A prayer experience that unites the melting pot of denominations on campus is what Taize prayers at Cabrini aims to do. Author of the book Acts of Faith, Eboo Patel, challeneged Cabrini to reevaluate the adequacy the interfaith community in a presentation last year.
In layman’s terms, a Taize community represents a diverse following of Christian churches, whose followers still reflect mutually exclusive identities within the prayer experience.
Patel believes the inclusion of religions within communities is the key to success in creating strong bonds across denominations, not only on a college campus but on a greater global scale. Promoting interfaith events on campus students are to build understanding.
“People like the word [interfaith] because its not Catholic,” Father Carl Janicki, director of campus ministry said.
A prayer such as taize allows for students within a Catholic community to find their own personal spiritual identity, while growing within a Catholic community.
“The taize community is intentionally interfaith and ecumenical,” Father Janicki said. “So they live by gospel values.”
Campus ministry whose offices are located on the third floor of Founders Hall, also plan to implement this similar ideology with student outreach at Cabrini. Father Janicki finds that the stronger our identity as a Catholic college becomes, the more inept we can be with interacting with outside religious communities. Whether those communities consist of Muslims, Jews or those of agnostic backgrounds.
A taize prayer experience encompasses the religious unity that Patel advocates for. A diversity of religious doctrines that are all united on communal worship still falls under the Catholic principles of the college.
The taize experience is different than anything experienced traditionally within a Catholic chapel service.
Picture walking into a dimly lit room, accompanied by a softly playing piano with an overwhelming spiritual connection that is personal to you based on your own beliefs.
A tazie prayer is a type of prayer within a community that involves repetitive song and a comfortable environment that allows participants to have a moment of solace and personal reflection.
By definition the word Taize comes from a French word “Taisez-vous which means “quite yourself.”
The Daylesford Abbey Monastery in Paoli is a local facility that offers a taize prayer experience for guests. Their online page invites those with busy schedules to take time for a”simple and beautiful way to experience Christ.”
Recently, members of Cabrini’s campus ministry attended a prayer service at the monastery. Attendants like junior, social work and religious studies major Madeline Coutu thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere at the prayer. She found a strong connection to the less conventional means of prayer.
“It really calms and brings you into the moment,” Coutu said.
The atmosphere is perfect for students who are already pressured by their academic schedules. It allows a smaller informal gathering to spark spiritual awareness while introducing the importance of prayer in your own personal routine.
Madeline also enjoys the set-up of the Tazie prayer.
“For me it helps. It is repetitive so I don’t have to worry about changing prayers or anything,” Coutu said. “It really helped me focus on the moment.”
It opens your heart to a deeper spiritual experience that can heal your mind and heart to continue school each day.
In taize no one faith holds a greater stock in the spiritual experience. This type of experience will soon be coming to campus for all students to attend.
In planning for a taize prayer at Cabrini, there are many opportunities to build bridges across religious ignorance.
“It is just a good way to deepen their prayer life,” Coutu said. “I think the more various types of prayer you can have the less bored you’ll be with your personal prayer life.”
This is an opportunity for those who are currently invested in a prayer life to deepen their connection and inspire those who are not to ignite a willingness to have a moment of self reflection in their day.
