The Office of Spiritual Life’s plan for Moody Chapel in the spring semester includes speakers who will share their testimonies. Chapel production will also look different with the addition of new lights and a fog machine to the set.
“This year is about exploring how God works through stories in Scripture and in our personal lives,” campus minister Avory Rosenhuff said. “The power of sharing stories helps people who may feel isolated and alone. The hope is to be an encouragement to students to also share how God has transformed their lives by sharing their stories.”
As for worship, the Tuesday and Thursday Immersed Chapel changed to Tuesdays, and it is now called The Gathering. Rosenhuff said the change is meant to give students the “best of both worlds,” regarding a cappella and instrumental music.
Nathan Kranz, chaplain minister, said they signed a deal with 83 Entertainment this year to gain more consistency in what chapel “looks and feels like.”
“We’re really trying to create a more immersive environment and a darker room with lights that help not only bring us into the space, but light up our speaker’s face in a way that is flattering for the cameras because we do record the majority of Chapels,” Kranz said.
Students are required to receive Chapel credit, so Rosenhuff said they spend a lot of time in Moody and deserve a quality experience.
“We’ve had a lot of administrators say they’re really thankful that production is more quality because it’s less distracting when the sound is immersive and consistent,” Rosenhuff said. “And then, you know, we have people that aren’t fans of big lights, and that’s also okay.”
While only 20% of students are Church of Christ, the use of instruments and production tools during worship can still stir up discussion among students, faculty and alumni. In a post on the university’s Facebook on January 14, which included a montage video of Moody Chapel, users criticized the lack of a Cappella music and compared it to how Chapel used to be.
Kranz said he could not respond to the post directly as he had not seen it, but he said the student body becoming less Church of Christ inspired the recent production changes.
“We’ve had to pivot in such a way to engage what is more familiar to the majority of our students,” Kranz said. “In the church background that I grew up, there weren’t fancy lights, but there also wasn’t clapping or emotion in worship, which I think is an important part of our Christian experience, is learning how to understand that emotions are also God-given, and production is just one way that that we’re seeking to help people feel more comfortable in that space.”
Kranz also highlighted that universities and people are always changing.
“The core elements that we’re trying to keep are a strong theological foundation where Moody is a space where we can gather together every week as a body of believers, an intentional body of believers,” Kranz said. “While the space may continue to look different or we’ll try different things, at its heart, it is still that space where we gather together to hear the word.”
