Young Adults’ Trip to Taizé, Summer 2025
A group of young adults from five of the seven dioceses of the Scottish Episcopal Church is spending a week with the Taizé community in Burgundy, France.
The trip was organised and is being led by the Diocese of Edinburgh. The pilgrims set off from Edinburgh Waverley at 3pm on Saturday 28 June, returning on Monday 7 July.
For the duration of the trip, James Gardner of the Diocese of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane posted about the Taizé experience on the Diocese of Edinburgh’s social media channels and wrote a blog. We have gathered all of James’s social media posts and blog entries below.
Social media post: 28 June
This afternoon a group of Scottish Episcopal Church Young Adults have gathered from all over the Province at Edinburgh Waverley with the following Dioceses represented.
The Diocese of Edinburgh, United Diocese of Moray, Ross and Caithness, Diocese of Glasgow and Galloway, Diocese of St. Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane, and the Episcopal Diocese of Brechin and are now travelling to spend a week together in Taizé.
Over the next week, the group will be sharing posts on the Diocese of Edinburgh Social Media channels sharing their experience in Taizé. Our prayers go with them on their journey.
Social media post: 29 June
27 hours after setting off from Edinburgh Waverley the Young Adults Taizé Group have safely arrived, and have now settling in to their accommodation in Taizé after an evening meal and Evening Prayer.
Work activities for the week have been chosen, or given to the group members, work activities given include language school support, and Social Media.
Blog: Taizé Day 1 (Sunday 29 June)
Following most of Sunday spent travelling we arrived in Taizé early evening. As we got off the bus we were greeted by Martha who has been out here working as a volunteer. Martha then guided us through Taizé to the church.
As for most of us this was our first time, we had an image of what Taizé would be like. However, the reality was quite different. The main site is very open with wooden structures, and large marquee tents and type 1 footpaths.
Our first stop was the church where we were given maps and read together the welcome information and instructions for our week here.
Following the welcome we were then sent to a marquee to get our work jobs for the week.
Two of the group who have language skills were given work supporting the families and children visitors this week, one was nominated as part of the media team, and other jobs included cleaning, food distribution, food preparation, setting up the church for worship. What job you had depended on your timetable for the week and whether you had Bible study or work in the morning or afternoon.
Once we had all the jobs and timetables available, we were able to sort our accommodation. We were all looking forward to being able to shower and change after the journey and leave bags. Our group was split into three rooms with up to 6 in a room: male, female and non-binary rooms, which had three bunk beds and some storage shelves.
Once we had settled in – some even managed a shower – it was time for us to go to evening meal, which was had outside: a dish of couscous, bread and yoghurt and fruit with a bowl of water to drink. We had been warned that food portions are smaller at Taizé before we arrived but we all enjoyed our evening meal together.
After our meal we headed back to the church for evening prayer. A prayer service with the full community sitting on the floor, with the brothers leading the readings in different languages and Taizé chants again in different languages. Some well known and others unknown. Alleluia 7 was particularly special during the service as it is used at home for the gospel and there was an ordination of our curate Ross that afternoon, so there was a strong link to home felt during evening prayer.
After evening prayer some of us explored the site while others took an early night to recover from the travelling, ready to experience the full day on Monday.
Blog: Taizé Day 2 (Monday 30 June)
Monday was our first full day, and we had been warned that Taizé Monday was a thing to be aware of. Taizé Monday is the day when people feel most disconnected and find the rhythm of the day difficult, due to tiredness from travel and for some the different time zones.
However, the group appeared not to suffer from Taizé Monday as we all got right into the day and the rhythm.
The day started with morning prayer, at 8am, with the bells ringing out over Taizé at 7:30am as a general wake-up call.
Following morning prayer it was time for breakfast. Breakfast isn’t a big meal as it consists of either a choice of sweet tea or hot chocolate and a bread roll with butter and two chocolate sticks.
