Camp Mystic is not a specifically Catholic camp. It is a private, nondenominational Christian summer camp for girls in Texas that provides general Christian worship and spiritual activities for campers and counselors.
However, Camp Mystic does accommodate Catholic campers. Catholic Mass is offered to campers and staff who wish to attend, and the camp has also offered Holy Communion services. Therefore, Camp Mystic can be described as a nondenominational Christian camp with Catholic religious services, rather than as a Catholic camp.
What kind of religious camp is Camp Mystic?
Mystic is a nondenominational Christian camp and provides its campers and counselors with many different ways in which they can grow spiritually. About Us: Camp Mystic is a private Christian summer camp for girls.
The staff at Mystic strives to provide young girls with a wholesome Christian atmosphere in which they can develop outstanding personal qualities and self-esteem. Each summer, Mystic challenges its campers to meet the Mystic ideals: Be a better person for being at Mystic Let Mystic bring out the best in them Grow spiritually.
Campers develop life-long friendships with other campers and counselors. They also learn incredible life skills. A summer camping experience at Camp Mystic is an important investment in your daughter's education.
Does Camp Mystic offer Catholic Mass?
Yes. Catholic Mass is also offered on Saturday evenings to those campers who wish to attend. The camp’s general religious program is Christian and nondenominational, but Catholic campers have access to Mass during the session.
On Sundays, a priest came to camp to offer Mass for Catholic campers and staff. While others slept in or lingered over breakfast, I made my way to the stone steps used for the service.
The priest, old and kind, invited everyone to the Communion table, knowing that Episcopal and Lutheran and other campers might be missing the body of Christ, too.
What are Sunday religious activities like?
Sunday at Camp Mystic is a day of rest, relaxation, and worship. Everyone is encouraged to visit Chapel Hill, a special place overlooking Mystic, for prayer and Sunday services.
Devotionals are held on Sunday mornings. Campers and counselors join together to sing songs, listen to scripture, discover ways to grow spiritually, and learn to apply these lessons to their daily life at camp and back home.
Vespers services are held every Sunday evening on Chapel Hill and are designed to appeal to the spiritual life of every camper. Once a term, Mystic offers a sunrise Holy Communion service on Chapel Hill.
How does religion fit into daily camp life?
Throughout the week Mystic continues to create a spiritual environment for all to learn and grow from. Campers and counselors help lead devotionals after breakfast every morning.
Bible studies are offered for campers and counselors alike. Nightly cabin devotionals give everyone an opportunity to end the day on a positive and inspirational note.
Three mornings a week, I led a Bible study. On the other mornings-when not watching swimmers in the river-I supervised canoe racing.
At night, we had carnivals and games and skits and evening vespers. Each session, at the last meeting of our Bible study class, I read the story of the Last Supper and washed my campers’ feet in the Guadalupe River and felt so close to God.
Does offering Mass make Camp Mystic Catholic?
No. Offering Catholic Mass does not make the camp a Catholic institution. Camp Mystic’s overall identity is explicitly described as Christian and nondenominational, meaning that its religious environment is intended to welcome campers from different Christian traditions.
The camp combines general Christian activities with particular opportunities for different denominations. Sunday services, Bible studies, devotionals, vespers, prayer, scripture readings, and spiritual instruction form the common Christian program, while Catholic Mass is available specifically to those who wish to attend.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Is Camp Mystic Catholic? | No. It is a nondenominational Christian camp. |
| Is Camp Mystic Christian? | Yes. It is a private Christian summer camp for girls. |
| Is Catholic Mass available? | Yes. Catholic Mass is offered to campers and counselors who wish to attend. |
| Are other Christian traditions represented? | Yes. The camp’s general program is designed for a broad Christian community. |
| Are Bible studies and devotionals part of camp life? | Yes. They are offered during the week and in the cabins. |
Camp Mystic’s Christian setting
Camp Mystic, the 99-year-old Christian summer camp on the banks of the Guadalupe River, has for years given girls a place to be themselves, former campers say. The camp has for nearly 100 years offered 30-day programs to improve the spirituality and self-confidence of girls.
Campers spent Sundays doing religious readings near the river before holding a small service on Chapel Hill, a nearby ridge with a cross overlooking the valley.
Mystic is located near the geographical center of Texas, 18 miles northwest of Kerrville. Mystic is nestled among cypress, live oak, and pecan trees in the hill country of west-central Texas on the banks of the beautiful Guadalupe River and Cypress Creek.
The camp’s natural setting is closely connected with its religious and reflective traditions. Chapel Hill, prayer services, Sunday worship, Bible studies, and cabin devotionals provide regular opportunities for spiritual development alongside outdoor activities.
Camp history and religious continuity
Camp Mystic was established in 1926 by The University of Texas coach “Doc” Stewart. Camp Mystic had one eight-week session from the beginning until 1942.
After World War II Camp Mystic began offering two sessions, and later added a two week third session in 1983. Ag & Pop, with their two children, Anne Stacy Eastland Spears and William Gillespie Stacy Jr., kept Mystic in continuous operation, except for the years 1943-45, when it was leased by the federal government as a rehabilitation and recovery camp for army air corps veterans of World War II.
In 1939, she and her husband, “Pop” Stacy, decided to purchase the camp. They began many of the traditions which are still followed by Mystic’s campers.
Dick and Tweety Eastland, started at Mystic in 1974. They were the third generation to manage Mystic, which has been in the family since 1939.
For many years they worked alongside Iney and Frank Harrison, learning the traditions and operations of the camp. In the Mystic spirit, their goals have been to boost every camper’s self-confidence and to nurture the development of their individual characters.
What should Catholic families understand?
A Catholic girl can attend Camp Mystic and participate in its broader Christian environment while also attending Catholic Mass. The camp is therefore compatible with Catholic participation, but it should not be confused with a Catholic diocesan camp, parish camp, or Catholic school-sponsored program.
The available religious activities include Catholic Mass, but they also include nondenominational services and practices intended to serve campers from different Christian backgrounds. The camp’s stated focus is spiritual growth, character development, self-confidence, friendship, and life skills.
Campers and counselors join together to sing songs, listen to scripture, discover ways to grow spiritually, and learn to apply these lessons to their daily life at camp and back home.
“I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help…” Psalm 121:1
Christian Summer Vibes
Answer in one sentence
Camp Mystic is a private, nondenominational Christian girls’ camp that offers Catholic Mass and other Christian worship opportunities, but it is not itself a Catholic camp.