Opening paths of friendship and communion

A warm welcome to all of you who have come to spend this week with us in Taizé! Many of you come from Germany, but among us are also groups coming from Austria, Croatia, France, the Netherlands, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and other countries as well.

But I would especially like to express my joy for the presence of young Muslim believers together with three imams and also young Christians with priests and pastors who are taking part in our Muslim-Christian friendship meeting during these days. Welcome to all of you!

At a time when polarisation in our societies seems to be increasing and it is so easy to fall into stereotyped visions which lead us into an “us” and “them” mentality, is it not important for believers to meet and listen to each other, to speak and share together?

The Spirit of God moves in mysterious ways and we cannot limit the activity of the Spirit. God’s ways are not always our ways and God’s thoughts are not always our thoughts. We have to let ourselves be surprised by God and by each other.

When I met briefly with the participants in the Muslim-Christian friendship meeting at the start of the week, I quoted some words said by Pope Francis, of blessed memory, who did so much to open paths of friendship and communion between believers of all faiths. I would like to share those words now with you all:

“The world, looking to us believers, exhorts us to cooperate amongst ourselves and with the men and women of good will who profess no religion, asking us for effective responses regarding numerous issues: peace, hunger, the poverty that afflicts millions of people, the environmental crisis, violence, especially that committed in the name of religion, corruption, moral decay, the crisis of the family, of the economy, of finance, and especially of hope.

 

We believers have no recipe for these problems, but we have one great resource: prayer. We believers pray. We must pray. Prayer is our treasure, from which we draw according to our respective traditions, to request the gifts that humanity longs for.

 

(….) May our prayer — each one according to his or her own tradition — adhere fully to the will of God, who wants all men and women to recognize they are brothers and sisters and live as such, forming the great human family in the harmony of diversity.” [1]

During these days, we have shared together and prayed. Let us continue to draw strength from that treasure which is prayer. Could I ask you to pray for three things:

• - Let us ask for peace in our families, neighbourhoods and in our world where war wreaks havoc.
• - Let us ask for greater understanding between us through simple acts of solidarity and sharing.
• - Let us ask for ways of alleviating together suffering in all its forms in our human family and in God’s beautiful creation.

In that way God who is merciful and who loves each person without exception will renew our hope. But we also have a choice to make: to refuse to resign ourselves to situations of distress so that hope can take shape within us.

This is the opposite of waiting passively, it involves a struggle, but there is no other way. Even our very longing for hope can lead us across the threshold from what is humanly possible to what is possible for God.

With us this evening is Reem. Her family is from Gaza. I have asked her to share some words about the situation there.

My name is Reem. I was born in Gaza. My family and I lived in Khan Younis, the only Christian family in the heart of a city with over 300,000 inhabitants at the time. In 1998, José and I got married at the Holy Family Church in Gaza. In 2001, we came to live in France.

 

On Sunday evening, when I arrived in Taizé, I was deeply moved by the presence of Muslims. I saw a glimpse of an open humanity, coming together with their differences, despite a divided world. It reminded me of the beautiful moments of fraternity I experienced in Gaza with my Muslim friends and neighbours in daily life : at work, during celebrations, and even in the most difficult times. It was so natural that we didn’t wake up every morning thinking, “Today, I’m going to live in fraternity with Muslims.”

 

This is not just a memory. It is a treasure from my life in Gaza, where my whole family still lives. Part of them have taken refuge since October 8, 2023, in the Holy Family Church. Their lives are threatened every day by the massacres caused by the Israeli army. Today, our church was bombed. Three people were killed and members of my family were injured.

 

When I am worried for them, it is they who give me strength and remind me to put my trust in God, because they surrender themselves to their faith. They live each moment with God.

 

Despite this senseless war, I have received expressions of fraternal and friendly support. I have rediscovered that even in darkness, there is light. Despite cruelty, there is humanity. And when there seems to be nothing left, there is still great generosity and solidarity.

Tomorrow evening, I would like to invite you all the come at 8pm to the church as we make our weekly prayer for peace in our troubled world. We pray simply in silence because it is so difficult to find the words to express what we feel faced with these situations.

As we remain in silence, we entrust those who are suffering to God. We remember the Middle East, Ukraine, Sudan, Nicaragua and other places as well. Perhaps intuitions rise in our hearts as to how we might be able to help each in our own way in the midst of all this distress. Does not our desire for peace already open a path within us?

At the end of this year, our European meeting of young adults will take place in Paris and the surrounding Île-de-France region [https://www.taize.fr/en_rubrique3947.html], from 28 December until 1 January. If you are aged 18-35, you are most welcome to come and take part. We are invited very warmly by Archbishop Laurent Ulrich and the bishops of the province as well as by Protestant and Orthodox Church leaders to prepare this gathering with the local church communities.

In September, a group of Taizé brothers, sisters of St Andrew , close associates and volunteers will set off to form a preparation team for this meeting. I think we are still looking for some young adults who can help with this, so if you have aged 18-35, have time from late August until early January and would like to be part of this international team, let us know!