Sheila Maxey pays an inspiring visit to Taizé

The Taizé Community in France is really for the young. I had not been for ten years, but my daughter, Ruth, wangled us in, out of season, this January. Entering the barn of a church for evening prayers at the end of a long day of travel – Eurostar to Paris, TGV and then rural bus – my eyes and ears were overwhelmed by beauty. Fifty brothers were singing their faith and at the east end was a huge translucent screen, made up of coloured and clear squares, and fitted with a multitude of candles. There were no chairs, only prayer stools or the floor so I struggled down on to a stool. It seemed to me, in my exhaustion, that these flickering lights were all the lovely people who had gone before me, especially Kees, and I was left behind, old and desolate. I got cramp and Ruth had to help me, in tears, to my feet…

Sheila Maxey is a member of Brentwood United Reformed Church, Essex

___

This is an extract from an article published in the March 2023 edition of Reform

Subscribe to Reform