2018 Call to Chivalry Camp: Heroism and Christian Ideal in the XXIst Century !
From the 14th to 22nd of July 2018, the Federation Pro Europa Christiana organized the second annual Call to Chivalry Camp at Villa Notre Dame de la clairière. Eleven boys from around the world attended the camp. The boys traveled from Bolivia, Germany, Ireland, Poland, Romania, and the United States.
Each morning was begun by the sound of bagpipes. Immediately following wake up, the boys would gather to pray the Exorcism of Saint Michael asking him for the grace to be militant Catholic gentleman and to have strength for the day ahead.
The next formation of the day was inspection of the rooms. This was done to make sure the rooms were tidy and presentable. A failure of an inspection would result in a small penance such as push-ups. Inspection is important because it builds self-discipline which is needed in every Catholics’ life.
Immediately following inspection, the boys would form in front of the Statue of Our Lady to sing the Credo. After this ceremony, the boys would march to breakfast singing We Want God, a hymn written by the great Saint Louis de Monfort and it was also the anthem of the Vatican until the early 20th century.
Following breakfast, the daily rosary was prayed in front of the relic of the True Cross in the chapel. After this daily meetings were held.
Each day the participants were graced to have the spiritual strengthening of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in the Traditional Latin form. The graces received from this was priceless.
During the meetings, the process of the corruption of Christian Civilization was discussed. To better understand this Revolutionary process, Mr. Julio Loredo demonstrated the beauty of Medieval Christendom by showing examples of Cathedrals, Gregorian Chant, hierarchy in the Medieval Order, and by contrasting it to the ugliness of the modern world.
One participant, Alexander Komenda from Poland, told me: “I was surprised! I never thought that the Revolt of Luther, the French Revolution, and Communism are linked. I always thought that today’s fashions are normal, today we have this fashion in the past we had decency. Now I understand that today’s fashion are immoral.”
In Mr. James Bascom’s talks he explained to the participants what heroism is and how it applies to a Catholic today. He explained that it is Heroic to be a Catholic in our days because one must be a militant catholic. In another talk, he discussed the importance of manly Purity which in our days is very much attacked.
Mr. Stanisław Sadowski gave a speech on the Polish defense of Jasna Gora against the Protestants. He told of their great leader Fr. Kordecki, who demonstrates that to fight the Revolution we must practice perseverance and have a total trust in Our Lady.
Throughout the camp there were many activities. Some of these included Medieval Games, water balloon fights, Prison Break, and a Treasure Hunt. To keep a chivalrous spirit alive and build the enthusiasm of the participants in these activities many slogans and ejaculations were cried out. Some of these included: “ Advance – Always!, Retreat – Never!”, “ Youth is not made for pleasure but for Heroism”, “Those who have not given everything – have not given anything!”
As well as outdoor activities, the participants had a few outings. The beautiful Medieval section of Strasburg was visited as well as a castle from Charlemagne’s age. Here there was a magnificent falconry presentation which included eagles. The beautiful castle of Haut Koenigsburg was also visited. The participants marveled at its grandeur and ancient stolidity. A great smile was presented at the sight of the incredible arms and armor.
Finally, the camp was ended with a magnificent Medieval Banquet. The ceremony of a banquet was especially heightened with the presentation of a whole roasted boar. After a wonderful feast, the participants received a beautiful image of Our Lady and the special prize was given to the winning team.
The graces received in this camp were very apparent in the chivalrous attitudes of the boys at the end of the camp. These aspects of chivalry and manly virtues these young men have learned over the past week will help them in this modern society to be Crusaders of the twenty first century!
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If you are interested and would like to know more about the next editions of the Call to Chivalry Camp in Europe, please write to us.