Or, Just how many guitars do you need for Shrine Mont Worship? Answer: as many as you have! On the evening of Sunday, July 7 we had around twenty!
All-camp worship is a joyous and energetic event. It’s also amazing how it comes together. The worship was camper led, and with counselor support, campers from each camp on the mountain took part by reading scripture, teaching and leading songs, and leading the prayers. There was also an inter-camp guitar band with more guitars than I’ve ever seen in one place. With the flexibility that comes from the adventure of Shrine Mont camps, all-camp worship changed venue due to heavy rain. Instead of meeting together in the Shrine, camps came together in the ballroom of the Virginia House. Here in this space, all of the Shrine Mont Camps on the mountain – St. George’s, Music and Drama, St. Sebastian’s, and Family Camp – came together to celebrate the good news. The regularly scheduled evening worship that campers are familiar with provides an opportunity for campers to learn firsthand how to put together a worship service. Some campers mentioned that worship with just their own camp can be more personal, but what they like most about all-camp worship is that "all the voices are coming together. You hear God in all the voices." The camps also intermingle their skills and their customs to teach each other what they love best. Music and Drama campers taught the songs and the Family Camp band provided music during Communion. Collin Phillips, from MAD Camp, read scripture for us Sunday evening. He said he read scripture one night earlier in the session. “People tell me I’m a good public speaker and I really like it. It was really fun.” The spirituality of all-camp worship was very evident. Having a full Eucharist service is different than the more casual evening worship in camp, but the added interaction with all the current campers greatly adds to the joy. "I love it more than regular church. There’s so much interaction and everyone participates." After the dismissal, camps went forth into the world, continuing to rejoice and praise. By Stephanie Gurnsey Higgins
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They saw bears. They felt accepted, not judged. They received career advice. They felt more connected to God. Those were some of the memories and reflections from three days of canoeing on the Shenandoah River, followed by a rest break at Shrine Mont, and then three days of backpacking on a challenging trail. For the eight boys of Explorers’ the Great Camp, their Powerpoint presentation at the July 2 closing ceremony added visuals to the words. There were turtles, scenic views and “the best meal ever” (what seemed to be a wilderness-inspired stew), and, from their time at Shrine Mont, costume parties and musical events. A booklet prepared for the 15- to 17-year-old campers combined Scripture about the stewardship of creation with environmental quotes from an array of notables, ranging from Mahatma Gandhi to Theodore Roosevelt. The spiritual connection to nature is a theme you can find in all sorts of places at Shrine Mont, from recycling efforts to sleeping in the woods. That message came home when, during the closing ceremony, one of the campers referred to this quote from Gandhi: “What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another.” Six days on the river and the trail leave you feeling connected to nature. By Ed Jones There may not be fireworks, but there's no short of fun, games, and American-flag-themed clothing at Shrine Mont's Fourth of July celebration. On July 4, camp had an all-camp Independence Day worship service complete with a song fest, followed by a cookout. Independence Day Worship!Independence Day Cook Out!Independence Day Games!After the cookout camp played The Cows and the Chickens (landlocked Sharks and Minnows), then had some “Independence Time”, when campers could choose to play floor hockey or on the playground or Frisbee, or to hangout at a campfire.
The Bishop's 5K
Staff V. World Ultimate Frisbee GameAn honored tradition of the Jubilee and Fourth of July celebration is the Staff v. World Frisbee game. Campers cheer on their counselors as they take on counselor alumni and, as the name of the game suggests, the rest of the world. Before the game, the players circled up, introduced themselves, and then the niceties were put on hold for an hour of hard-fought Frisbee. In the end, Staff claimed a victory for the second year in a row, propelled to their win by an arsenal of college athletes playing against an old, out-of-shape World team. Hoss ConcertRecovered from the excitement of the frisbee game, later on Saturday, camps came down to the lower pavilion for a Hoss concert. Hoss is a band comprised of a semi-rotating cast of camp alumni and enthusiasts. They played and rock ensued.