At 10am half the group start their community work, and others attend Bible study. The Bible study this week is around the theme and aspects of hope. Today’s theme was the courage of hope, with the Bible reading taken from Genesis 17:15–22.
After some practical notices, our sister or brother leading the introduction to the Bible study provided some themes for us to think about: a cross between a lecture and a long (for the SEC) sermon. In our morning session group of around 50–100 young people aged 18–35, two of the group were invited to read today’s passage in English and then another language as each of the day’s readings are available each day. After the introduction we then spilt up into age groups of around 6–9 people to form our sharing groups which we were in until midday prayer.
The Monday sharing questions were around our names, and desires. In the 30+ group one of the things that really struck was how different everyone was in their life journeys – some were working, and knowing what they were doing in life, some were travelling and just going with the flow and seeing where they end up. However, we all had a common experience and this allowed the group to start going deeper into the questions and sharing our own experiences and life journeys.
One of the big takeaways for the whole group when we met back up at mealtime, after midday prayer, was how inclusive and accepting of different genders and sexualities Taizé is – being accepted by everyone even from where countries aren’t as progressive as Scotland and our church. This was highlighted in a different way which will feature in a later blog post.
After lunch some of the group attended song practice in the church to learn the chants used in the community worship and others had free time until afternoon. Then everyone was busy again – the group that did Bible study worked and those who worked in the morning attended Bible study and sharing groups until tea at 5pm. Tea was a drink of ice tea and a chocolate sandwich biscuit, a welcome sugary boost after work and Bible study.
After tea some of us went on a short walk to visit the nearby Roman Catholic Church and had some time for silent prayer. It was also a welcome escape from the heat. Inside the church there was a reflection of one of the windows on the floor which was a good point to focus on in the church.
After our evening meal and evening prayer we then agreed as a group we would attend the Oyak, the social area in the evening, for ice cream, with the option to buy a cup of wine and beer at a low price, and we enjoyed an evening being together as the temperature cooled from mid-30s down to 25c.
Social media post: 1 July
The Young Adults Group in Taizé have so far adapted well to the 36c heat this week. Tomorrow we are expecting it will reach 37c!
Everyone is fully embracing the community way of life in Taizé including having some close encounters with the Taizé wildlife.
Blog: Taizé Day 3 (Tuesday 1 July)
Tuesday started and continued in much the same pattern and rhythm as Monday; one difference was the celebration of the optional Catholic Eucharist at 7:15am. Some of our group did make this service, and reserved Eucharist was given during morning prayer. The practice at Taizé is intinction during communion. Even though this practice is disappearing from our church, a possible thought is that this is in part due to numbers attending. At community worship in the church up to 1000 young people and adults are gathered so there are a lot of communicants to receive, even with the use of multiple stations.
Today’s Bible study theme was on listening to people of hope, and the Bible reading was from Mark 2:1–12.
Small groups met to look at the questions around being carried by others and carrying other people, and what can leave us paralysed and incapable of acting and living fully. Today’s discussions were as deep as they were on Monday on this topic.
This week we also have a US film crew on site, and they have been filming for a documentary on Taizé and therefore have been filming the work tasks. Some of our group who are on cleaning work were approached to possibly be filmed cleaning the toilet blocks.
Clint from our group has a fantastic theological view on the cleaning of toilets ready for the film crew, as they were warned that the crew would ask about how they felt about cleaning toilets.
The point that Clint made to the group, which when we all heard we really liked, was the idea that cleaning toilets is the modern equivalent of foot washing, and that it centres on taking on the lowest and least glamorous tasks for the sake of others.
In the afternoon, as a well as song practice there were other workshops and discussions. One of these discussions was on the Young People’s conference in Paris in December and James attended this to find out information about it before starting work in the media room creating the first social media post on the Taizé social media. The project this week for the team is the daily life of Taizé and each day we will be making and editing a video for social media highlighting the different aspects to life in Taizé.
