Journey Italy

If you want to try out the serenity of a simpler life, then join InterVarsity Study Abroad for a weekend in Italy where you will step back in time in pursuit of a radically different vision for the future.

Imagine this...

From atop this layered village, you can see a patchwork of fields and vineyards, speckled with other medieval cities on hilltops. Perhaps those too have winding streets, gurgling fountains, and surprise staircases shortcutting from one level to the next. But you're grateful you’re in this particular village, because there’s something deeper here than a breathtaking view to give you a new perspective.

As sunset turns the stone buildings a dusty rose and the church bells tell you it’s time to gather for dinner, the invitation to this kind of simplicity has already shifted something in you, and your soul is thirsty to pursue more of the same after you leave this place...

What is possible by the end of Journey Italy?

• You feel inspired and equipped to make countercultural choices regarding humility and simplicity, because you trust they will lead to greater freedom.
• You’ve learned spiritual practices and heard stories of Christian role models that make it feel possible to seek a rich inner life with God even in the modern world.
• Your devotion to Jesus flows from the experience of being profoundly loved by him; loving him back and loving others like he does now feels like freedom and not obligation.
• Your sense of connection with all created things leads you to join the chorus of creation in worship of God, your Creator.

Why Italy?

• You’ll linger in Assisi where young Francis gave up his nobility and earthly possessions in order to love the poor and outcast. His radical act of faith inspired a tectonic shift in the mission of the Church 800 years ago, the effects of which are still felt today.
• You’ll explore how it’s possible to follow Jesus in the midst of wealth, power, and politics like St. Francis, St. Clare, and their monastic communities who lived at the heart of the Christian empire of their time.
• You’ll touch the cool stone of the caves where the Franciscan brothers would spend 40 days at a time in prayer, and marvel at how the caves feel somehow still warmed by the presence of God’s Spirit that has been welcomed there for centuries.
• You’ll begin in Rome, the city where Paul was imprisoned and Peter was killed by the Roman Empire for subversively preaching the gospel. Yet, it’s also a city where the church eventually became its own powerful empire. When you travel to Assisi the next day, you will feel the stark contrast to Empire. This contrast will help you consider ways God may call you to take spiritual risks when you return home to confront power structures and opposition there.

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