Last week I visited Incarnation Camp in Ivoryton, Connecticut. Founded by our church in 1886, Incarnation Camp is the oldest co-ed summer camp in the United States. I was there to speak to the camp counselors and other staff as part of their orientation week before the campers arrived. I talked about the Episcopal history and identity of the camp. Then I took them through a celebration of Holy Eucharist to show them what will happen every Sunday night at Camp Chapel.
Summer camp can make a strong and lasting impression on a person. Just ask political and cultural commentator David Brooks, who spent his youth as an Incarnation camper and counselor from age 8 to 22. Incarnation Camp is one of the reasons Brooks eventually converted from Judaism to Christianity and became an Episcopalian.
Brooks has written about his experience at Incarnation Camp more than once for The New York Times. He points to the camp as a profound, formative influence in his life in three key areas:
- Thick Institutions: He describes the camp as a “thick institution” that leaves a mark. It is a community that doesn’t just pass through one’s memory but becomes part of one’s identity by engaging the whole person (head, hands, heart, and soul), teaching youth to form loyal bonds away from the segmenting influences of modern society.
- Social Range: He highlights the camp as a deeply effective cross-class community that integrates youth from vastly different backgrounds—from affluent children of Wall Street executives to kids from the poorest areas of the Bronx—teaching campers social range and a rare capacity for unexpected friendships.
- Lifelong Connections: He writes movingly about how the camp fosters deep, enduring, lifelong connections. Friends become like family and support one another through trials and tribulations, shared grief, and navigating life’s challenges over the years.
I hope Brooks would say the same thing about church. I for one can say it about Incarnation, and I know many of you can too. In fact, a few of our Vestry members testified to the life-changing power of this faith community at our recent Newcomers Reception.
If Incarnation has had a profound impact on your life, we want to hear about! Email me if you feel moved to share, and watch this space for parishioner testimonials. Some news is too good to keep to ourselves.
Adrian+