The Office of Spiritual Life has begun the new year and the new semester with key changes to small group Chapels, including the addition of a mandatory meeting for small group Chapel leaders. The changes come with a set of three goals that The Office of Spiritual Life has in the spring semester. 

“Our three words are proximity, participation and purpose,” Avory Rosenhuff, campus minister said.

Proximity is meant to create a rhythm and recurring practice in student’s lives while the participation goal is to encourage students to engage in small group Chapels rather than be lectured at.

“Small groups are a beneficial part of spiritual formation because they allow dialogue,” Rosenhuff said. “Moody is high production in a big group, small groups allow for you to specialize in a shared interest.” 

Small group Chapels can be seen throughout campus in a variety of locations and sizes. This versatility showcases the shared interests of groups across campus. Some small group Chapels are open to anyone, such as ‘The Gathering’ hosted by The Office of Spiritual Life, or Veggie Tales Chapel which is hosted by Hamby Church of Christ. However, others are directed for specific groups, such as department Chapels, fraternity and sorority Chapels and on-campus employers who want to engage in faith-based conversations with their coworkers and employees. 

Rosenhuff also said the purpose goal is to allow for students to feel welcome and seen in a Chapel environment. 

“It’s easy to get lost in the sea of people in Moody,” Rosenhuff said. “This is a place for community to be found.”

Another change being made is the requirements for leading a small group Chapel. New this semester is a meeting, hosted by the The Office of Spiritual Life, which allows for the campus ministers to get to know the leaders. 

“There are so many small group Chapels,” Rosenhuff said. “We can’t visit all of them so it’s our one time to get to see everyone’s faces and meet people.” 

Rosenhuff also said that the meetings help leaders navigate Suitable and allow for questions regarding leading a Chapel.

‘The Gathering’ was the third and most notable change made to small group Chapels this semester. The event, formerly known as ‘Immersed Chapel,’ had become a redundancy because it was formed years ago to allow for instruments to be used for worship. Since the addition of instruments in Moody Chapel, Rosenhuff said the ‘Immersed’ name had no meaning.

“The name didn’t really make sense,” Rosenhuff said. “Now that Moody is higher production, we know that isn’t for everyone. The Gathering is more of a stripped, low-key version of worship.”

“We’re making sure that students get a variety of worship experiences,” Rosenhuff said.