Taize Community

Taize was the third and final community on our sabbatical agenda. This was the community we booked in first and because I've sung their songs a lot in our community, definitely expected a great experience (whereas the other communities we knew very little about).

Taize is another community with more than 50 years history (all three communities we visited). And over that 50 years it has attracted a massive youth following, mainly by accident it seems! Brother Roger (a protestant) originally came to the town of Taize in Burgundy after WWII as he wanted to help rebuild France. Through a long series of events he helped to found an ecumenical monastic order which accidentally got the attention of youth from all over Europe (and now the world). So, although the monastic life is the primary focus of the brothers, youth come a close second!

With the youth a high priority (sometimes there are 5000 young people visiting in a week...!) its not surprising that they're the focus! That means that those of us who are over 30 are in a different area and come together with the young people for prayers. Lots of people try to get to Taize before they are 30 to experience the youth version but I was pretty happy with the smaller adult group.

With the focus on youth it also means there's a little more structure and rules than I was used to but each of the rules has been created to help make things run smoothly or to help people feel accepted and included. In fact, much of the way of life at Taize has been formed around that philosophy. We had a chance to meet one of the brothers and had all kinds of questions for him. We found that most of the peculiar things we'd seen had a particular reason for being that way and usually related to making the place feel comfortable for everyone. eg. The orthodox "onion rings" on top of the church were first added when the Iron Curtain fell and many young people started coming from Eastern Europe.

The standard rhythm of the day is:
- 8.15am prayers in the church (prayers are sung, and these are the songs that have become popular around the world)
- 9am breakfast
- 10am Bible teaching from a brother
- 12.20pm Prayers
- 1pm lunch
- 2pm optional singing practise
- 5pm tea with youth
- 7pm evening meal
- 8.30pm evening prayer

In amongst that was a time chosen by our small group to meet up and discuss the 10am session and a time for chores with the group. Our chore was breakfast prep which meant getting up a bit earlier.

Once I got over the initial novelty of finally making it to Taize (it was one of the main places I wanted to get to on this trip, there was only 500 people at the start and Sarah and I had our own cabin which we weren't expecting) I have to admit I struggled for the first few days. I always knew there'd be some culture shock seeing as we'd just spent four nights in Paris! But it was more than that... there were way less familiar songs that were in various foreign languages and the one song practise I did with four part harmonies made it seem even more complex! Then there was the various rules (like the limited times the shop and nature area were open), the feeling that I hadn't had enough solo time on the trip (this was about week 6 and we're great travel buddies but I needed some time in my head) and a conversation with a climate sceptic which grated on me no end!(I managed to keep my thoughts to myself). Needing to be in certain places at certain times also drained me a bit.

But the good news won out. As I became more familiar with the routine and the songs, instead of draining me they gave me new life (this was actually a surprise, in hindsight I should've known it'd take at least a few days!). I got some good sleep, some solo time, and I began to enjoy the rhythms. I didn't have to worry about trains and planes, food and currency, languages, cultures and how to flush the toilet! I also became aware that, although singing these songs in a large group at the source was really good, it still didn't feel as comfy as singing them with my own people. It amused me quite a bit that I had to fly to the other side of the world to figure that out!

The standard time to stay at Taize (and the maximum time) is 7 days and we were fortunate that we were able to stay that length. From Sunday to Sunday. Its just the right amount of time to have gained some familiarity and comfort with life at Taize without getting frustrated at some of the limitations of camping with so many people!

English L'Abri

We stayed at English L'Abri for 4 nights and then 3 nights, separated by travel to London, Birmingham, Swannage and Portsmouth.

We met a couple of pastors who were staying their for an extended length to do some sabbatical time but the majority of the guests/students were there to spend time searching. Searching for answers to life's hard questions, the original intention behind the story of L'Abri's establishment in Switzerland.

The students all live in a very large manor house that was given to L'abri in the 70s. There's a daily and weekly rhythm and structure to the community life. Most days there are household chores for the students in the morning or afternoon. Lunch is usually a discussion around a question or topic anyone can suggest. Dinner is usually at one of the workers houses. Apart from the Manor house there are other surrounding accommodation as well so that all the workers live very close. There are often lectures twice a week by the workers on topics that stimulate thought and discussion.

I was surprised that community life itself wasn't really the focus here. That is, the "workers," ten people who support the students learning and discovery, orient their lives around that focus, and much less around their own life together. The founders of L'Abri in the 50s, Francis and Edith Schaeffer, didn't want to setup rhythms and routines that could sustain the community without faith. So the workers don't tend to have work outside of the community and don't advertise for funding or workers.

Ideally we would've spent more time here, a refrain repeated on numerous occasions on this trip! Two weeks would've been great, if not more, then we would've had more time for study and getting to know people. More time to get in to the rhythms. Oh well, we enjoyed and had some stimulating thoughts and reflections from this time and would recommend it to others.