As Living Stones we are used to offering guided tours especially in old basilicas and baroque churches. The traditional sacral art is well known to us. And although we are interested in art, some Living Stones have not yet gone into more detail about modern and contemporary art. Therefore, it has long been a wish of Living Stones to devote itself especially to this young art at an international education camp.

The theme "Faith and Modern Art" also fitted in well with the venue, Zurich, as the city, and Switzerland in general, is regarded as an important hub of today's art world. More than 120 young adults from more than 15 countries gathered at the Liebfrauen parish centre in the heart of Zurich from 2-5 May 2019. Especially pleasing was the participation of two Living Stones from Chicago and Kiev, where new groups are being formed. And also for new interested people from Switzerland it was a good opportunity to get to know Living Stones better.

The participants were able to experience a varied program with lectures, workshops, exchange rounds, visits to different art spaces and churches, common prayer times and Eucharistic celebrations. An older participant from Luxembourg, who wanted to get to know Living Stones with the educational camp, was positively surprised at how much was demanded of the young people and that despite the dense programme and the challenging lectures, the participants took part with keen interest and commitment.

The group grew together while talking and eating, listening and praying. Perhaps it was also because of the limited space in the parish centre that the familiarity among the young people grew quickly. The good food, prepared by six volunteers who came from Italy, also contributed to the good atmosphere. The modest shower and sleeping facilities with floor mat and sleeping bag did not detract from the good atmosphere. The encounter among each other and the growing as a community beyond the cultural and national borders marked the meeting in a special way.

Further encounters with the local church were made possible by the accommodation in host families. Some participants were able to experience a welcoming local congregation. The presence of church leaders was also appreciated. The Eucharist was celebrated with us by the National Delegate for Youth Pastoral Care, Bishop Alain de Raemy, the Vicar General of the diocese region Zurich-Glarus, Josef Annen, and the Dean of the City of Zurich, Marcel von Holzen. The meeting with the Reformed pastor Christoph Sigrist was also impressive. On the basis of a guided tour of the Grossmünster church, he brought us closer to his understanding of being a Christian, which he summed up with the slogan of the Zurich reformer Ulrich Zwingli "Do something brave for God's sake". This visit was rounded off with participation in the weekly Taizé prayer in Grossmünster.

"The wound"

  The theme of the "wound", which Prof. Andrea dell'Asta SJ impressively demonstrated in his lecture by means of many paintings, was a thread running through the entire educational camp.  Beginning with depictions of the wounds of Christ up to the "Zip" works of Barnett Newman and the cut canvases of Lucio Fontana, the "wound" is a recurring motif in the iconography of the western world, and a basic human experience. From a Christian point of view, according to dall'Asta, wounds do not only stand for life fractures and pain, but also for an opening and a passage to a beyond, the absolute.

Further highlights were the lecture by Prof. Guido Vergauwen, who philosophically approached modern ways of thinking and pleaded for a new open knowledge, and the lectures by Prof. Bert Daelemens SJ and Prof. Eloi Aran Sala, who presented new reflections and developments in church architecture. These conferences will soon be available on Living Stones' Youtube channel. (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvbSbjaL52s3cEdDCawe2zA?app=desktop).

Workshops

An intensive experience were also the encounters in workshops with the artists Robert Dolinar SJ, artist and architect from Slovenia, Patrick Rimoux, light artist from Paris, and Enrique Veganzones, painter from Spain, who made a direct exchange possible on the basis of concrete works of art. The performance "ballarefidei" in the Pfarreisaal Liebfrauen by one dancer and two dancers from the Zurich Opera Ballet also set a special accent. With their expressive dance, they "drew" with their bodies - very close to the wound theme - the inner conflict of man, who finally finds peace in faith.

Many participants were motivated by the positive experience of the educational camp to participate in one of the week-long summer camps of Living Stones in different places in Europe or in the international spiritual retreats on the Simplon Pass. Contacts could also be made which give hope that a Living Stones group could soon be founded in Lausanne. And after first explorations it is quite possible that the next international education camp will take place in Matera, the European Capital of Culture 2019.