Dubova Colonorum is a volunteer camp aiming to restore the ruins of a medieval church dedicated to Sts. Cosmas and Damian, near Sedliacka Dubová in Orava region of

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

. Project started in 1998 as a sister project of

Katarínka Katarínka (, ) are the ruins of a Franciscan monastery and church dating back to the early 17th century, located deep in the forests of the Little Carpathians (''Malé Karpaty'') in western Slovakia, 20 km north of Trnava over Dubovský cree ...

and. Since then hundreds of young people mostly from Slovakia and also from other countries participated. Camp has a specific style: volunteers live in medieval atmosphere, isolated from civilisation (they don't use watches, cell phones etc.) and live in tent. They are members of order inspired by

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

spirituality The meaning of ''spirituality'' has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape o ...

and wear

habit A habit (or wont, as a humorous and formal term) is a routine of behavior that is repeated regularly and tends to occur subconsciously. A 1903 paper in the '' American Journal of Psychology'' defined a "habit, from the standpoint of psychology, ...

burlap Hessian (, ), burlap in North America, or crocus in Jamaica and the wider Caribbean, is a woven fabric made of vegetable fibres, usually the skin of the jute plant or sisal leaves. It is generally used (in the crude tow form known as gunny) ...

. Part of the day is spent at work on the ruins.

External links

* {{Official, http://www.dubovacolonorum.sk/ Historic sites in Slovakia Youth organisations based in Slovakia Ruins in Slovakia