"Blessed are the peacemakers…"
Next week is the anniversary of the death of Brother Roger of Taizé in France. If you have never heard of this man then you have really been missing out…
Although he lived much of his life in France, Brother Roger was originally from Switzerland, the son of a Protestant Pastor. In 1940, after studying Reformed Theology in Strasbourg and Lausanne, Roger felt God calling him to go to Taizé, a small town south of Paris. For two years he lived a life of prayer and helped those fleeing from the Germans into unoccupied France.
Founding of a community
After being forced to leave Taizé, Roger returned in 1944 where he began to found a group of men living together in community. This eventually flowered into the ecumenical monastic community which forever after would be associated with the name “Taizé”. The focus of this community is prayer, silence, peace, social justice and reconciliation. Brother Roger wrote many books on these topics.
Monks in the “Church of Reconciliation”