An evening of prayer, contemplation, and connection in the Taizé tradition
October 2025 – Drew Theological School was once again honored to welcome Brother Emile of the Taizé Community in France for an evening of reflection and prayer centered on the Taizé ethos of peacebuilding, communal living, and worship.
The Taizé Community, a monastic community in the Burgundy region of France, comprises approximately eighty brothers from diverse Christian traditions and geographical backgrounds. Each year, tens of thousands of young adults travel to Taizé to share in prayer, silence, and fellowship.
Brother Emile, who joined the Taizé Community in 1976, was welcomed by Theological School Dean Edwin David Aponte, and previous Taizé visitor E. Stanley Jones Chair of Evangelism Daniel Shin.
Brother Emile led the hybrid audience in a service of prayer and worship in the Taizé tradition, filled with song, chants, scripture, and participation from the Drew community.
Brother Emile spoke about faith as a lifelong practice of trust that creates stability and hope. He reflected on the young people he encounters each summer at Taizé who share feelings of anxiety and uncertainty about the world. “I am struck by how often people want to speak about their anxiety, their fear, their difficulty in finding hope,” he said. “We go beyond anxiety not by some type of intellectual activity, but by turning to the place where we draw inner strength, inspiration, and vision. That place, in the biblical idiom, is called the heart, the place where God comes to dwell.”
Drawing on experience from past Taizé visitors and scholars, Brother Emile emphasized the power of learning and praying in community. “We’re trying to help each other go forward—find stability that will help us to remain standing in the midst of hardship and difficult times—to remain as joyful as possible,” he said. “And we do that by praying together, by sharing together, by doing community together. These are all things God gives us to help us find that stability again and again. In these particular times where anxiety is often present, we can help each other learn and what it means to trust.”
Jeff Markay C’88, T’95, pastor of Chatham United Methodist Church in Chatham, New Jersey, announced a new spring semester course at Drew, Pilgrimage to Taizé. The course, led by Markay and Shin, will include online course preparation followed by a visit to the World Council of Churches in Geneva and a week-long pilgrimage to Taizé.
“It is astounding to watch how young people heard a call from God to ministry of some kind,” said Markay, reflecting on previous pilgrimages to Taizé. “For many, it was the first time they spent time in silence, singing the chants, and listening deeply. I commend this new opportunity that the spirit and Drew University have opened to us.”
