We fill with a sense of peace, gratitude and joy when we think that our Church and our Archbishop Anastasios, since the restoration of the Church twenty-five years ago, have had as a top priority the education of the new generation. Part of this intention has been the organization of summer camps for children and young adults and this year marks the twentieth anniversary (since 1996) of the dedication and special attention paid to the spiritual education of the younger generation, which was deprived for decades.
Therefore, each summer period, after the end of the school year, a session filled with lots of spiritual and recreational activities for the Orthodox children and youth such as Church summer camps begins.
The camps are organized with the blessing and funds provided by Archbishop Anastasios. Every year they are conducted on different spiritual themes, around which all activities eventually revolve. The theme of this year for all summer camps was: “Truth makes us free.”
***
The first camp for boys and girls (July 2-11, 2016)
The first camp, which included the younger age group (8-11 years old) was organized by the Children Office of the Archdiocese of Tirana with the special care of His Grace Nikolla, the Metropolitan of Fieri.
The camp program was quite diverse and included both spiritual and recreational activities. Part of the program were the prayers, the spiritual talks, the meditation hour, the beach games, the excursions, the craft work, the competitions etc. Under the catechists’ supervision, the children learned about the church services and gained spiritual guide on various topics that proclaimed the Orthodox truth as revealed by God.
***
The first camp for boys took place in the Monastery of St. Vlasios in Durres. Ninety children participated in it and they were from the Metropolises of Tirana, Elbasan, Berat and Fier. In the camp, the day began with a prayer, then breakfast followed and it continued with Bible study, entertaining games at the beach, the lunch and a time for relax. Afterwards, different games proceeded followed with conversations, the Vespers, the dinner and the closure of the program with meditation and prayer. A special blessing was the baptism of 12 children, who became members of the Orthodox Church.
While the girls’ first camp was held in the beautiful Monastery of St. John the Vladimir near Elbasan. Eighty-five girls from all the Metropolises took part in it. At the end of the camp, some girls joined the Orthodox Church through the sacrament of baptism.
The second camp for boys and girls (July 14-23 2016)
No one else can provide the most complete explanation of the exact truth and freedom except the Orthodox Church, which is the pillar and the ground of truth. The Church is the body of Christ, who in Scripture affirms: I am the Way, the Truth and the Life. These Bible truths and the different spiritual conversations led by His Grace Anthony and Bishop Nicholas, made up the theme of the camp which was “Truth makes us free.” Sixty girls participated in it and they were from Tirana, Korca, Belgium, Tepelena, Puka, Fieri, Italy, Durres etc. They had the opportunity to get a deeper knowledge of God who is the truth that must be lived in its fullest, in order to enjoy the freedom which we desire so much.
Every part of the camp program from the daily prayers developed in the hospitable and beautiful monastery of St. John the Vladimir, in Elbasan, the experience of the Sacraments and the reading of spiritual books like “A Visit to the Orthodox Church,” “Listen to Me”, “The Prayer Book”, all clearly stated that Jesus Christ is the truth for all people and only this truth can make us free.
This year marked an important historical event, the 20th anniversary of the Summer Camp for Girls developed by the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania with the blessing of our Shepherd, His Beatitude Anastasios. On this anniversary, 22 girls from the staff, together with all campers prepared a nice program, which was held in the presence of His Grace Anthony.
***
The second camp for boys ages 14-17, was conducted under the direction and organization of the professors and students of the Resurrection of Christ Theological Academy in St.Vlasios, Durres and with the participation of 110 young adults. Those who were unbaptized took catechism classes on daily basis and at the end 18 of them decided to get baptized. Their baptism was conducted in July, by His Grace Asti, Bishop of Bylis, Fr. Spiro Kostoli, the camp cleric, and Fr. Nikolla Nushi, the monastery cleric.
Every day, after the Morning Prayer, also the Bible study was carried during which some of the main parables in the Gospel were explained. In the afternoon, spiritual conversations followed which served the spiritual growth of the campers.
