ATCO – With the theme of commonality, about 50 people came together Sept. 28 for a Taizé prayer service at Christ the Redeemer Church.
“We all share, in some way, communion in the Spirit and participation in good works to bring Christ to the world,” Father Joseph Wallace, parish pastor, said to those gathered, which included Bishop Dennis Sullivan and fellow clergy from the Diocese, as well as various faith leaders from nearby houses of worship.
Named after the ecumenical Christian community established in the 1940s in Taizé, France, Taizé is a style of meditative prayer that includes short songs, or chants, a psalm, Bible reading, times of silence and intercessions. It most often includes dim lighting and candlelight.
“Adsumus Sancte Spiritus. Veni adnos adesto nobis,” the crowd sang, which translates into, “We stand before You, Holy Spirit. Make yourself at home in our hearts.” The prayer, which dates back hundreds of years, was recited during every session of the Second Vatican Council.
Indeed, the gathering in Atco came just hours before Pope Francis presided over a Taizé prayer vigil Sept. 30 in St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City. Like the one in Rome, the local Taizé service entrusted to the Holy Spirit the works of the Synod on Synodality, which began Oct. 4 in Rome.
“This is a time for prayer as the Catholic Church enters into synod,” Father Wallace said. “It’s a synod that is reminding us all of our commonality within the grace of Baptism. Pope Francis, when speaking about the synod, has repeatedly linked it to calls for Christian unity. We strive for full communion, but we sometimes forget that we already enjoy some communion – we have baptism, and the Holy Spirit, and we all derive spiritual power from the Sacred Scriptures.”
During the prayer service, all those ordained were asked to come to the front of the church and stand before the lit candles and religious icon imagery to pray. Among them were members of the local ministerium, of which Father Wallace is a part of as the diocesan director of Ecumenical and Inter-religious Affairs for the Diocese of Camden.
Pastor Danny Clark of Pinelands United Methodist Church, Hammonton, praised bringing together the different faiths. “I think all churches are struggling with membership right now. So when we can do things together, we reach more people and change more lives.”
Josemon Abraham of Saint Jude Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, Hammonton, who is a devotee of Taizé prayer, worked closely with the Atco parish to organize the evening. “If we are not united, then we cannot share the full joy of the Gospel.”
Based primarily in India, the Syro-Malabar Church is an Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Pope.
Speaking about the upcoming synod, and why it was important for all faiths to pray for its outcome, he said, “We may belong to different denominations and have theological differences, but we are all children of God, and we can pray together under one roof.”
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