Prayers
Common prayers are the center of monastic life, and through them you can bring the spirituality of Taizé to your home. Even two or three participants are enough to hold a prayer. The form of the prayer does not require the participant of the prayer to have narrower theological knowledge or knowledge of liturgical elements. The plan of prayer is simple and ecumenical, and thus does not create liturgical or theological differences in mainstream churches. Prayers consist of meditative chanting of a prayer with repeated verses, Bible reading, and silence. Short songs express religious truths, which are easily remembered when repeated over and over again and soon begin to work in the human nature. An important feature of singing is to sing them through yourself, not to others. The texts of Taizé songs are mainly parts of psalms or biblical texts and simple short prayers. Taizé songs and biblical texts belong to the following silence and give space for God to be close and speak to us.
Good instructions for organizing Taizé prayers and the MONTHLY SCHEDULE of prayers covering all of Estonia can be found on the Estonian Taizé Friends website laudate.ee. You will also find references and links on the page that are helpful for musicians and singers.
Common prayer with Taizé songs
The prayer may begin with one or two meditative songs.
The psalm can be read by one or two people or sung by soloists. After each verse, everyone sings “Hallelujah” together (Songs No. 68-79 from the Taizé Songbook). Instead of reading the entire psalm, it is better to select only a few central verses from the psalm. For example, Psalms 34, 42, 62, 73, 84, 98, 100, 103, 121, 139 are suitable.
Before the reading of the Gospel, the so-called song of light is sung to praise the light of Christ (e.g. “We in the darkness”, “Enlighten our hearts”, “Our darkness is not dark”). The song of light enables children also to take part, who come forward during the singing, holding thin burning wax candles in their hands to light the oil lamp or the candles placed on the corresponding base. It can also be done so that the children light a candle and bring the Gospel reader to the front. This symbol reminds us that even if we are surrounded by darkness in our personal lives or in the lives of all humanity, the light of Christ’s love is the one that never goes out.
The selected biblical texts are short, easy to understand and carry the meaning of the Gospel, the sayings of Jesus or the work of redemption. The biblical text should be understandable without the slightest explanation.
A meditative song following the biblical text introduces silence.
It is not forcing the interior to be quiet in an orderly manner, using some method and creating a certain kind of inner emptiness, but rather we give Christ permission to pray within us with childlike trust. And so one day we may discover that Christ Himself dwells in the recesses of our being. One long silence (five to ten minutes) works better than many short moments of silence. If necessary, soft background music can help drown out outside noise.
The silence is followed by pre-prepared intercessory and/or thanksgiving prayers. One or two people take turns reading the prayers, and after each individual prayer, either “Kyrie eleison” (Taizé song no. 80-91) is sung, “Gospodi pomiluj” (No. 103-108) or some formula used in the local congregation is recited (e.g. “Lord, hear us”). After previously prepared prayers of intercession and/or thanksgiving, time could be given for spontaneous personal prayers. They should be short and directed to God – this is not the right moment give speeches to express personal opinions or thoughts to others. Any spontaneous intercession may also be followed by a “Kyrie” or “Gospodi”. The part of intercessory prayers ends with the prayer of the Our Father, after which it is appropriate to say, for example, a short concluding prayer.
The prayer ends with one or more meditative chants.
Tallinn prayer calendar
- 12:30 – 13:00, 23. Dec 2024 – Keskpäeva palvus (Kiili 9, Tallinn)
- 12:30 – 13:00, 24. Dec 2024 – Keskpäeva palvus (Kiili 9, Tallinn)
- 12:30 – 13:00, 25. Dec 2024 – Keskpäeva palvus (Kiili 9, Tallinn)
- 08:15 – 09:00, 26. Dec 2024 – Taizé prayer (Kaarli)
- 13:00 – 13:45, 26. Dec 2024 – Taizé prayer (Kaarli)
