To imagine a former Cistercian monastery might conjure thoughts of silence or solitude; of prayerful chapels and peaceful gardens. The imagination is less likely to picture punk rock, performance art, or body painting – but this is just what you find at Poland’s old Lubiaz monastery each July. For five days every summer, the doors to the 300-room, 17th century palace are thrown open to host the riotous re-mixing of faith and culture that is the SLOT Art Festival.

Art installations go up in the corridors and the sanctuary. Cafes take up residence in the cloisters. A theatre, stages, and a cinema are set up. Six thousand young people descend on the monastery and camp in the grounds, and a varied programme welcomes them to talks, debates, workshops, and performances.

The SLOT Art Festival is no ordinary festival, but its most distinctive features don’t stop at the unexpected location. This is a festival that is run by Christians, but it isn’t billed as a Christian festival. As one attendee described it, it is “a meeting point of Christian and secular culture, with a lot of significant consequences for both sides.” In its celebration of creativity, music, and expression, the programme crosses over into the mainstream and embraces the best of contemporary culture. This broad mixture of arts, politics, and spirituality means young people feel welcome, wherever they are on their own journey of faith.

Another distinctive is that while most festival goers are there as consumers of the entertainment, the SLOT philosophy is one of participation. It’s not easy to be just a part of the audience. There are 130 different workshops to take part in, some serious, some fun. “It has an almost carnivalesque flavour,” says speaker Andrew Jones (aka TallSkinnyKiwi), “with people learning to juggle and paint … It creates an atmosphere of humility and learning.”

The festival organisers explain: “We wanted to present a space where young people could not only experience but also express a reality often forgotten in art: that of the Builder/Artist/Creator which is truly the essence of creativity and connects creative, open people.” Learning new skills, playing together and connecting creative people are all goals in themselves, but there is another purpose here too. “We want to help the created meet the Creator. Knowing that we are formed in his image it becomes clear that we also are called to create – music, paintings, sculptures, movement, history … and what’s more we are called to find joy in the process!”

The SGM Lifewords global family share the SLOT vision to connect people to God and to each other, and to engage creatively with our culture. That’s why SGM Lifewords in Poland has been working with the organisers, the Foundation of Local Creative Centres, to help promote the festival. Conversations about further cooperation and partnership are underway, and we look forward to seeing how SGM Lifewords can contribute to SLOT in 2009.