In the early evening, after some iced tea and ginger cake – as it was 35c this was really welcomed by everyone – there were workshops on offer. One included a practical hands-on workshop led by Caritas Ukraine, a small group who are in Taizé this week from the Donetsk region of Ukraine. We made candles from Ukrainian beeswax in the workshop. While in the workshop making the candles we heard first-hand about their lived experiences of living in a town destroyed by the war and the injuries they received. It was a very powerful workshop, and I was glad to attend even if at the time I wanted a rest out of the heat, which would have also been welcomed. This is a thought to be able to balance the rest of the week, between being busy at workshops and taking some rest when we have available time.
In the evening, once again we met up at Oyak for ice cream and drinks, and spoke to and in some cases even danced with a group of other people who were down at Oyak with us.
Blog: Taizé Day 4 (Wednesday 2 July): Inclusivity and affirmation
Today’s blog is going to be a bit different to the others and focus on an aspect of being in Taizé this week. Two of the themes that have been like a golden thread connecting everyone here are those of inclusivity and affirmation.
During Common prayers the Taizé chants that are sung are all in different languages and have been shown to suit the diversity of countries represented and gathering this week. The reading and prayers are also read and said in different languages and the Taizé community have developed an app which even has the common prayers reading available to be followed in your preferred language. While song practice could also be mistaken for a crash course in sight reading and modern languages, one of the joys of the week so far has been sitting in the church writing the blog while song practice is going on in the opposite corner. It’s also been a distraction as when the basses are learning the parts and in full choir mode, there have been times where I’ve quietly joined in from the other side of the church while sitting on a small kneeling stall.
However, it’s not just in the common prayers: the Bible introductions, readings and discussion questions are all printed in different languages and they are read by a participant in English and a second time in another, a different one each day so far.
For more information about Bible study at Taizé have a look at the Taizé socials as James has been working in the media team working on a Daily Life in Taizé socials campaign. Today’s video (posted a day later on Thursday) was on Bible introduction. (See videos here and here.)
When it’s time for small groups one of the things that has been really powerful is how deep the conversation and sharing goes and how quickly a trust circle is formed and internal barriers are taken down. This is something in my own group I’ve noticed and I hear from others is the same. Deep personal experiences have been openly shared, especially around gender and sexuality which for a group made up of different people from different nations and cultures has been very affirming for everyone involved in the conversation. The Taizé community are also making it more known that as a community they are a safe place to be. Non-binary rooms and general welfare facilities are in place. I had a conversation about this very fact at lunchtime with a sharing group member from Sweden, who wished her friend had come along but they felt that they wouldn’t be welcome here, or would find it hard to feel themselves, as they were non-binary.
One thing that really struck me and is sitting with me, even now, was a conversation about our Provincial Youth Network (PYN) logo. I’ve been wearing a sun hat with the PYN logo, some days a PYN T-shirt, and my daily backpack with all my daily stuff in it – cables, my water bottle, iPad, daily reading sheet and phone – also has the logo on it. We know it as the cross that is made up of our seven dioceses, that come together in one cross as part of Yeek.
However, this week, we have realised as it came up in another chat with group members, that to the wider world, we are seen to be safe and inclusive people; we are commonly referred to as “the group from Scotland”.
Our youth logo doesn’t tell them our provincial make up; we’ve told people about the meaning behind it when asked, but to others it has marked us as safe and inclusive people. Other young adults see us as people who understand and welcome everyone. The SEC Welcomes You is our tagline, and internationally this week we have all realised that we are a symbol of that message being carried and lived out into the worldwide church. We have had deep conversations not necessarily because of what we have shared or said, but in part because the colours of the PYN logo and wristbands show that we care and most importantly are open to have these often challenging and personal conversations.
If this is the international message that we, collectively, have been putting out to the 800–1000 young people at Taizé this week, by just being ourselves, then we have been living out the true message of the gospel and truly sharing God’s love to everyone we have met and will still meet during our time here.
