Now, I am almost through my second week at Camp Christian, located near Magnetic Springs in Columbus. As a Peace Intern, I had the opportunity to be there and spend a week with campers, sharing a three-session series of activities that invited them to raise questions about their faith, their relationships with their neighbors, and what they could raise their voices about those who were erased. I was deeply grateful to be there and to see people voluntarily participate in the workshops, often giving up their free time. Even though they could have chosen to go fishing, take a nap, or enjoy other activities, they decided to join the workshops instead. That is no small thing! I am very thankful to all the campers who attended, participated, shared their thoughts, and had fun together. I am also grateful to the thoughtful counselors and leadership team who helped make the workshops possible.
Camp is a very special place. Some people arrive already knowing one another, while some do not. During the week, they sleep, eat, learn, laugh, and sometimes even get into trouble together. Through this, they build their own sense of community and solidarity. They discover that they are all children of God and that they are loved as they are. By the end of the week, when everyone gathers for the final circle and prepares to leave, many already find themselves longing for the place they are about to leave behind. Friends they have known for only seven days can feel like people they have known for years.
Another reason camp is so special is that it teaches us that everyone belongs. In a world filled with uncertainty. And sometimes with too much certainty, where the idea of the other disappears. Discrimination and exclusion could be easily found and shape their lives. Sometimes classmates are not friends, and people are constantly pushed into comparison and competition in this world of self-exploitation. I am glad to see that there are still camps for them and to let them know they are not alone. Who arrives at the camp with fear and uncertainty about graduating high school soon, and does not know what to do with closed doors, the camp helps them to remind them. A world that pursues narrow norms and reduces people to numbers, making them feel as though they only matter to live up to social standards, far from there, they learned again, actually, they are capable of loving others, and they are enough to be themselves. Yes, camp is a special place.
What is the meaning of living as a Christian in this world that it sometimes seems like all our efforts are meaningless, and that makes us feel that there isn’t anything that can change, and we can’t do anything? That must be very disappointing and frustrating. However, perhaps that is exactly what the world wants to force us to believe. We know, people are more than numbers, and we are still seeking hope; we still care for each other, sharing one communion, one cup, one bread, one body of Christ. It might look the same, but when the campers arrive at their place after the camp, the place will be quite the same. They will find the same cups on the same cupboards, and all they remember may look the same. However, the feeling that they are loved, and that they met new people who might look different, but who would be friends in their hearts. Belief is irreversible, and love is active. Just as the movement of a butterfly's wings can change the course of events, so can human beings. That is where the kingdom is coming; it is already happening. There is something happening, like a mustard seed breaking through hard soil and sending their sprout. There is something that can never go back to the way it was before. That is making us still as Christians, in these days. Tonight, I am praying for all Christians who are serving in their own places, carrying out their callings, making peace, and advocating for peace in their own ways. As we are many, our missions and vocations vary, reflecting the beautiful diversity of the Body of Christ. Rooting for you all, may God strengthen and guide you and in your workplace, until the kingdom comes.
