Faith Features

Young people from all over Cornwall joined thousands of others from around the world at the monastery in Taizé in France to share in a common life of prayer and simplicity.

Teenagers in a Monastery..Yeah Right!

The group was led by a youth worker for the Methodist Church in Cornwall Andrew Nicholson, along with his wife Helen, and youth workers Jacquie Price, the Rev Steve Emery-Wright and his wife Lorraine.

After returning from the trip, Andrew Nicholson looked at what the young people wrote about their week in France.

He was so moved by what he read that he felt inspired to write a book about the pilgrimage.

'Teenagers in a Monastery....Yeah RIGHT!' was published in July 2007 looks at the history of the Taizé monastery, as well as having entries from Andrew Nicholson's own diary and the experiences of the young people who went.

Here is what a few of them say about their time in France:

"This week has been the most amazing worship ever, I really feel completely changed in my faith"

"Taizé is a completely different world – no one worries about what you look like, what you sound like, or how you act – it’s just so normal"

"I felt it was possibly the first time ever that I have managed to use prayer to effectively talk to God"

The book can be purchased at £4.95 from local bookshops or from the author by emailing him at andrewnicholson@resource24.net