Shrine Mont has nine different camps, any three or four of which are in session on any given day of the summer. Each cater to different interests and types of campers, but they all form one camp program, working towards a common mission. When possible, camps try to work and play together to remind campers that they are a part of this larger program. One particularly good vehicle for camp collaboration is King Ball. King Ball is variation of capture the flag, but players don't have to go to jail when tagged. Rather, they freeze where they were tagged until someone from their team rescues them, and the person who frees them gains three seconds of immunity where they cannot be tagged. This creates opportunities for teamwork where the players who got tagged are as valuable as the players still running around, because each of them is a new source of immunity for their teammate. This means that a variety of types of players are valuable: of course the speed demons are essential for capturing the king ball, but those willing to get tagged and wait, or to stay behind and guard the team king ball are also invaluable. The other crucial variation is rather than two teams, as in regular capture the flag, there are four. The game is not over until all four king balls are captured, which means that any given time, there might be whole teams who have already lost their king ball and are freed up from playing any defense. Teams that have already captured multiple king balls become targets for other teams, and the tides turn quickly. This creates an exciting equilibrium of game play that often does not generate a definitive winner when the teams are relatively balanced. It's the perfect sport to model collaboration and good sportsmanship, and it offers success to many types of players. By David Churchman Explorers the Great is a single session camp for 15- to 17-year-old campers interested in more ambitious outdoor trips. This year they took a three day canoe trip down the Shenandoah, and a three day hiking trip around Browns Gap in Shenandoah National Park. In between, they got a day off, geared towards recuperation and largely directed by what the campers showed interest in doing to relax.
There was some lounging by the pool, and a contemplative chaplain's time based around walking the labyrinth. Two obsessions discovered on the river were Nicholas Cage and Taylor Swift, so they convinced their director to print out pictures of each to carry around camp and on their next excursion. Obviously, National Treasure was mandatory viewing for the evening. What better way to end a day of relaxation and recuperation than a vigorous game of Ultimate Frisbee, running up and down the field chasing a flying disc? It seems Explorers campers are not prone to sitting around. The following morning, all the gear was packed quickly so everyone could get back on the bus and on the trail to their next adventure. By David Churchman The words of the Shouting Prayer ricochet off the walls of the Tucker Hall dining area during nightly suppers. The whoops and hollers of swim parties can regularly be heard from campers frolicking in the pool.
But the silences of Shrine Mont can be just as powerful. You’ll find them in the rest periods after hearty lunches, and during the Good Night song and prayers that end the action-packed days at the camps. The most poignant silence I’ve encountered at Shrine Mont came from several dozen normally noisy teens who had just finished their walk through the labyrinth. For what seemed like a blissful eternity (though actually only a few minutes), the 14- and 15-year-olds from St. George’s Camp, arranged in five small groups, sat together without a word passing through their lips. These precious moments of silence, alone and yet shared, reflect the spiritual dimension that makes time at Shrine Mont so special. The spirituality never seems forced or spoon-fed. It’s a natural part of the conversation -- or, in this case, of the silence. The campers had been introduced to the labyrinth by their camp chaplain. Then, in silence, they made their way through the maze. What does trudging on pea gravel by four dozen teens sound like? If you close your eyes, it sounds like the water of a river or, on a peaceful day, a sea -- water lapping onto the shore, cleansing it. After experiencing the labyrinth and the silence, the campers talked about what the experience had felt like to them. For some, it aroused memories of family members who had died. For others, the thoughts were of dreams to come. For others, the feelings were of a connection to God. Then they headed back to camp -- back to another adventure amid the noises and silences of Shrine Mont. By Ed Jones What better time of year than mid-summer to celebrate Christmas? One morning, campers wake to the sound of hymns like "Joy to the World" and "O Come O Come Emmanuel." Each session at St. George's, an entire day of camp is devoted to Christmas, with the focus not on presents or Santa Claus, but on the miracle of Jesus' birth and the hope that He brought into the world. All free electives that day involve some type of giving: some campers go around the mountain singing carols, some make anonymous cards of affirmation and thanks, some pick up trash, some decorate the Shrine and set the table for the evening program. The evening program that night is a Christmas Eucharist, brimming with Christmas hymns and carols set to guitar. Instead of the traditional reading of Luke's Nativity, the Gospel reading is John 1.1 in order to shift the focus away from the pageantry that can blur the Christmas story and towards what it means that God chose to be made man and live among us. Even before campers come the the evening Eucharist, each cabin spends time reflecting on the meaning of Christmas and chooses a symbolic offering to be given during the service. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it." John 1.1-5, NRSV After the Eucharist, the camp processes out of the Shrine in a long line, singing Silent Night while walking to the pool. As the line of campers stretches out, the music grows disjointed, with different groups singing faster or slower, but as the camp unites in a circle around the pool, the camp syncs back into a strong unison. Campers are given votive candles, and small french fry baskets to place in the water. Campers are encouraged to think of someone whose light shines most brightly in their life, and to write that person's name in magic marker on their makeshift boats. One camper wrote the name of their best friend, another "my mommy," some wrote the name of one of their counselors. A few candles were lit around the circle and the flame was passed from one camper to the next until all the boats were lit and then sent into the water. As the boats floated and formed into one large group in the water, the camp linked together with their arms over each other's shoulders, and sang one last Christmas song. By David Churchman Each camp at Shrine Mont is assigned a chaplain, who is in charge of supporting the spiritual life of the camp during that session. Time is set aside each day for the camp to spend time with the chaplain, and for the chaplain to lead the camp in spiritual learning. Most camp chaplains are priests from around the Diocese of Virginia, but each summer there are several young people - generally recent college graduates - hired for a chaplain internship.
