Passover 2024: Unforgettable Youth Camp Experience

Last week, a Passover camp for youth was held on April 22-25. The theme of the camp was “A Journey of Hope,” which will accompany us in the coming year and during the next summer camps.

Being a teenager is always accompanied by many challenges and confrontations. The transition from a child to a teenager includes many meanings – you are no longer a child but not yet an adult. For our youth, adolescence is accompanied by these challenges and additional ones – instability, lack of knowledge, and lack of belonging. Yet, they must continue to fight and build a future despite all the challenges and obstacles.

Therefore, we decided to join them on this journey, a journey of hope, a journey of strength and motivation to continue when we are all accompanied by the most hopeful figure who also knows how to give hope to others without compensation – Jesus.

We began the journey by choosing four cities where Jesus brought hope, which were the focus of the current camp: Nazareth, Cana, Sea of Galilee, and Jericho. These were also the names of the groups.

On the first day, we all arrived at Deir Rafat, settled in, and organized the place. Then we introduced the participants to the theme, and they were divided into groups. Later in the evening, there were lessons, games, and prayers.

On the second day, we continued with the lessons (this time about the city of Jericho) and in the afternoon, there were workshops – one was with Fr. Benny “A Song of Hope,” where the youth learned the new song that he composed and wrote especially for our journey!

The second was with Tomer, Greg, and Justin – “A Map of Hope” art workshop – where the youth had to draw a map of Israel and place their group’s city in it, making the map as creative as possible. Below, they had to write a sentence from the New Testament related to their city, which they found the day before with the group.

The third was with me (Daniel) – “Good and Evil” – the workshop focused on demons and powers – the demons represented the less good qualities and weaknesses within us, and the powers represented the good qualities and strengths. We learned to know ourselves – to know what I am stronger in and what I am weaker in, and how I turn the demons within me into powers.

The fourth was with Monica and Jessa – “A Picture of Hope” – in the workshop, they received chalk and a grid on the floor and had to draw their picture of hope, the word hope, or anything else that gives them hope or symbolizes it for them.

The workshops were fascinating! The youth participated amazingly in each one, and we hope they took the best from them.

In the evening, there was a fun and relaxing activity of games, songs, dances, and then we ended the day with prayer.

The next day there was another lesson (about Galilee and the Sea of Galilee), and after the lesson, we had games and a quiz – the quiz was about the three cities the youth had learned about up to that point, and they competed against each other in different groups.

It was the hottest day of the week!

In the evening, the groups went on a journey – this time not metaphorically but physically. They took a picnic with them and went on a short hour-and-a-half journey around Deir Rafat, where within the groups they were divided into pairs, and during the walk, they had to talk to each other about the questions they received in advance, and then during the picnic, they had to discuss them as a group. (Example of two questions: Tell about an experience in your life where you felt hopeless, what were the feelings, and who helped you at that moment? Who is Jesus in my life?)

Fr. Apolinary guided and led the journey along with the other group leaders.

On the last day, we continued the lessons, this time about the city of Nazareth.

Then we finished the quiz – after the youth learned about the last city. And at the end of the quiz was the last activity “A Letter of Hope” – each of the youth in the group had to write a letter to themselves, which they would put in a sealed envelope and keep with me – they will open the letter again at the camp in the summer. In addition, they had to write a small motivational sentence on a note that they would take with them and accompany them during these months to remind them to get up and move forward in times of crisis.

We ended the day and the camp with the Holy Mass conducted by Fr. Piotr, during which he reminded everyone that "God is bigger than our problems" and that "Hope should always be our feature since we are Christians". Then everyone made their journey, but this time home!

We ended the camp with a great feeling! It was a good camp, full of experiences and various activities – we hope we managed to sow the beginning of hope in each of the youth, and indeed we finished the camp, but it was just the beginning of the journey!

A huge thank you to all the guides and volunteers at the camp – for the accompaniment, preparation, help, and participation!

And a big thank you to you – the youth for coming and participating – after all, without you, there is no camp!

To watch a short clip on Instagram, click: HERE.