When our father first told us about a summer opportunity at a seminary in Fort Wayne, we weren’t even sure that we wanted to go. We were unsure that we wanted to spend some of our summer vacation learning in a classroom. If you don’t already know, the Christ Academy experience means a lot of theology. But because of the pandemic, after being quarantined for so long at home, we were desperate for a change of scenery and were open to ideas. Our dad really encouraged us to go to Christ Academy and so we went.
Arrival-what to expect?
When we arrived at the seminary, we were welcomed by other people from around the country. We thought we would be roommates, but we each had our own room. The other kids in the dorm were fun and sometimes rowdy (which we liked), but they were also very hardworking and took the program very seriously. It was fun getting to know so many great people.
The theology classes were very deep and educational. They really made us think about our faith and beliefs. The professors were awesome. They were interesting and funny and we enjoyed getting to know them.
We had chapel four times a day!
This was one of our favorite parts of the whole experience. The chanting and singing were very joyful and solemn. We had never heard chanting like that before. It was very cool. The pastors who preached to us during the chapel services were excellent preachers. Their sermons made us do a lot of thinking and questioning (in a good way). It was also quite cool when we had Q & A time with various pastors. They did a great job telling us all about the ministry. And there was time to learn about Lutheran colleges, which we enjoyed.
Sadly, this experience was only one week long because of the pandemic, but we are super excited that this summer the program will return to being two weeks long. We hope to do this every summer as long as we can. The food was exceptionally good.
We are so grateful to Pastor Paavola and the Mid-South District for allowing us to participate in Christ Academy. We hope that other high school students from the district will consider being a part of this terrific program.
For more info on Christ Academy, visit https://www.ctsfw.edu/ctsfw-events/christ-academy/timothy-school/
— Andrew II & Gabriel Abraham
