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breezy
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There will be a taize service or prayer on the evening of Good Friday . The bulletin says it will be held around the cross. Does anyone know what this is?
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djrakowski
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Bobby_Jim
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Taize is a place in a France, home to a sort of ecumenical religious order made up of Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox brothers.
Their communal prayer services involve prayer around the cross - usually you will see a crucifixion icon, like the San Damiano crucifix, at the center, and maybe some other icons, e.g. Madonna and child, other icons of Jesus. There is also usually candlelight. Each participant may be asked to hold a candle, and then at some point bring it forward and place it before the cross.
The prayer is sung communally. Most of the songs are short bits of the psalms or Gospels, or hymns in praise of Christ, sung repeatedly for a few minutes at a time, e.g. for Holy Week you might sing “Jesus, remember me, when you come into your kingdom” or “Stay with me, remain here with me, watch and pray” or “We adore you Jesus Christ, and we praise your Holy Name, truly your cross and passion bring us life and healing”. Most of the songs are slow and reverent, with nice four-part harmonies that sound beautiful if you have enough people who know how to sing. Since they are generally from the scriptures, they are very focused on God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. The songs can be sung in different languages, and a lot of them sound very nice in Latin.
Beyond that, there is usually a scripture reading, and a long period for silent reflection, and intercessions, and the Our Father, and a closing hymn.
If done well, it can be very moving. The main problem I’ve encountered is if you don’t get enough people, or don’t have capable musicians and singers, it’s very hard to carry the songs. But overall my experience has been that this can be very nice, and resonates well with Catholic and Orthodox Christians who have a sense of liturgical prayer.
Their communal prayer services involve prayer around the cross - usually you will see a crucifixion icon, like the San Damiano crucifix, at the center, and maybe some other icons, e.g. Madonna and child, other icons of Jesus. There is also usually candlelight. Each participant may be asked to hold a candle, and then at some point bring it forward and place it before the cross.
The prayer is sung communally. Most of the songs are short bits of the psalms or Gospels, or hymns in praise of Christ, sung repeatedly for a few minutes at a time, e.g. for Holy Week you might sing “Jesus, remember me, when you come into your kingdom” or “Stay with me, remain here with me, watch and pray” or “We adore you Jesus Christ, and we praise your Holy Name, truly your cross and passion bring us life and healing”. Most of the songs are slow and reverent, with nice four-part harmonies that sound beautiful if you have enough people who know how to sing. Since they are generally from the scriptures, they are very focused on God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. The songs can be sung in different languages, and a lot of them sound very nice in Latin.
Beyond that, there is usually a scripture reading, and a long period for silent reflection, and intercessions, and the Our Father, and a closing hymn.
If done well, it can be very moving. The main problem I’ve encountered is if you don’t get enough people, or don’t have capable musicians and singers, it’s very hard to carry the songs. But overall my experience has been that this can be very nice, and resonates well with Catholic and Orthodox Christians who have a sense of liturgical prayer.
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breezy
Guest
Thank you for taking the time to answer. It sounds like a good type of service for Good Friday.
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