Why do we do chapel at EMS?

Why do we do chapel at EMS?

At a recent event at school, Bible and English teacher Karen Suderman shared how she struggled with this question last year – her first year as chapel coordinator. She shared, “I had a lot of conversations with people, I wrestled with this. And I realized that at EMS and other places, we talk about what happened in chapel, but less about why we do it.” 

So in 2023-2024, Ms. Suderman collaborated with the Bible department on what to do in chapel. They created the opportunity for every single student in grade seven through 12 to be involved with chapel and engaged faculty and staff as well. Throughout the year, care and discernment was given to understand how we do chapel and why we, as a learning community, value chapel. Here’s what they learned:

• We have voice. We have wisdom that we can share with one another and we want to continue to explore and use our communal voice. 
• We also really value external voice. We want ideas and people to converse with. 
• We learned that there are many ways to pray: through the creation of an art piece, words of lament, or the simple act of lighting a candle. Prayer can come through words and in silence; in solitude or community. We learned that no matter how we pray, God listens. 

They also learned why we do chapel together at EMS:

Together we celebrate achievements, lament loss, and broaden our understanding of the world and our place in it. 

• When we read scripture together we bind ourselves to a much larger story and recognize one another as participants in this story as it continues to unfold. 
• When we sing together we recognize that while one voice is beautiful, voices together create something so much more than the sum of its parts. 
• When we pray together we gently hold each other’s vulnerabilities and reach out to God. 

So may the journey continue this year. 

To learn more about chapel and view the chapel schedule, visit easternmennonite.org/chapel