Agnes Scott College

 

ATLANTA – A procession of Agnes Scott students representing diverse faith traditions offered a multifaith blessing featuring African drums and dancing Friday, April 18.  The blessing launched a weekend to introduce the college’s new Julia Thompson Smith Chapel that culminates in a formal Presbyterian dedication service on Sunday.

A Christian chapel welcoming people of all faiths – the college's first freestanding chapel in its 119-year history – the Julia Thompson Smith Chapel also features a multifaith meditation room, which is enclosed in glass on three sides and surrounded by gardens.

"Completion of the Julia Thompson Smith Chapel is a great occasion in the history of Agnes Scott College," said Agnes Scott College President Elizabeth Kiss. "It was made possible by the vision, hard work and amazing generosity of many members of our community. We are excited to witness the many ways the chapel will bring us together for worship, meditation, celebration and spiritual exploration."

Representatives from various faiths blessed the new chapel. Rabbi Joshua Lesser from Congregation Bet Haverim in Atlanta, the Rev. Bryan Small from the Emory University Catholic Center, Huma Faruqi a teacher of the Quran and Islamic studies and the Rev. Kate Colussy-Estes, Julia Thompson Smith Chaplain at Agnes Scott College joined students, alumnae and other members of the Agnes Scott community for the Friday blessing. Student leaders from 11 religious organizations, including Muslim, Hindu, Presbyterian and Baptist groups, participated in a prayer litany.

Rabbi Lesser has served as interim rabbi for Emory Hillel where he has piloted social justice programming and helped to double service attendance. He serves on the Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta's Task Force on Healing and Spirituality and on the board of the Anti-Defamation League. The Rev. Small, an Atlanta native and a graduate of St. Vincent Seminary in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, has served the Emory University and Agnes Scott College communities for the past two years. Huma Faruqi teaches at two mosques in Fayetteville and Riverdale, as well as other locations in the metro area. Her daughter, Reem, is a 2006 Agnes Scott graduate. The Rev. Colussy-Estes, a graduate of Louisville Presbyterian Theological Seminary in Kentucky, was appointed the Julia Thompson Smith Chaplain at Agnes Scott in August 2006.

A traditional dedication worship service Sunday, April 20 at 10 a.m. also began outdoors with a traditional Scots bagpiper calling worshippers to gather. Following Scottish tradition, President Kiss and the Rev. Colussy-Estes knocked on the chapel doors and asked that they be opened. Trustees inside granted their entrance and guests wereinvited inside to be seated. The Presbyterian worship service featured music, responsive readings, traditional hymns, communion and blessings and dedications.

Seating in the chapel for this service was by invitation only. Additional reserved seating and standing room only space for the general public was available in the Baker Atrium of the Mary Brown Bullock Science Center, immediately next door to the new chapel. Closed-circuit television coverage of the service will be available and communion was provided to participants in the atrium.

Sunday musical performances included "Sonata in B flat: Adagio and Allegro" by Georg Philipp Telemann, performed by Calvert Johnson, college organist and Charles A. Dana Professor of Music, featuring cello accompaniment by Sarah Mecholsky, class of 2009, and oboe performance by Donna Wrobel, class of 2009.

President Elizabeth Kiss delivered welcoming remarks, followed by a call to worship with President Emerita Mary Brown Bullock. Prayers of dedication followed, led by President Emerita Ruth Schmidt and trustees J. William Goodhew III and Kathy Blee Ashe, class of 1968 and Martha Rosselet, class of 1958. John E. Smith II and the Rev. Dr. Sue Westfall, associate executive for ministry for the Presbytery of Greater Atlanta, closed the readings.

The sermon, "The Other Dimension," was delivered by the Rev. Dr. Julia T. Gary – introduced by Julia Sierra Wilkinson, class of 2008, who read the Hebrew Scriptures Psalm 40:1- 4, 6-8.

The affirmation of faith was led by Neema Cyrus-Franklin, class of 1998, followed by the eucharist offering given by Chelsea Guenther, class of 2010, and accompanied by the Luchsingers, an Agnes Scott choral group. An invitation to the Lord's table was delivered by the Rev. Colussy-Estes and the the Rev. Dr. Westfall.

Following communion, the college hymn "God of the Marching Centuries" was followed by the charge and benediction and postlude "Old Hundredth" by Elizabeth Stirling.

The Julia Thompson Smith Chapel is named for a 1931 graduate of Agnes Scott and wife of the late Hal Smith, long-time chair of the college's board of trustees. Ground was broken for the distinctive structure Feb. 21, 2007.

A UCLA/Pew study found that students tend to become more spiritual during their college years, even as their attendance at formal services dropped off rapidly. Pew UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute conducted a longitudinal study to assess the spirituality of college students during their undergraduate years.

When asked about the apparent conflict between declining attendance at religious services and growing spirituality, Agnes Scott College Chaplain Colussy-Estes said, "Active religious participation wanes when a student comes to campus because there's no one telling them to get out of bed.

"Having a chapel on campus gives students an opportunity to explore who they are and what they stand for as spiritual persons,” she said. “No matter where they decide to hang their hat in terms of denominational or religious affiliation, they still have this space that is an example that we as institution value their spiritual lives, even though they live in a culture that does not necessarily do so. We will nurture that component of who they are as much as we will their lives as academics."

A lead gift for the estimated $6 million chapel was provided by the Hal and John Smith Family Foundation. College trustee James D. Philips and wife Donna Cowley Philips gave the gardens, which are named in honor of his parents, J. Davison Philips and Katherine Wright Philips, a 1943 Agnes Scott graduate.

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