Love

"Ubi caritas et amor ubi caritas deus ibi est"

A chant familiar to so many of us - where there is love and charity, God is there. Today was filled with so many moments that are filled with emotion. Our trip to Taize showed us love and charity, showed us God with this Chant we've said so many times. Love was seen with the many young people filled with passion and singing voices. Charity was seen with the brothers who work so hard to give this experience to others. And for me which was such a highlite were the children from all ages who were there with their parents. They had such a desire and so much joy, it brought tears to my eyes when this French boy I was making silly faces at came to me at the end of mass and hugged me. In a world where it sometimes feels so hard to feel loved - Taize gives you that love.

Day 2 In Review (Wow That Rhymed!)

Time is moving along here in Southern France! Our day was packed with visits to a few very important local sites. A lot of history and spirituality was shared with our group today. Also a lot of napping on the bus to and from each spot! Enjoy a few pictures from Day 2!

Our day began with mass at Taize. Songbooks with chants in Latin (translated in all languages) were used to follow along with the liturgy. While our group spent only a few hours there, this mass was the end point of a weeklong community experience for 3,500 pilgrims. Most were young adults, and as many as 6,000 can be found passing through on a given week.

Our group spent a half hour in a Q&A session with a volunteer from Taize. There are various projects that occur during the week. Prayer is held three times a day at the community. The cost per day to stay at Taize is extremely low, and donations are not accepted by the Brothers there. They create pottery, art, and write books that are sold at a store on the property.

Taize grew from being situated within the chapel (background above) to what it is today. Here, Br. Dan gives us the history of the original chapel and shows our group the burial site of the founder, Br. Roger.

The resting place of Br. Roger, founder of Taize.

More history as we visited the Cluny Abbey, a 10-12th century Benedictine monastery in Cluny, France.

It used to be the largest church building in the world before it was ransacked during the troublesome period of the French Revolution. Much of it was destroyed.

Long halls and grand archways are normal in what is left of this amazing structure. We learned that the strict order of monastic life brought stability to this region, when other stability did not exist.

A view outside from the second level of a chapel building.

Our next site was Ars where the shrine of St. John Vianney is located.  

This is the resting place of St. John Vianney. His face is covered with a mask of wax. He is remembered for his strong influence in the region, which is still felt today.