128 PART TWO: AN EMPIRICAL ACCOUNT (which he believes to be religious questions as well), like immigration. But the ecumenical mission of Bose ought, primarily, to be lived. Reflecting on his own process towards becoming a Taizé monk, TA adds: “But indeed, after that it was a very gradual process of deepening an understanding of what… what the brothers live here… um… Through study, indeed, but still, first of all, for ninety-five percent just through, through daily life here,”305 indicating that, for him, the meaning of the community’s life only started to dawn on him when he actually engaged in it. In this way, indeed, Taizé and Bose can be understood as an experiment and a sign, rather than a model: they do not pretend to have the solution for the problem of division. They only express a deep desire to live together, to pray together, to be followers of Christ together. As Brother TB states: “what we can do here in Taizé, it is to, to live like this together, to pray together, and to welcome each other.”306 He continues: We can only welcome, and listen. But I think, this is the big advantage of monasteries in general, that um... in the history of monastic life um... monasteries have not been places where... um... where the... theological issues had to be decided, but it was rather... the life of prayer, of brotherhood, and... understanding and hearing all those questions, but... but... maybe helping people who have to reflect and who have to decide, to do that, but not... not being um... we, we are first here to welcome, no?307 Brother TB conceptualizes his community’s contribution as a limited but particular and distinct task. Taizé does not intend to provide a sound theological answer to the pressing questions of ecumenism and Eucharistic sharing; rather, it intends to welcome and listen and assist those who will have to decide through living their monastic vocation ecumenically. Living the monastic vocation in an ecumenical context is certainly a challenging experiment given the centuries of hostility between denominations and the challenges posed by the respective canonical frameworks. It will become clear later on that the communities still struggle to cope with these things and that they are far from providing answers. Yet, their main intention is at the same time their mission: to practice Christian unity rather than to entertain it intellectually (even though Bose in particular contributes to the 305 TA-1,22. 306 TB-1,4f. 307 TB-1,16.
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