Social media post: 3 July
This morning after morning prayer, Members of the Young Adults group in Taizé marked #thursdaysinblack.
Thursdays In Black is a movement set up by the World Council of Churches to raise awareness of gender-based violence.
More information about Thursdays in Black can be found in the World Council of Churches website https://www.oikoumene.org/what-we-do/thursdays-in-black
Blog: Taizé Day 5 (Thursday 3 July): Practical work – a perspective from Connie and Ryan
Connie writes:
During this week at Taizé, Ryan and I have been working as animators at Olinda, which is a programme for families here. Every day after the play, the families split into smaller groups called ‘villages’. The parents sit together and discuss the Bible text for the day while we (the animators) stay with the children playing games and doing various activities. The main challenge of leading the activity time is the language barriers among the children. At the same time it’s also very heartening to see children who barely understand each other form friendships and really try hard to communicate. I have really enjoyed working at Olinda and have been surprised how willing and excited the kids are to do the activities. It seems like the families have created a special community throughout this week and I feel grateful to have been a part of it.
Ryan writes:
For the people working with the children, the afternoon consists of singing a song about the Bible text explored in the morning, practising and performing a play before helping run activities with the children.
The play has been written by two brothers and continues the story from the previous day while also echoing the children’s morning Bible reading. It is full of humour, sound effects and visuals.
To prepare the play, we spend just over an hour exploring how we can use costumes, home-made props, music and physical actions to convey an enjoyable but also nuanced version of the text to children from a range of cultural backgrounds and languages.
Blog: Taizé Day 6 (Friday 4 July)
On Friday one of the workshops was an open stage event. Some of our group who were on cleaning duties over the week had a conversation with their work group and the US film crew about ceilidh dancing so it was felt it would be great if we showcased a ceilidh dance and got everyone to join in. The dance that we thought we could teach quickly to a large number, as we only had 5–10 minutes, was Strip the Willow. This was a great success and right up until we left on Sunday we still had groups coming up saying how much they enjoyed taking part on Friday evening.
Friday’s timetable changes slightly after the evening, with a 20-minute silence prayer for peace held in the church before evening prayers and following the prayers there was an opportunity to take part in prayers around the cross. This was a very slow-paced part of the prayers with it taking up to an hour and a half to file down the church to the cross. For some of the groups this was a highlight of all the prayer services this week.
Taizé cough also began to strike, with some of the group developing dry coughs from the dryness of the heat: a well-known side effect of being in Taizé.
Blog: Taizé Day 7 (Saturday 5 July)
For those of us who did sharing groups and Bible inductions in the morning, we had our final small group meetings after the final Bible introduction. One of the groups as their final activity was to take a piece of paper each and then pass it around the group. Initially the task was to write a word or two about each person in the group; however very quickly this became a sentence or a paragraph.
As our collective time at Taizé was coming to an end, Saturday was a day when emotions were already running higher. We all formed really good friendships and connections over the week, through the sharing groups and by the practical work groups. We realised that a number of our strongest connections overlapped with the same people, and we have already begun brainstorming ideas around possible visits to Scotland and the SEC. One idea will be to utilise Rooted and roaming, a new 18+ project with young adults visiting all the different dioceses and attending a church service somewhere as a collective group. If you would like to host an 18+ gathering of Young Adults please let Fee Reynolds know in the Diocesan office in Edinburgh, or any of the other Diocesan Youth Officers to begin the conversation.
On Saturday, the heat started to also take its toll on at least one of the group. Everyone was great at rallying round to help with offers of mediation and high sugar food and drink to aid recovery during a rest. A lesson from Taizé has definitely been to find some way to have some time off. This was easier for others depending on their tasks, but the daily schedule for Taizé is so full that finding time to have rest or time off proved a challenge over the week.
