Frequently asked questions

The application period for the international confirmation camp is open from May 1st until August 31st. We will be allocating the places by September 15th. After that date, you are welcome to apply for cancellation places. The applications are made using the Lyyti platform.

Our international confirmation camps are similar to those provided by local Finnish parishes. We follow the confirmation plan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland. LNK and Felm are service organizations for the parishes of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Finland. Given that our confirmation camps are attended by people from all over the world, we provide teaching and communication in both Finnish and English.

The fees cover the expenses of the confirmation camp and preparation, including accommodation, meals, staff, program and materials. Unlike in local Finnish parishes, our international confirmation camps are not funded by the church tax revenues. The international confirmation camp is also longer (ten-day camp) than the camps arranged by the local Finnish parishes. We offer the possibility to pay the camp fee in instalments, if that is more convenient for you.

We kindly suggest that you attend the confirmation camp no earlier than the year you turn 15. However, under certain circumstances, it may be possible to attend the confirmation camp at a younger age. Please do not hesitate to contact the coordinators to further discuss the matter.

We would be delighted if you will join us at the confirmation camp, regardless of whether or not you are a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church. However, should you wish to be confirmed, you would need to have been baptized and join or belong to the Evangelical Lutheran Church. Participants can also be baptized at the confirmation camp. For those wishing to be baptized and join the church, the necessary paperwork should be completed before the camp. It would be advisable to discuss your arrangements in detail with the pastor of the confirmation camp.

For those who have already been baptized in a Christian church, there is no need to be baptized again. However, if your extract from a parish register does not show any record of your baptism, we kindly request that you send a copy of your baptism certificate to the office of LNK – The Finnish Association for Children and Youth or Felm (Finnish Evangelical Lutheran Mission) before the confirmation camp.

The first period of the confirmation preparation, participation in the activities of the local parish, is carried out in your own local parish. The local parish is responsible for the activities in this period. We will send an email to the confirmand’s parents with instructions on how to complete this period in the autumn preceding the confirmation camp. In general, the participant always agrees on the practical arrangements and content of this period with their local parish, both in Finland and abroad.

We kindly suggest that you contact your local Lutheran parish (or Christian parish, if you live abroad). The local parish is responsible for the arrangements of this period.

In this case, we kindly request that you contact the confirmation camp coordinators. We will work together to find a solution on a case-by-case basis.

We understand that people come from different backgrounds.

Please be aware that all participants are responsible for their own transportation arrangements to Päiväkumpu camp center. Päiväkumpu is located in the town of Orivesi, which has a population of approximately 9,000 in the Pirkanmaa region of Finland. Orivesi lies 43 kilometers (27 miles) northeast of the regional capital Tampere and approximately 2.5 hours’ drive from the Helsinki Metropolitan area. The address is Päiväkummuntie 47, 35300 Orivesi.

We kindly request your arrival at the camp between 12pm and 2pm. The camp starts at 2pm. You can get to Orivesi by train or bus. The distance between Orivesi and Päiväkumpu camp center is approximately 15 kilometers (9.3 miles). We recommend taking a taxi from the train station.

For more information about Päiväkumpu, we kindly direct you to felm.suomenlahetysseura.fi/osallistu/paivakumpu. Unfortunately, the website is only in Finnish.

The confirmation camp offers a variety of Finnish home-style cooking. To best accommodate your needs, food allergies and special diets will be asked before the camp.

The confirmation group is divided into smaller teaching groups at the camp. Depending on the camp, the teaching groups are at least Finnish and English, and sometimes Finglish. Once the camp has started, it is up to the confirmand to decide which teaching group is the easiest for them. We will guide the confirmand to choose the group that is closest to their way of thinking and feeling.

The teaching situations are not for learning the language. The lessons cover the content of Christianity and use religious and theological vocabulary.

Confirmands have the opportunity to learn Finnish, English and other languages at other moments and in their free time.

For this reason, the Bible that the confirmand brings to the camp should also be in the language they is most familiar with (it may be a language other than Finnish or English).

We regret to inform you that we do not have a visiting day for families during the camp. On the day of the arrival, there is an opportunity to briefly meet our staff and explore our beautiful camp centre.

The confirmation mass will be held in a big marquee tent at Päiväkumpu yard at 12 pm on the last day of the camp. The duration of the mass is approximately 1,5 to 2 hours. We’re delighted to welcome all the parents, relatives and friends to the confirmation.

The marquee tent is conveniently located close to the parking lot. There is an unobstructed sand road from the parking lot to the tent, which you can quite easily manage, for instance, with a wheelchair.

We would like to kindly remind you that there is no limit on the number of guests at the confirmation mass. However, as there is limited seating in the tent, some guests may have to stand. Therefore, we kindly encourage you to reserve the seats for those who are most in need, such as elderly people or people with reduced mobility.

It is customary for each young person to have their godparent or godparents present at the blessing. We suggest that the confirmand asks the godparent(s) to be present well in advance. If the godparent(s) are unable to attend the mass, a family member or another close relative, a good friend or the confirmand’s own ”biggie” can do so instead.

During the confirmation mass, the young confirmands wear a white alb (a long-sleeved, full-length linen tunic secured at the waist by a cord), that is borrowed from the Felm for the duration of the mass. We kindly suggest that the young people wear light-colored clothes without patterns under the alb. As the mass will take place outside, on a sandy terrain, we recommend wearing low heels.

Orivesi has a variety of venues for events and overnight stays. For more information, please visit the Visit Orivesi website (website in Finnish). Unfortunately, there is no possibility to organise Confirmation celebrations in Päiväkumpu.