Taize'

[All4Christ]

I've recently studied Taize' and listened to the music...It is beautiful, and seems to be a great way to worship and revere God. Do any of you know if there was any similar music and/or gatherings such as Taize' within the Orthodox Church?

 

[Xpycoctomos]

I've been to Taize before. I don't know how I feel aobut it. I'm pretty sure it's Catholic in roots. I don't know about anything we have that is like it.

We have vespers on Saturdays, akathists at different times. If you go to monasteries you can pray with the monks/nuns at the Hours (Matins, Vespers etc). But Taize is a newer development and only scares me a bit because it has bit of a New Age Feel to it.

 

[Marjorie]

There are Orthodox at Taize... so that is in itself the Orthodox Taize...

In IC XC,
Marjorie

 

[All4Christ]

I've never been to an actual Taize' gathering, persay...I've heard the music and looked at the website. To me, coming from a protestant background and only beginning to explore Orthodoxy, I am relatively at a loss with knowing the differences etc. For me, it is a complete opposite of the Protestant services, something that in and of itself is appealing to me.

 

[Xpycoctomos]

All4 Christ... any questions you have, we love answering them. Post away! But the best thing you can do is go to some services on a regular basis. Russian, OCA and any other Slavic-originated parishes usually have Vespers on Saturday nights (6ish o'clock, call) and is a good time to go because they are shorter, give you a flavor of Orthodox spirituality and is often more conducive to talking with the priest afterwards (often they do confession afterward... so, after that) than on a Sunday morning when more people are there and everyone wants to talk to him.

Do you want any good books? Make a new thread with any questions about the Faith, Liturgy, specific beliefs etc you have and you will get more answers than you probably ever will want! lol

By the way, you may have seen a thread where we have commented that it is best to stay away from asking about how we view other denominations... and this is a good point. But it is fine (and often very useful) if you wish to compare Orthodoxy with a denomination you are familiar with so as to gain deeper understanding.

John

 

[choirfiend]

Who the heck started Taize? I completely dont understand what these are about, who they're run by, what their objectives are....


Basically, from looking over their website and knowing that the local Presby church has this meeting sometimes, I would say that these meetings are trying to recapture what so many people are finding lacking in their regular church experience. But, everything these meetings include are found in every single service in an Orthodox church, plus our private worship at home....why would anyone look anywhere else?

 

[Xpycoctomos]

It was started in a French town called Taizé, I believe. I THINK the founders were Catholic but the thing is very ecumenical. I have my reservations about it although I don't know enough to criticize it and I have a very devout Catholic Friend from France who attends. Perhaps our ami français Emmanuel here could tell us more.

I figure the same as Choirfeind, it's not to be arrogant, but the OC is complete in itself (when done correctly). Anything I am doing to better myself spiritually I prefer to be done under the guidance of the Tradition of the Holy Church.

 

[Melethiel]

I've noticed that a couple of the hymns used in church have the author as Taize, but that's pretty much all I know of them. I didn't know there was such a thing as a Taize service.

 

[Emmanuel-A]

I've never been to taizé, but I know it is an "oecumenic" religious community founded by a protestant guy after WWII. But since France is mostly RC, most of the people there are RC.
The website will probably tell you more than I can :
http://www.taize.fr/en

A few RC friends of mine who have been there told me the atmosphere was great and that you met a lot of people of different countries.

Most of the orthodox I know are cautious about this community, given its non-dogmatic, oecumenist character. But I know there are some who attend (I personnaly wouldn't).

 

[choirfiend]

They seem to just take music/prayers/stuff from liturgical traditions and have a "meditation" service that includes them.

The "Alleluia" they use is out of Orthodox practice. Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Slava tebe Bozshe! (Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Glory to Thee O God!) is out of our Vespers service.

I mean, these prayers and this music, the candles, and icons, and the silence are nice....That's why they're in Orthodoxy, because they are helpful to our salvation. But I'd rather go to the original than go to a copy-pasted xerox of the original....There's less fuzziness there

 

[Monica child of God 1]

Its true. Before coming to Orthodoxy, I rushed around looking for all sorts of disciplines and traditions to add to my practice of Christianity. But now as a part of the Church, everything is there in its fullness.

M.