00:03For me, Jesus is someone who is always with you, no matter where you are.
00:07He lives in your heart, and he's there for all the difficult things, but also the beautiful things.
00:13Josephine Pell is 22 years old, and today she's showing us what it means to her to be a devout
00:18Protestant.
00:19She's in the minority in her home country of the Netherlands,
00:22where only 3 in 10 people in her age group say they see themselves as part of a religious community.
00:30I used to feel very alone with my faith, because there weren't that many people around me at school who
00:35were also religious.
00:37I did go to a Christian elementary school and a Christian secondary school, but I was still the only one
00:42who was truly religious.
00:46Josephine is studying education in her home city of Utrecht.
00:50Every Sunday morning, when many of her fellow students are still in bed, she attends church services.
01:07A Protestant church service follows a set format that includes hymns, prayers, and a sermon.
01:13Everyone is welcome, just as they are, and there's no dress code or other regulations.
01:22There are also none of the lavish symbols and images, as is common in Catholic churches.
01:27Here, the church interior is simple and plain.
01:32Protestantism is a form of Christianity.
01:34We believe in Jesus and that he died on the cross for our sins, and that Jesus is the son
01:39of God.
01:41Josephine's home looks much like that of any typical Dutch student.
01:45She doesn't have a crucifix on the wall or display any other religious symbols.
01:49But religion has been a part of her life since childhood.
01:56These photos are from when I was baptized.
01:59My parents decided to have me baptized as a child.
02:02That means that you basically say, yes, I'm really giving my child to God.
02:08Later on, I started to think about who God really is and who Jesus is for me.
02:14And then I made a conscious decision to give my life to Jesus.
02:19Protestantism emerged from the Reformation in the 16th century.
02:22This Christian reform movement criticized various doctrines and practices of the Catholic Church.
02:28To this day, there are significant differences.
02:30In Protestantism, women are allowed to be ordained,
02:33and there's no requirement for clergy to remain celibate.
02:36Just under 100 years ago, 44% of the Dutch population was Protestant.
02:41Today, that figure stands at just 13%.
02:45A few years ago, Josephine joined a Christian Students' Club
02:48where she studies the most important basis of Protestantism and Christianity itself, the Bible.
02:54The members meet in small groups to study Bible passages
02:57and discuss together what they might mean.
03:05It always comes down to good and evil and what it means to live a meaningful life
03:10and what happens when you die.
03:11These are important questions that I think remain with everyone.
03:15Even though the Bible was written more than a thousand years ago
03:18and so much is different today,
03:20I think people are always searching for answers, hope, and meaning.
03:27For Josephine, music is an important part of her faith
03:30and of Protestantism in general.
03:32One of its 16th century pioneering figures, Martin Luther,
03:36loved to sing and composed hymns.
03:38He knew that music has the power to touch people directly.
03:48When I sing or play music, whether alone or with others,
03:52I feel the kind of connection you can also find in prayer.
03:57I find that music is a beautiful way to connect with God.
04:02But of course, religious faith is not only about life in the here and now,
04:07but also about the really big questions.
04:10I don't know exactly what comes after death,
04:14but I do believe something comes after it.
04:17That there isn't only life here on Earth,
04:20that we aren't born to just live our lives and then die and that's it.
04:24Rather that there's something afterwards,
04:26that there's an eternity where everything is much better than here on Earth.
04:29And if not, then that's all right too.
04:31That there's an eternity where everything is going to be.
04:32That there's an eternity where everything is going to be.
04:33That there's an eternity where everything is going to be.
04:35That there's an eternity where everything is going to be.
04:35That there's an eternity where everything is going to be.
04:38That there's an eternity where everything is going to be.
04:39That there's an eternity where everything is going to be.
04:39That there's an eternity where everything is going to be.
04:39That there's an eternity where everything is going to be.
04:39That there's an eternity where everything is going to be.
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