Episcopal Bishops Attend Funeral for Brother Roger of Taizé
Anglican Communion News Service. August 23, 2005 [082305-1-A]
Jim Rosenthal
[Anglican Communion News Service] They came from many nations, all denominations and all ages, to pay tribute to the founder of Taizé, as Cardinal Walter Kaspar of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity at the Vatican, presided at the funeral Eucharist August 23 for Brother Roger, murdered during a prayer service on August 16.
At the funeral Anglican Bishop Nigel McCulloch of Manchester, England, read a passage from Isaiah with Reformed and Lutheran leaders reading the other lesson. Bishop Geralyn Wolf of Rhode Island was present as was the Bishop Anthony Priddis of Hereford, and Suffragan Bishop Mark Andrus of Alabama.
The haunting prayers and chant so associated with the community at Taizé were sung throughout the liturgy in the Church of Reconciliation that rests in this picturesque part of France. "Nothing can ever come between us and the love of God, the love of God revealed to us in Christ Jesus" was sung as the congregation received Holy Communion.
Following Communion three young children lit the candles of the many Taizé community brothers, and soon the light flooded through the church to all present. Four priests from Taizé stood at the coffin and sprinkled holy water followed by the bishops and clergy of the Orthodox churches chanting their traditional commemoration of the dead and blessing the body with incense.
As the thousands present sang "Confitemini Domino," -- give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, alleluia -- four brothers carried the coffin on their shoulders from before the holy table and, with the entire Community, processed through the candlelit church. Tears, waves and young people reaching out to try to touch the coffin greeted the brothers as the chant continued.
As the formal liturgy came to a close, and in the spirit of Brother Roger himself, the people resumed their places and continued in prayer and song -- the essence of the life at Taizé. They sang: My soul rests in God alone: from him comes my salvation.
Since the news of the murder of Brother Roger, tributes have come in from church and civic leaders and others touched by the ministry of Taizé. Canon Kenneth Kearon, secretary general of the Anglican Communion, said, "The news of the death of Brother Roger has saddened Anglicans around the world, and we are especially shocked by the violent manner of his death, which was in stark contrast to his lifelong ministry of peace and reconciliation. The Taizé community which he founded, whose witness to ecumenism and reconciliation especially among young people will be his lasting memorial, has influenced Christian worship and spirituality worldwide, and it is to that Community that I extend our prayers and heartfelt sympathy at this time."
On hearing the news of Brother Roger's murder, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, said, "This is an indescribable shock. Brother Roger was one of the best loved Christian leaders of our time, and hundreds of thousands will be feeling his loss very personally, and remembering him in prayer and gratitude. But the shock and trauma for the community at Taizé will be heavy -- and it will be for all the young people who witnessed this event. All of them are in our prayers."
Bishop Pierre Whalon of the Convocation of American Churches in Europe said in a letter to the Taize Community: "Brother Roger did so much to show the world the way that leads to Jesus, a way that has come to its end for him but in which we continue to walk. As a teenager, I met him in Taizé for the first time. Meeting this man in your community greatly influenced me to decide to follow Christ, and finally, to accept to be in service to his Church. I know it is the same for thousands and thousands of people who had a similar introduction to the Lord, reinforced by the ecumenical witness of your community that offers the world a vision of the Church without divisions."
The Taizé website now states the following: "During the evening prayer on Tuesday 16 August, in the midst of the crowd surrounding the Community in the Church of Reconciliation, a woman - probably mentally disturbed -- struck Brother Roger violently with knife blows. He died a few moments later.
In its sorrow, the Taizé Community thanks all those who are supporting it by their affection and their prayer."
The community also announced: "Eight years ago, Brother Roger designated Brother Alois to succeed him, as the person in charge of the community. Brother Alois has entered straightaway into his ministry as servant of communion at the heart of the community."
The Taizé Community is made up of more than a hundred brothers, Roman Catholics and from various Protestant backgrounds, coming from more than twenty-five nations. The community's existence is in itself "a sign of reconciliation between divided Christians and divided nations."
The vision for Taizé began in 1940, when at the age of 25, Brother Roger left Switzerland in order to live in France, the country of his mother. For several years he had borne within him a calling to begin a community where reconciliation between Christians would be lived out in daily life. A community where "kindness of heart would be a matter of practical experience, and where love would be at the heart of all things." He wanted this community to be present in the midst of the suffering of the time, and thus it was that he made his home in the small village of Taizé, in Burgundy, just a few miles from the demarcation line which cut France in two during the first years of the war. There he was able to hide refugees (Jews in particular), who had fled the occupied zone in the knowledge that they could find refuge in his house.
After the war he was joined by others, and on Easter Day, 1949, the first brothers of the community made their commitment to a life in celibacy, to community of possessions, and to simplicity of life.
In many parts of the world Brother Roger will be remembered at services and prayer gatherings.
You may wish to email the Brothers at this time of their great loss at condolences@taize.fr.
May he rest in peace and rise in glory.
(This report is possible due to the web streaming of the funeral on the internet)
Bishop Nigel McCulloch of Manchester represented the Archbishop of Canterbury
A Letter from Archbishop Rowan Williams to the Taizé Community:
Dear brothers and friends,
Like all of you, I am still coming to terms with the terrible tragedy of last week. But today is an occasion not only for mourning but for celebrating the extraordinary achievement of our dear Brother Roger.
Very few people in a generation manage to change the whole climate of a religious culture; but Brother Roger did just this. He changed the terms of reference for ecumenism by the challenge to Christians of diverse loyalties to live the monastic life together; he changed the image of Christianity itself for countless young people; he changed the churches' perception of the absolute priority of reconciliation, first in post-war Europe, then throughout the globe. And what is perhaps most important is that he did this without any position of hierarchical authority, without any position within the politics and power-struggles of the institution. His authority was authentically monastic - the authority of a father and elder brother in God who drew his vision from patient waiting on the Lord in prayer, and from the work and study and discernment of a committed Community. His life and witness present the true Gospel challenge to all our Christian institutions, the challenge to become really credible through our willingness to live and listen in humility, to know where our true power lies.
We thank God today for a life that questions our institutional complacency, not in the name of fashion or ease or naive radicalism, but simply in the name of the Gospel of Jesus and the ministry of reconciliation. Brother Roger's life will be a lasting gift and challenge, and we pray that the community of Taizé, so much loved and valued in all the Christian world and beyond, will go on offering us this same gift in the years ahead. Please be assured of the abiding love and prayers of your friends in the Anglican Church, and especially your brother in faith.
+Rowan Cantuar