The Wesley Chapel at West Virginia Wesleyan is now offering a variety of chapel services. As late fall and early winter begin to bring an array of holiday celebrations, there will be an assortment of special services and events to meet the needs of students on campus.
“We’ll be having some special services in the style of Taizé,” said Dean of the Chapel, Angela Gay Kinkead. “This was created by an ecumenical Christian community in France where those gathered to sing simple repetitive songs and prayers, interspersed with scripture and silence. It is a very contemplative style of worship.”
According to Kinkead, each Tuesday at 11 a.m., there is an ecumenical service in the West Meditation Chapel of the Martin Religion Center (MRC). These services typically last 35 minutes and usually include a brief meditation and Holy Communion. Kinkead said that these services often include creative variations.
Catholic Mass is every Saturday at 5 pm in the West Meditation Chapel, as posted on bulletin boards around campus. According to Kinkead, Father Ron Nikodem of Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Buckhannon, serves as Celebrant in a service that usually lasts about 45 minutes.
Kinkead said that last fall, 1,204 undergraduate students chose to self-identify a religious preference, although 193 of them indicated “None Given.” The survey given, however, indicated that majority of students uphold Christian beliefs.
The staff in the Wesley Chapel also work to accommodate requests made by the student body.
“We get service requests a few times a year,” said Kinkead. “The requests are usually in relation to a special occasion or topic, such as prayers for peace, reunification of Korea and Coming out Week.”
Senior marketing major, Dan Meyers, who completed many of his community service hours in the chapel, said the staff in the chapel works hard to meet all needs on campus.
“It takes a lot of work to ensure the student body has a place to worship that values diversity and the student opinion.”
Kinkead welcomes any requests or suggestions for chapel services. For additional information contact her via email at kinkead@wvwc.edu.