Youth Camp

The TLIG Youth Camp in 2006 welcomed many visitors from across Europe: Seventeen Czechs with 4 small children, Myriam and Nicolas from France, Fabian from Belgium and Father Stefan from Scotland came this year to take part. Including Barbara, our host, there were 23 people from five countries. There was also one short visit from Katka´s sister, who is working and living in Brussels at that moment and made the trip for the week-end.

Stausberg

Stausberg dining room

Stausberg is a small farm situated approximately 8 km away from the town Friesenhagen, in Germany. It belongs to Barbara Sierp-Karasch´s family. She is a True Life in God volunteer in Germany and she is taking care of prayer groups across all of Europe. On their farm, there is a guest-house, where up to 35 people can stay. The house is well equipped with a dining room with a small kitchen just next to it and a communal room for prayer and Holy Mass. Hidden in a little cabin just outside the guest-house, there is a small, intimate chapel for prayer and meditation. There are cattle, horses and sheep in the fields all around and beyond them the surrounding hills are mostly covered with forests. The youth , you can also enjoy a new sand hippodrome, where you can play football or volleyball.

It was a busy week, but we still managed to do all kinds of things: We went for a long walk around Stausberg, visited the Zoo garden and went swimming in a lake by the town Olpe, even when it rained! We had noticed that it had been cloudy on the road to Olpe but we wanted to go swimming! We came back drenched through and through, but happy! We also sang, danced, played instruments and even played a bit of sports as well during the week! The common meals, the free time and leisure activities were all part of our experience – it was a holiday as well as a retreat!

‘Pilgrimage for Unity’ to Cologne upon Rhine

During our week, we also felt it was important to serve our Lord as ambassadors for Church Unity. Located on the Rhine river is the old city of Cologne, centered around it’s beautiful, gothic cathedral. In Cologne’s cathedral, there are the relics of the Three Kings. While this is the third biggest gothic monument of the world, it turned out not to be the only one on our Pilgrimage or even the most important.

Our first Unity meeting was at 10:00 am with an orthodox priest from the Armenian apostolic church. He greeted us very warmly. He let us know about the history and the tradition of the Armenian Church, and he went on to tell us about St. Sahak Mesrop, the church we were sitting in. When we concluded our meeting with a prayer for the Unity of all Christians, the priest sang one of many old Armenian hymns to our Blessed Mother.

Waiting for the priest of the Armenian Apostolic Church “in unifying the date of Easter, you will alleviate My pain, brother, and you will rejoice in Me and I in you” (14.10.91)

St. Pantaloon is an early roman building in the southern area of old Cologne, consecrated to St. Pantaloon and also to Sts. Kosmas and Damian. The original name of the 4th century martyr sounds more like Panteeleimon and means “All Merciful” (the One who has mercy on all). From St. Sahak Mesrop, we went on to the ancient catholic church of St. Pantaloon, where we shared in Holy Mass. The church was full of artifacts including the relics of St. Pantaloon from Greece, St Alban from England and St Bruno from Germany. Most interesting though was the tomb of the Empress Theophanou – which in Greek means “the Revelation of God.” She was a princess from Byzantium and married in Rome with Otto II, the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. She was very involved in evangelization in eastern European countries, together with St. Adalbert. The place of her last rest holds a special importance for the unity of Christians. Not only Catholics come to honour her but also members of other Christian churches: Anglicans, as well as Greek, Russian and Armenian Orthodox. Every year, since 1989, there is a Eucharistic celebration for the unity of Christians of the West and East. It is held on the 15th of June – the anniversary of the death of the empress. The empress’ life dates to 10th century right before the division of the church of the West and the East in 1054. It is said that once the church is united, she might be one of the first to be people to be canonized. Above the sarcophagus holding the empress is a picture of the Divine Mercy (Jesus with His Heart wide open). Although it is typically thought of as a Catholic devotion, this picture was painted by a Greek-orthodox artist who made it look like an icon in the typical manner for the Eastern Church.

Theophanou and husband Otto II, coronation for the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire Inside the Church of St. Pantaoloon

“It raises, Vassula, the poor from dust (Jesus was hinting this for me; the way He raised me and gave me a place in His Heart) and out of their misery, to give them a place in Its depths, in the depths of Infinite Mercy” (28.11.96)

Visiting our Lutheran brothers

From Theophanou we hurried to meet the pastor of the Old-Lutheran Church. We sat in a gathering room and he was telling us about the Lutheran tradition and about the activities of his church in the city of Cologne. We shared our message about unity and mutual love. The delighted pastor offered us a drink and invited us to visit the church, where we prayed together for the unity of Christians. We were surprised by how close our churches were in their traditions.

Our Pilgrimage continued and we were fortunate to have a guide in the Cathedral of The Three Kings – a professional in his domain and he loved the cathedral. The visit lasted about an hour. We had a moment to bow before the relics of The Three Kings in the presbyter of the church. Among others relics, we admired a big cross in the left side chapel which is the oldest cross in the world that includes the depiction of the Body of the Lord Jesus. Not only that, but a miracle is joined to this cross: the archbishop of Cologne who commissioned the cross to be made, allowed the sculptor to leave a hole in the Lord Jesus´ head. Once, after the Holy Mass, he put the holy Host into the hole in the sculpture. The body on the cross transformed into a real, tortured human body.

Cologne Dome, official title: Hohe Domkirche St. Peter and Maria is a roman catholic church in Cologne. With its height of 157 meters (515,09 feet), it is the second highest church in Germany and the third highest in the world. It is situated next to the Cologne railway station and by the river Rhine. In 1164, Cologne’s archbishop brought the relics of The Three Kings from Mailand to Cologne. It was the emperor Fredrick I gift to the empire chancellor. To honour the relics, a new Dome was built in 1225 – the old cathedral became insufficient for the crowds of pilgrims. The construction of the cathedral started on the 15th of August 1248 according to the plans of the architect Gerhard von Rile. The final construction was completed in 1880.

The shrine with the relics of The Three Kings “turn your eyes on My Sacred Heart and Its brightness will fill your dark night into the fullness of day; hold My Sacred Heart and embrace It” (28.11.96)

“absorb My Peace and satisfy your heart in this silence, enjoy these moments of grace and absorb the sweetness your Lord is offering you” (2.11.97)

After the Unity Pilgrimage, there was a surprise: a picnic by the Rhine River. We sat on the grass, ate potato salad, typical German Würstchen (Frankfurters), drank orange juice and relaxed while we watched the boats as they floated by us on the river. We also had a short walk on the quay before we returned back to Stausberg in late night hours.

By the Rhine River “there is a River whose streams refresh the city of God, and…it sanctifies the dwelling of the Most High” (01.06.02)

Return to Camp

Father Stefan during one of his talks Tuesday was consecrated to prayer for our families, for healing their roots and the themes of our prayers also included discernment. In the evening we shared our personal experiences of the week. We left on the Wednesday morning, after the Holy Mass. The whole visit was a time of ‘Living in the Spirit’ by prayers and love. We celebrated the Holy Mass every day and the rosary according to our schedule. Father Stefan shared several talks on different themes including Confession, the Eucharist and vocations. We also had a chance to squeeze in the Stations of the Cross and have a chance to share and hear wonderful testimonies on ‘How TLIG changed my life.’ It was a great time of sharing with one another the richness of daily and spiritual life – a wonderful experience of being united in peace and love. We were presented with so many graces that in the end nobody wanted to return home…

“I am infinitely rich in grace and I want to draw them into this Heart, this Heart that delights to be with the sons and daughters of men” (11.28.96)