I
attended a Taize service last night at St. Mary's Catholic church. If you are
not familiar with Taize, it is described as:
“… a
meditative form of common prayer. Gathered in the presence of Christ we
sing uncomplicated, repetitive songs, uncluttered by too many words, allowing
the mystery of God to become tangible throughout the beauty of
simplicity. A few words sung over and over again reinforce the meditative
quality of prayer. They express a basic reality of faith that can quickly
be grasped by the intellect and that gradually penetrates the whole being.”
Here is just one example:
I
don’t think my friends would characterize me as a person who is short of
words. However when it comes time to
speak to God, I become a woman of very few words, and the words that do come do
not sound like something I would say.
I’ve been exposed to people who pray in tongues, and I ‘get’ that
charism, but I haven’t embraced it for myself yet, although I think this gift
would ease my muteness.
But
Taize! To sing the prayers – chant-like
– the ostinato underlying the beautiful psalms It is such a release of spirit to be able to
sing words of praise, longing and worship.
With
that spiritual foundation laid, it is time to prepare for Lent. ..
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