This year's interns are James "Jacko" Post and John Garland "JG" Wood. They began the summer as co-chaplains at St. Sebastian's Sports Camp. Jacko and JG focused on the Sports Camp theme of "Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor" from Ecclesiastes throughout the week: leading the campers in team building exercises as a camp, and debriefing each activity to connect it to St. Sebastian's central message. Popularly referred to as "chinterns", Jacko and JG will remain at Shrine Mont for the rest of the summer, working at different camps. The camps are eager to have young chaplains that can relate energetically with their campers, but the internship is also a valuable service to the interns themselves. Two chaplain intern alumnae of note are Susan Daughtry, the head chaplain at camps, and Paris Ball, the Director of Christian Formation and Shrine Mont Camps for the Diocese. Both Susan and Paris are several years into careers devoted to ministry in the Episcopal Church, and both cite their experience as chaplain interns as a crucial step in their personal discernment that led them to ministry. Susan was one of three chaplain interns her summer, and all three interns in her cohort are now priests. As JG and Jacko continue to serve the campers and staff at Shrine Mont, they may hear a call to seminary and ordained ministry, or to serving as a lay person like Paris, but it's certain that their journey will be enriched by this summer. By David Churchman "Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. For if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up. Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone? And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart." St. Sebastian's Sports Camp focuses on building teamwork and community through sports. They focus on a wide variety of sports, including more traditional ones like soccer, basketball, and football, but also newer sports like Ultimate Frisbee or King Ball. First session got a treat when Sensei Brian Dowdy, Susan Daughtry's husband, taught an Aikido free elective. Aikido is a Japanese martial art designed entirely for self-defense, with an emphasis on protecting the well-being of the attacker. Brian went over some of the basic footwork of Aikido, and practiced a simple throw initiated by an attacker's punch. Brian emphasized the discipline and respect for the sensei that is important in the Aikido tradition. Each time Brian gave two firm claps, the campers formed a quick line to sit in and await further instruction. Check out the photo gallery below detailing the discipline, camaraderie, and occasional ridiculousness. By David Churchman
Packed and ready, though a little disorganized.
By David Churchman The mission at St. George's is to build the campers and counselors into a cohesive Christian body, as described in Corinthians I. Overnight camping is one of the key tools St. G's uses to strengthen this body. This week, Session IV cabins went on overnights all over the Shrine Mont property in preparation and training for the culminating three-day trips at the end of the session, which begin tomorrow. Campers are responsible for putting together their packs and hiking with everything they will need for their trip, including sleeping bags, tarps, water, and any food they plan to eat. Preparing fajitas for dinner. Cabins five and nine took their packs and made the ambitious hike up North Mountain. When they got there, they set up their tarps, admired the spectatuclar view, and made fajitas. They practice leave no trace principles, being careful not to waste any food, or leave any food out that might attract animals at night. Campers volunteer to lick the spatula clean and eat off any extra grilled veggies that might be stuck to the pan before all cooking supplies are thrown in a bear bag, a bag used to prevent animals from snacking on the campers' food at night. After some struggle with damp wood, the campfire was lit, creating a central gathering place for spirited discussion. Boys and girls discussed the differences between the sexes at length, one popular discussion question being, "What questions should boys never ask girls?" As the sun set over the mountain, the counselors settled everything down for Compline, a contemplative nighttime service made more holy by the camp fire and a canopy of stars. The boys get under their tarp and the girls under theirs and try - or don't try - to get to sleep. The next morning cabins five and nine will pack up and hike back to camp, the love that binds them together as the Body of Christ made stronger and more visible by this shared accomplishment. |
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The view from the mountainSpreading the good news of Shrine Mont Camps into the Valley of the World.
AuthorsThe View from the Mountain is written by a rotating cast of staff writers and contributors. Archives
September 2018
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