PARIS, DEC. 19, 2003 (Zenit.org).- The way to the source of goodness, joy and trust is abandonment to God, says Brother Roger of the ecumenical Taizé Community, in his Letter for 2004.
Translated into 57 languages, including 24 from Asia, the letter written by the Taizé founder was made public Monday in view of the forthcoming young adult European meeting in Hamburg, Germany. The 26th Pilgrimage of Trust Across the Earth is scheduled Dec. 29-Jan 2.
The text (see today’s Spirituality section) will be studied and reflected upon in 2004 during weekly meetings of young people in Taizé, France, as well as elsewhere.
Speaking of joy, Brother Roger says that “it brings us a breath of new life” — we “are not the ones who create this joy; it is a gift from God,” and “kindheartedness … makes us attentive to those in distress.”
“But how can we go to the wellsprings of kindness, of joy, and also to the wellsprings of trust? We find the way by surrendering ourselves to God,” Brother Roger says in his letter.
“As far back as we look in history, multitudes of believers have known that, through prayer, God brings a light, a life within,” he continues.
“God is also present when fervor fades and when all perceptible resonance vanishes. We are never deprived of his compassion,” Brother Roger notes. “We are the ones who at times are absent.”
“The desire for communion with God has been set within the human heart since the dawn of time,” he adds.
And it is Christ, Brother Roger continues, who “is communion. He did not come on earth to start one more religion, but to offer all a communion in him.”
In that “unique communion which is the Church, God offers us all we need in order to go to the wellsprings: the Gospel, the Eucharist, the peace of forgiveness,” the Taizé founder says.
“When communion among Christians is a life and not a theory, it radiates hope. Still more, it can help sustain the indispensable search for world peace,” he writes.
“Many people ask themselves, ‘What does God want of me?’ When we read the Gospel, we understand. God asks us to be a reflection of his presence in every situation,” he says.
“It is not only the leaders of nations who build the world of tomorrow,” he added. No matter how powerless we are, “God enables us to bring reconciliation where there are oppositions and hope where there is anxiety,” and the Almighty “calls us to make his compassion for human beings accessible by the way we live.”
See www.taizé.fr.
