DATES // 

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ITALY: September - December  and April - June

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IRELAND: January - March

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COST // $15,000

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LOCATION // 

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ITALY: Bobbio Pellice, the little town where we are located, is a beautiful little village on the border with France. It is located in a true alpine village 800 meters above sea level and is a mosaic of forest, fields, rural houses, and mountains. Bobbio Pellice is in The Pellice Valley, which is home to about 18,000 people scattered in several villages. Bobbio is visually attractive and appears to be preserved in time with a lifestyle that is still manual and self-sustaining.  Picturesque and interesting – it is generally a quiet place where you can relax and enjoy the wonder of God’s creation all around you - the Italian Alps, rivers and beautiful forests. Perched on the side of a mountain, at the end of the Pellice Valley, Bobbio will not easily leave your heart.

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IRELAND: The Republic of Ireland is located in the extreme north-west of the European continent locked in by the turbulent waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the narrow passage of the Irish Sea. The students live in the Lacken House (ministry site). 

 

CULTURAL INFORMATION // 

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ITALY: With about 700 inhabitants, the main income of Bobbio Pellice is agricultural - the cows, sheep, and goats provide delicious cheeses and meats. It’s a typical Piemontese town – it has a weekly market, ice cream and coffee shops, and family run businesses.

 

Italy is a post-Christian nation—meaning, while the society is rooted in the history, culture, and practices of Christianity the beliefs of the nation are predominantly agnostic and atheist. Even though pieces of Christian teachings are applauded for their moral benefits, the cross of Christ is looked at with contempt.

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People who come to the Val Pellice are often transformed by the remarkable influence left by the heritage of the Waldensians; a group of believers who were persecuted and often martyred for their faith. They fought for the right for laypersons to read the Bible and gave birth to the first reformation movement in Europe. (Although Italy itself has still not had a spiritual reformation.) Piedmont (the region where the Val Pellice is located) is home to the largest satanic church in Europe and is known as the major center for occultism.

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IRELAND: In 1841 the Republic of Ireland had a recorded population of 6,528,770, the great majority worked in agriculture and lived in the open countryside. Famine and emigration had reduced this figure to 2,971,677 by the timothy first census in the newly independent free state was taken in 1926. In 2004 the comparative proportions of the 1.6 million people at work were 6.4%(agriculture), 27.6% industry, and 66% (service). Not surprisingly some two-thirds of the country's four million population now live in gateway cities. In 2002 the greater Dublin area had population of over one million as compared to 186,239 for Cork, the next largest urban concentration. 

 

MINISTRY // 

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ITALY: Students will learn to communicate with Italians in their language and build relationships in the community for the sake of sharing the Gospel. Students will also go to Torre to spend the day teaching English at a local school and serve at the Salvation Army.

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IRELAND: Ministry in Ireland includes intense efforts in evangelism working with the local church. Along with strategic team efforts throughout the year in evangelism. We partner with Operation Mobilization (OM). 

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