Taize Prayer

UVic Interfaith Chapel

Prayer in the Style of Taizé

Simple, welcoming, relaxed, ecumenical and meditative, this style of prayer is engaging thousands of young people all over the world with a simple focus on the presence of Christ, the beauty of music and the simplicity of silence.

At UVic, we meet at the Interfaith Chapel the last Friday of the month, 4:30 – 5:30pm.

Simply come by, sit down, and let the music, the singing and the silence draw you deeply into inner peace, for healing and inspiration.

For more information, email Chaplain Henri Lock at hlock@uvic.ca.

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What is Prayer in the Style of Taizé?

Taizé is a style of meditative singing and centering prayer in the Christian tradition that has its origin in the monastic community of Taizé in central France. 

Over the years, the Taizé community in France has drawn young people from all over the world for profound spiritual experience. Today, small groups gather all over the world to participate in the Taize style of meditative singing in which one short song, usually no more than four or five phrases, is sung over and over, with rich harmonies. 

The songs are sung in a variety of languages, including English, Latin, French, and Spanish. In repeating these phrases in song, the words guide the singer into an inner spaciousness for communion with the Sacred. The prayer sessions are set up so that there is no overt song leader; the leader who initiates the singing is a part of the congregation. Taizé singing emphasizes simple phrases, usually lines from Psalms or other pieces of Scripture, repeated or sung in canon. The repetition aims at supporting meditation and prayer. 

For the late Brother Roger, who originated this kind of spiritual expression, “singing is one of the most important forms of prayer. A few words sung over and over again reinforce the meditative quality of the prayer. They express a basic spiritual reality that can quickly be grasped by the intellect, and that gradually penetrates the heart and the whole being.”

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Faith Practice

Taize Prayer

UVic Interfaith Chapel