Chapel
Chapel at Messiah College is a central expression of our identity as a community of Christians with a deep commitment to spiritual growth and academic excellence. Chapel is a required opportunity for exposure to forms of worship, various speakers and ideas which are put together with the intention of affirming our common commitments while they both reflect and challenge individual preferences in style. Though we hope that students will be challenged in their faith through chapel, we realize that spiritual nurture is ultimately a function of each person's will, preference and responsibility and cannot be subject to requirements. Chapel is required as a common experience. Spiritual nurture is each student's own responsibility.
Messiah offers a variety of different chapel experiences. Common Chapels, for the entire student body, are held in Brubaker Auditorium on Tuesday and a few Thursday mornings. Elective Chapels, which offer students a choice between liturgical worship, Bible teaching, praise and worship, mission awareness, and more, are held on the remaining Thursday mornings at the regular chapel hour. Alternate Chapels are services held at other times and planned by various student organizations and special interest groups.
Common/Elective Chapel Schedule
Each student is required to attend 24 chapels per semester. Twelve of the chapels attended must be Common Chapels held in Brubaker Auditorium; the remainder may be Elective or Alternate chapels. Students record their chapel attendance electronically with student I.D. cards. Students who attempt to falsify chapel attendance credit will be referred to the office of Community Development for disciplinary action.
Service for Chapel (S4C)
If you are: Then click the link to learn more about the sponsored by the Agape Center and College Ministries. |
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Chapel Attendance Corrections
The responsibility for verifying chapel attendance records rests with the student. Students' chapel attendance records are posted on the students' Self Serve Banner Link in MCSquare. College Ministries will activate an online chapel correction form once at the end of the semester. Please use this form to submit ALL chapel attendance corrections. Corrections are not to exceed 3 plus all 3 corrections must be made in one submission. Chapel Notice details.
Chapel Attendance Petitions
Full Semester: Only those students who have a direct conflict with an internship, practicum, or work schedule may request exemption from chapel for the entire semester. A new chapel attendance petition must be filed in the College Ministries office for each semester the student is eligible for an exemption.
J-Term: Students who spend January Term away from Grantham may file an exemption form for that month when they return to campus.
Commuter Students: Commuters who have a class immediately before or immediately after chapel are expected to attend chapel; other commuters may file a request for an exemption.
Medical Exemptions: Students who need to be excused from chapel because of sickness or other medical reasons may request an exemption. All medical exemptions must be accompanied by a note from a physician, counselor or the Engle Center for Health and Counseling Services.
Family Emergency: Students who have to be away from campus for a family emergency may file a request for an exemption.
Chapel Attendance Petitions must be submitted using the online form in MCSquare. You may access the form through the Campus Life tab in MCSquare.
Chapel Probation
Any student who fails to attain their chapel requirement in a given semester will be placed on chapel probation and notification will be made to the student's academic advisor, the Registrar and the Dean of Students.
Students with a current chapel probation coding are barred from registration. To clear their chapel attendance status a student is required to:
- Print out the MCSquare report of their chapel attendance for the semester in question.
- Listen to the chapel recordings that are available in the College Ministries channel in MCSquare from the previous semester. Please do not submit a chapel recording report for a chapel you actually attended.
- Download the required form and save on your hard drive. Retrieve the blank document and type in your response. Please submit one form for each chapel required. This should be original work (not shared among friends or recycled from semester to semester) Cases of suspected plagiarism or other forms of dishonesty will be referred to the Office of Community Development.
- Return reports, along with the MCSquare printout, to the College Ministries office by the deadline date. Late submissions will be assessed a $50 late fee. Please keep in mind a deadline date is established to ensure your chapel hold is lifted in time for registration. Any reports submitted later than the deadline date, will be processed in a timely manner; however it is best to submit your report(s) no later than one week prior to your registration date.
- The College Ministries office will notify the student's advisor and the Office of the Registrar when the student's chapel probation requirement is met.
Appeals regarding a student's chapel probation status should be made in writing and may be submitted to the College Ministries office within 10 business days of the Chapel Probation e-mail. Decisions of the College Ministries office may be appealed to the Vice Provost and Dean of Students.
Please Note: Since student leaders are expected to be exemplary in all areas, an active chapel probation status is likely to negatively impact one's eligibility for service in a student leadership position. For details, please refer to the SGA Constitution, the Residence Education Staff Manual or an Athletic Coach.
