By Jaci Schneider, Opinion Editor

Too many students Ð 1,447 Ð attended Chapel Thursday in Moody Coliseum to divide into Community-Formation Chapels this week, said Wayne Barnard, dean of Campus Life, and on Thursdays Chapel will continue to meet in Moody until small groups are finalized.

“I think one more week in Moody, then we ought to be able to move,” Barnard said.

The application deadline for small-group Chapel was Friday, so the group in Moody should be smaller this week and closer to the size it will continue to be at for the rest of the semester, Barnard said.

As of Thursday, 30 groups applied for small-group Chapel.

When community-formation Chapel begins, three options will be available. A time of worship and contemplation will take place in Chapel on the Hill, an in-depth Bible study on Renovation of the Heart will be in Room 114 of the Biblical Studies Building and a testimonial time called “Faith Stories” will be in Hart Auditorium.

The three locations together have enough seats for around 700 people, Barnard said. The largest space, Chapel on the Hill, can seat about 350.

“On any given Thursday, we may have more students in one than the other,” he said. “When one room is full, people can opt for another choice.”

Chapel on other weekdays will remain as it has for the past few weeks.

Unlike last semester, Shane Hughes, coordinator of Chapel programs, or Barnard will most likely preside over all services.

“We go back and forth on that,” Barnard said. “The challenge is that faculty and staff and different people who would be presiding come from class, too, and it’s as hard for them to get there early.”

Barnard said that although Hughes, who began his position this semester, has not yet been introduced in Chapel, he should be sometime soon.