From Saturday 18th June to Sunday 26th June 2016 Archbishop Sentamu led a group of young people from Yorkshire to visit Taizé in Eastern France, and students from Archbishop Holgate’s School were invited to accompany him and the group.

Taizé is an international monastery in Burgundy founded in 1940. Since the 1960s the Taizé Community has been welcoming young adults (15+) from a wide variety of backgrounds for a week of discussion, reflection and building community. 80,000 young people from all over the world participate in these meetings each year.

The group joined students from a few UK schools, and young people from all over Europe and the United States. 800 young people of different backgrounds were at Taizé: those who were Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, believers of other religions, and those of no faith. Each day included small international discussion groups, reflection in a larger group led by a brother of the Community, some practical activity, prayer with the whole community and opportunities to socialise and relax.

Each day different members of our group were invited to write a blog for the Archbishop of York’s website (http://www.archbishopofyork.org/articles.php?action=search&tag_id=116) and for the Archbishop of York’s Youth Trust website (http://www.archbishopofyorkyouthtrust.co.uk/news/category/general/).

Alice Wright and Megan Williamson from Yr11 wrote one of the first blogs. They concluded by saying: “Having both just finished our GCSE exams the serenity found in this community has provided us with a chance to truly recover and relax from the stressful period of time which we've just been through. The unity of the Taizé community, the ability to understand different cultures and the central emphasis on peace has changed our attitudes on our hectic lives and the place of reflection and community within them.”

Later in the week it was the turn of Matthew Macfarlane and Matthew Bryan-Smith from Yr10. They said: “One of the most encouraging things about going to Taizé has been the people I've met and the friends that I've made. Everyone you meet here is friendly and will openly talk to you about their beliefs.” They added: “When I get home I think that I will be a much more confident and outgoing person, as being in Taizé has taught me how easy it is to make friends and how interesting every individual person is.” They finished by echoing thoughts shared by everyone on the trip: “The prayers offer 10 minutes of silence which I have found great to reflect and think about things, so I'm going to try to give myself more time to do that.”

School Chaplain, Richard Nihill, accompanied the group. He said; “Sharing in the Archbishop’s pilgrimage to Taizé was not only a wonderful opportunity for the young people but also for the staff as well. It was a time of discovery and transformation in different ways for everyone, for many a chance to encounter the presence of God. I am very excited at the prospect of returning in 2017 with another group of young people.”