Experience God in a New Way Prayer - Singing - Meditation - Candlelight We welcome people of all faiths First Sunday of the month 7:00 PM

HISTORY

In 1940, a 25 year old man from Switzerland, Brother Roger, came to a small village of Taize’ in the Burgundy Region of France with the dream of starting an ecumenical community for contemplation and for the reconciliation of Christians of all faiths.

Today, the community made up of brothers from several continents and various denominations, draws tens of thousands of people from all parts of the world. They come as part of their search for trust and communion in their lives. Three times each day they join with the brothers for prayer in the Church of Reconciliation.

An important part of the Taize’ experience is the singing of simple, meditative songs that were developed for the prayer service.

PURPOSE

From the depths of the human condition a secret aspiration rises up. Caught in the anonymous rhythms of schedules and timetables, men and women of today are implicitly thirsting for an essential reality, for an inner life.

It is the Word of God set to music. 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.

Prayer is a serene force at work within human beings, stirring them up, changing their hearts, never allowing them to close their eyes in the face of evil, of wars, of all that threatens the innocent of this world. From it we draw the energy to wage other struggles, to transform the human condition and to make the earth a place fit to live in.

Perfect joy is self-giving. Whoever knows it seeks neither gratitude nor kindness. It is thankfulness. It is thanksgiving. It is joy that comes from living in the precious present. It is to live in the ‘now,’ for it is in the present moment that God is loving and saving us. This true joy comes from within and is born out of simplicity of life.

The spirituality of Taize’ is a spirituality of celebration - celebration because of the resurrected Christ. The message from Taize’ is always one of hope and festival. This spirituality is firmly rooted in the great Christian tradition of the past, yet is open to the contemporary world, but most of all it is centered on the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Through the prayer, silence and fellowship with people from many different cultures and Christian traditions, men and women have found in Taize’ the presence of God offering them a new way and vision for the future.

BENEFITS

In the beautiful setting of the Sanctuary of First-Plymouth, swathed in candlelight at the dusk of day, the rhythm and meditative qualities of prayer and music, the fellowship and company of our fellow believers, we seek peace within, with God and with one’s neighbor.

We invite you to come together in the presence of God at First-Plymouth Church the first Sunday of each month. This service of reverence, dignity and prayer begins at 7:00 p.m.