From July 30th to August 4th, around 600 people from all over Germany took part in the Hope Camp at the campsite in Friedensau (near Magdeburg). There was a varied program for all age groups.
The Hope Camp took place for the fourth time, organized by the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Germany and the Hope Media Europe media center (Alsbach-Hähnlein near Darmstadt). In 2020 and 2021, there were some restrictions on activities and the number of participants due to the coronavirus pandemic. After these were removed, the number of participants doubled this year compared to the first two Hope Camps.
Many of the 600 participants were there for the first time; 124 of them were under 20 years old, while the oldest participant was 93 years old. 81 people volunteered to support the organizing team in running the event.
Insights from biblical stories
The thematic thread of the Hope Camp was the story of Joseph and his brothers, from the Old Testament. He was taken to Egypt as a slave, sold by his brothers, and rose to the second highest position after Pharaoh, as a Hebrew. In between there were crises, moments of suffering, and amazing experiences with God and people. In the end, Joseph reconciled with his family of origin. This story was told in morning skits, occasionally interspersed with musical elements and modern allusions. Klaus Popa – theologian, chairman of the media center Hope Media Europe, and presenter of the Hope TV series "believe.stories" – took up the scenes from the skit, told the story of Joseph in its context, and showed insights for personal life. He encouraged people to read biblical stories as a whole and to allow the stories to touch them in order to recognize aspects of God's characteristics.
Adventure worlds
In addition to meetings in the Friedensau tent arena, there was a varied leisure program in 45 so-called adventure worlds. These included many activities for children of different ages as well as adults, such as walks with alpacas, horseback riding, creative activities, sports, or culinary delights. Other life worlds were designed as workshops to get to know the Bible or to delve deeper into faith and life topics (e.g., Christian ethics, Bible translations, dealing with suffering, strengthening one's own resilience, parenting, partnership, health, the intensive workshop "Yes-Jesus Summer Week", and much more). On Saturday afternoon, four people were baptized in the Friedensau natural swimming pond.
In addition to the adventure worlds, the Hope Café, which was set up in the evenings under tent pavilions in the open air, was a popular meeting place with culinary offerings.
Pastor Alexander Kampmann, director of the Hope Camp, spoke in 2020 about the goal of these event-filled days: "We want to create a place where everyone is happy to bring their friends who are interested in faith and to exchange ideas with one another: a colorful, lively family celebration! It would be nice to become known throughout Germany for this and to bring many people into contact with Jesus and his joyful message."
The next Hope Camp will take place again in Friedensau from August 5th to 10th, 2025. Further information is available at www.hope-camp.de. A film clip with impressions from this year's Hope Camp will also be available there shortly.
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