Dubova Colonorum is a volunteer camp aiming to restore the ruins of a medieval church dedicated to

Sts. Cosmas and Damian Cosmas and Damian ( ar, قُزما ودميان, translit=Qozma wa Demyaan; grc-gre, Κοσμᾶς καὶ Δαμιανός, translit=Kosmás kai Damianós; la, Cosmas et Damianus; AD) were two Arab physicians in the town Cyrrhus, and were r ...

, near

Sedliacka Dubová Sedliacka Dubová ( hu, Parasztdubova) is a village and municipality in Dolný Kubín District in the Žilina Region of northern Slovakia. It is situated at 594 m (1949 ft) and has about 513 inhabitants. Peter Colotka Peter Colotka ( ...

in Orava region of

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), 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 s ...

. Project started in 1998 as a sister project of

Katarínka Katarínka (german: St. Katharein, hu, Szent Katalin kolostor) 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 ...

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 Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...

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.

of burlap. 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