During evening prayers we all were given a candle as part of the prayers to symbolise the light of Easter. The candles were lit by passing the light to each other until everyone present had a lit candle.
Then it was on to our final evening. Some of us joined in some Swedish dancing, which was very similar to a progressive ceilidh dance, and it was also an opportunity for Ryan and Connie to share with the full song that they had been putting together over the week. We also took part in some group games with a mixed success rate, but that’s what made it even more entertaining.
Social media post: 6 July
This morning is the final morning for the Young Adults, as the group will be starting the journey home after the Eucharist.
Last night we had Evening Prayer with candles, symbolising the light of Easter, and then we had our final evening social in Oyak.
Blog: Taizé Days 8 and 9 (Sunday 6 July and Monday 7 July)
Our final morning on Sunday was a leisurely start with breakfast at 8:45am and no morning prayer due to the Eucharist taking place at 10am. The Eucharist had all the aspects we expected so even though it was all in French, we were quite confident of where we were and what was happening during it.
We left Taizé on the bus to Chalon-sur-saone, and then we would pick up the train to Paris-Bercy. The train was busy but not too uncomfortable; we just couldn’t sit together so we didn’t see each other until we arrived in Paris and explored for some food, which was pizza. We planned on getting the 9pm bus back to London. However, this is where it all went downhill. We got to the bus station around 8:30 to discover our bus was estimated to leave at 1:15am! Over four hours of delay. There were buses running to London; however, Janet was told we weren’t allowed to go on any of the other buses due to passenger lists but we felt it was more to do with the group size. We therefore went back to the train across the park to sit and wait. Sal explored what was open to get juice and ice cream for the group.
The station then closed after the last train left at 11pm so we then had to pack up and leave the station. We went to the park and then sat on the steps until just after midnight, observing the midnight Paris wildlife. Our bus finally started up at 1am and after a lot of confusion with another bus due to leave at 0:45am we filed into the coach and we left the bus station at 1:40am.
We arrived at Calais at 5:10am, all filed into customs, had our interviews about our ‘holiday’ at UK Border control, and then we were able to get in the bus again at 6am; however, we had just missed the sailing so we had wait til the next one at 7:30. When we got off the bus we were given meal vouchers so we all had a cooked breakfast on the ferry. After a rest on the ferry we arrived into the port of Dover at 8:30am and were due to arrive into Victoria coach station at 11am. However, thanks to an interesting route into London itself and the coach driver losing the coach station, when we actually arrived at 12:15pm the driver announced that he had ‘lost it, and then had found it again’.
A brief walk to the tube to Kings X meant we were able to get on the 13:00 service to Edinburgh arriving at 17:25, four hours and 15 minutes later than we had expected.
A huge thank you to Fee and Janet working behind the scenes overnight sorting the train tickets to allow us on the train at Kings X, and a special mention to the group who coped with the delays brilliantly and with good humour, even while being extremely tired.
Social media post: 6 July (late!)
The Young adults trip should be at border control at this time tonight. However, the bus leaving Paris had been delayed until 1:15am.
So we have had an unplanned extended wait in Paris, but what’s a pilgrimage without some trials?
Social media post: 7 July
24 hours after leaving Taizé the Young Adults group have made it back to the UK, and onto a train at London Kings X to get them back to Edinburgh.
Due to the border control delays at Calais, and therefore missing the planned sailing to Dover and then an hour’s wait, the group were given a free meal and drink voucher to use for breakfast on the ferry.
Social media post: 7 July (arrival!)
The Young adults arrived back at Edinburgh Waverley at 17:30. After our group finish photo, we had a surprise gift for Janet to say thank you to her for all her support over the last 9 Days and especially for the last 24 hours.
Our journey home story has made its way back to Taizé, and everyone back in Taizé are ‘in awe of the resilience of the Scottish group!’ A huge well done and thanks to everyone who took part in the trip, especially with the journey back home.
