The month of October began very quietly in Taizé, with participants in the weekly meetings relatively few in number: most notable are several groups of 15-17 year olds, from Switzerland, Spain, Belgium and France.
The outstanding exception came on Sunday 3, when Taizé welcomed 5 000 people from the Diocese of Autun (where Taizé is situated) for a day of prayer and reflection. Glorious sunshine accompanied the participants throughout the day and the Bishop of Autun, Mgr Benoît Rivière, was on hand to welcome them when the first arrivals appeared at 9h00. “A Gathering of solidarity”, the day was made up of times of prayer with the brothers of the Community, Bible reflection, and the chance to visit a whole series of “houses whose occupants invite us to share the experience of different ways of living hospitality”: the house of pilgrims, the house of IPOD (hospitality in colleges and high schools), the house of Life (welcoming Life; the right to have a child?), the house of Abraham (promoting inter-religious dialogue), the house of work (brutality and indifference in the work place), the house of welcome (what kind of welcome is there in the parishes?) … The day concluded with a celebration of the Eucharist. This was the forth time that the Diocese of Autun has come to Taizé for a gathering of solidarity; following those of 1995, 2000 and 2005.
A young orthodox priest from the city of Kemerovo in Siberia made a short visit to Taizé. “By the presence of icons, the chants from the Orthodox tradition, and the onion domes on your church, we can see that Russia is not far from here,” he said. In March, two Taizé brothers visited that region of Russia, on the invitation of the Orthodox bishop of the diocese. The priest was accompanied by the director of the Orthodox high school that opened in the city one year ago. It began with almost nothing, but now there are a hundred children who have registered for the new school year. The young priest left with us the question: can we support them through our prayer?
Suzanne is studying journalism and is at present doing her internship at the communication department of the European meeting. From now until the meeting, she will be regularly bringing us up to date on what is happening in the preparation in Rotterdam.
“Monday 4 October: There we go...!
Yesterday was the official start of the preparations for the meeting in December. The Cathedral in Rotterdam was crowded. Probably a thousand people were there to hear what’s going on in and around Rotterdam.
And everyone is so much looking forward to it! Three months to go and we’re bombarded with questions, answers and help. Everyone wants to do something and if you need something, just count to ten and it’s fixed. It’s unbelievable what you can achieve with so many people who are so involved and care so much for Taizé. … ”
Practical information
Vidéo clip: On the way to Rotterdam
Videoclip : Op weg naar Rotterdam
The preparation for the meeting in Santiago, “The Pilgrimage of trust for a more fraternal world”, is gradually taking shape. Volunteers from Spain, Mexico, Honduras, Italy, France, Bolivia and Chile each have their own zones for work or, to put it another way, for pilgrimage: parishes, colleges and vicariates. All are seeking places of welcome for the numerous pilgrims who will come to Santiago, Chile, in December.… “Two of us went to a parish in the suburbs. We travelled for around an hour on public transport before arriving at the church, where we were welcomed with open arms. After a short introduction – our names, where we come from – we were invited to pray and then to speak about the pilgrimage: the beginnings of the Taizé Community, the vocation of Brother Roger, the idea of a pilgrimage of trust in Chile.… ”
Meeting in Santiago, Chile. From 8 to 12 December 2010.
Helene, from Oslo, was in Trondheim for the meeting: “The prayer is about to start and more and more people are coming into the church and finding a place on the floor to sit. Everyone sits side by side in the biggest cathedral in Norway, Nidarosdomen; the church is full in time for the prayer to start. Finally, the day has arrived, the day for which we have been planning for half a year, and practising for during the last few weeks in the choir. To see the church filling up with young people is a beautiful sight! The Bishop of Nidaros welcomes us, and we begin by singing ‘Confitemini Domino’. The voices mix into a beautiful sound that fills the church.… ” This evening of prayer is part of a stage of the pilgrimage of trust on earth held in Norway, from 17 to 19 September 2010.
Brothers of the community are making visits in various countries. One of them, in Ukraine at present, writes: “At each stage of our journey, the welcome of the Christian communities is very warm everywhere. Taking part in the liturgy, meeting with students: the program is really quite full. In Kiev, one of us was invited to speak on ‘Joy, source of forgiveness’, for a conference in which Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk took part.”
Other brothers are at present in:
Other visits are in preparation:
Chapter 4 of the Book of Deuteronomy tells us that Moses gave the children of Israel “decrees and laws” to make them into a living people, corresponding to a God who “is near us whenever we pray to him” (v. 7). God entrusted this Law to them on Mount Horeb as a sign of his covenant, an unbreakable bond of communion. Israel is called to remain faithful, whatever happens, to “the merciful God who never forgets his covenant” (v. 31). In order to remain faithful to God, we need to be able to marvel at him and at this undeserved love. With rhetorical questions (v. 32b-34), Moses attempts to awaken this sense of wonder. Is there anything greater than such a love shown to a nation? Has such love ever done more for any other nation on this earth?…
In German, there is a new book of prayer outlines to enlarge the repertoire already published in “Prayers for each day”: “Höre die Stimme meines Herzens”, published by Verlag Herder.
“15 Days of Prayer with Brother Roger of Taizé” by Sabine Laplane is now available in English from New City Press, and in Slovenian (under the title “Brat Roger iz Taizéja”) from Mohorjeva Druzba.
In Swedish, a new edition of Brother Roger’s book of mediations and prayers for each day of the year (“Peace of Heart in All Things”) has been published in a desktop calendar format by Libris Media, with the title: “En stilla glädje – Ord från Taizé för dag under året”.
Details, with links to distributors
Jesus our peace, even in our inner contradictions, you change our hearts and the darkness can become a Gospel light.