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The World Council of Churches (WCC) general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit has admired the Taizé community’s ecumenical approach to spirituality though “prayer, singing and silence”. “As we all work towards Christian unity, Taizé shows us how to be guests in prayer and overcome our divisions with humility,” said Tveit.
The delegation from Taizé visited the WCC offices in Geneva on 2 March and led morning prayer at the chapel of the Ecumenical Centre.
As part of a delegation that included many young pilgrims, Brother Alois, the prior of the Taizé community, met with staff from the WCC, the Lutheran World Federation, the World Communion of Reformed Churches and other ecumenical organizations.
They exchanged accounts of their experiences illustrating the contributions of young adults toward Christian unity as well as the place of spirituality and prayer in the ecumenical movement.
Located in Burgundy, France, Taizé is an ecumenical monastic order serving as an important site of Christian pilgrimage. Founded in the 1940s by Brother Roger Schutz, a Protestant, it is now run by brothers from Protestant, Eastern Orthodox and Catholic traditions from thirty different countries. Each year Taizé attracts thousands of young pilgrims from around the world.
Brother Alois shared his views about the theological dialogue and prayer required to achieve unity as Christians.
“The second half of the last century saw great strides towards the reconciliation of Christians. We do not now want to come to a standstill and remain on parallel paths. With determination we want to make efforts to achieve the visible unity of Christians,” he said.
“This means above all praying more together. Coming together more often for prayer vigils is already a way of anticipating unity and letting the Holy Spirit unite us. This may well also enable the theological dialogue to move forward,” added Alois.
Faautu Talapusi, the WCC programme executive for youth, expressed appreciation for the diversity of faith manifested at the gatherings and prayers in Taizé. While meeting with the young visitors from Taizé, she said, “Diversity of prayer and faith is a blessing by God. Through encounters like these, we get to witness this blessing experienced by young people at Taizé and churches from around the world.”
The visitors from Taizé were also introduced to young staff members working in the Ecumenical Centre. Together they shared their experiences and discussed ideas on how to cooperate together in the future on ecumenical initiatives.
Read also:
Reflections from the 30th European Young Adult Taizé Meeting in Geneva, 2008
Ecumenical Centre welcomes youth from Europe and beyond (WCC press release of 20 December 2007)
