Life & Work Magazine
Life & Work Magazine


1 mins

Taizé community’s new prior

An English Anglican has been named the new Prior of the Taizé Community. Andrew Thorpe, known as Brother Matthew, took over the role during evening prayer on December 2, becoming only the third Prior in the ecumenical movement’s 84-year history. Brother Matthew, who joined the Community aged 21 in 1986, succeeds Brother Alois, who had led Taizé for 18 years since the murder of founder Brother Roger.

Brother Alois said in a statement:

“Eighteen years after succeeding Brother Roger, with the world and the Church having changed so much over the last two decades, I feel the time has come for a brother who entered our community after me to take over my responsibility. In the family-like understanding we have of our community life, the ministry of prior has neither an age limit nor a time limit fixed in advance.

“But I said to myself: it is up to me to pass on this charge while I can take the time to prepare this transition without being under any constraints. Over the last two years, I have consulted all my brothers, we have prayed and reflected. And I have chosen Brother Matthew as the new prior of Taizé. I have complete confidence that he will provide continuity and take the right steps to impel our community to be, according to the intuition of its founder, a ‘little parable of communion’.”

This article appears in the February 2024 Issue of Life and Work

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This article appears in the February 2024 Issue of Life and Work