The camp had various activities. Different games were played such as Soccer championship, table tennis, chess etc. Shortly before the end of the camp, a nice program took place which included poems and several Christian and traditional songs. The uniqueness of this celebration was the participation of the quartet of the Resurrection Radio which created an enjoyable holiday atmosphere.
While at the last night of the camp, the baptism certificates and other relevant certificates were delivered to the participants who got baptized during the camp period and to the winners of the championships which were held during the camp.
The third camp for students (July 26 -6 August 2016)
“The most important moment is the one you are living now, the most important person is the person you are meeting now, and the most important task is exactly the one you are doing now.” Under this motto, the girls spent ten nice days at The Good Shepherd camp. Eighty girls from different areas of Albania joined together in learning and experiencing together the beauty of the Orthodox faith.
His Grace Nicholas, Bishop of Apollonia, highlighted in his word that Christ only is the truth, so we need to follow Him. Whereas His Grace Anthony, Bishop of Elbasan, stated among other things the importance of being sincere and of presenting our real character in society, because as he said only then we will feel free and be free. Also a guest was invited in the camp who was a missionary from the States, Ms. Catherine Macdonald, and who shared her personal story of finding the truth in the Orthodox Faith after a long time searching for it. In her word she stated, ‘To him who seeks persistently, God of Truth will appear.’
In addition, the readings from the Gospel of Mark and from other books with religious themes as well as watching spiritual films, all contributed to this experience. Part of the program was also a competition organized among the girls. The competition consisted in singing a special church or monastery troparion, or performing a collage of folk songs, designing traditional folk clothing, or dancing according to the customs of each area. Further on, the camp did not lack entertaining games and volleyball, but was also rich in discussions on social issues, conversations with friends etc.
During the days of this camp, it was a special blessing to be present in the inauguration of the hydropower plant in Librazhd, an endeavor which was considered a crucial step for the economic “autocephaly” of the Church. In this event, Archbishop Anastasios proved one more time that he never stops thinking of young people and so he gave them the good news of constructing in this area of natural beauty a new building for future summer camps.
***
At the premises of the Monastery of St George in Çukë, Saranda, the Renaissance summer camp for male students was run. It is the third year that it takes place on the newly restored premises, and it is made possible through the contribution of Archbishop Anastasios and our Church. The monastery is located in a very picturesque coastal area. 50 young people from across the country were part of this camp. His Grace Asti, Bishop of Bylis was the leader of this camp.
In contrast to the other camps for children and teens, this one permits more freedom for the campers due to their mature age. However the camp has an internal regulation, which is respected by the campists. The usual program started with students waking up in the morning, to continue with praying in the church, having meals in the cafeteria, making spiritual conversations in the afternoon hours and closing with an Evening Prayer.
The aim of the camp was the union of young people with God, the Father, something which can be achieved through the sacraments performed in the Orthodox Church. Thus the sacrament of baptism was conducted for two teenagers who became children of God by grace and younger members of the Church. Another sacrament performed during the camp days was the one of repentance and confession which is also known as “rebaptism” because through this sacrament, the forgiveness of sins which surround us in our daily routines is made possible. After his confession, the faithful is relieved of the burden of sins and regains freedom like a son of God. Also in the camp Divine Liturgy was celebrated.
The camp organizers organized two visits in two important touristic sites in Saranda. Besides their touristic aims, the visits served also as a spiritual guide. The first visit took place in the Archaeological Center of Butrinti, a place marked with early Christian traces and where two Christian martyrs were martyred. The second visit took place in the ruins of the 40 Saints Monastery, which is located in the highest peak of the town. The visitors performed a religious service at this site (Paraklisis) and had a warm conversation about the history of the monastery and the lives of the 40 martyrs of Sebasti, who are recalled and honored by the Church for centuries. From this monastery the city of Saranda was named too.
Ana Baba, Miron Çako, Marina Baba, Ingrida Bida
Translated by: Juljana Kodheli
Photo from the first camp boys-girls
Photo from the second camp boys-girls
Photo from the third camp boys-girls
