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FIRST FRIDAYS AT 8:00 p.m.
Taizé worship
The Taizé worship at First Congregational Church is normally offered on the first Friday of each month at 8 pm in the Sanctuary.
The Taizé form of worship grew out of songs and prayers composed by a small group of Catholic and Protestant brothers who settled in 1940 in the small village of Taizé, in the Burgundy region of France, during the second World War.
>>View video background on Taizé
The Church at Taizé initially became a sanctuary for victims of the war, but evolved over the next several decades into a center for singing and prayer of a very distinctive style. Today, the church at Taizé has been enlarged several times, and the community welcomes over 100,000 people each year, many of them young adults, to its services. It has also become a thoroughly ecumenical community.
The distinctive style of the Taizé worship centers around the idea of songs as prayers. It has been said that “he or she who sings, prays twice”. The songs, many composed at Taizé, often using the words of the Psalms, are simple, repetitive, tuneful, and easily learned. Even folks who do not consider themselves singers find them inspiring! During the service, the lighting is subdued. Candles are used to illuminate the cross, and it is an opportunity to reflect on and renew one’s relationship with God.
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