDAMUS TE»


Community

  • Some Recent News
  • Visit of Patriarch Bartholomew to Taizé
  • Vocation and History
  • Brother Roger, Founder of Taizé
  • Other people on Taizé
  • Brothers living in other places
  • The Brothers’ Work
  • Solidarity: Operation Hope
  • Anniversaries 2015: Towards a new solidarity

At the Wellspring of Faith

  • Prayer
  • Songs
  • Meditations and Reflections

Coming to Taizé

  • Youth Meetings
  • Specific information for 2018
  • Travel to Taizé
  • UK School & College Weeks
  • UK University Weeks
  • Testimonies by young adults
  • Multimedia
  • Some Recent News

Around the World

  • Small Provisional Communities
  • Africa
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  • Asia Pacific
  • Meeting in Cape Town
  • Europe
  • Middle East

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