Worship with a purpose this semester

Dear Wesleyan community, annual thing; the passion should be there all throughout the year and come to an apex during the senior chapel at the end of April. At Wesleyan, we are so blessed by being able to be in a safe place to worship. We should join in with the chapel band and rejoice that we get the opportunity to worship. we have side conversations during chapel, everyone else is going to have side conversations. But if we worship God in our own way, everyone else will follow our lead. Let us rejoice in the knowledge that we get to worship at our school for one more semester before we head off to college.

One of my favorite chapels at Wesleyan last year was the Senior Chapel for the class of 2022. I had never seen a real senior chapel before, and it blew me away. I remember being shocked when all the seniors screamed Psalm 24 with such passion and when they all danced and sang the chapel songs played by the band. I had never seen that kind of worship at all during my three years of Wesleyan. It was a refreshing change from all the other chapels where we say Psalm 24 in a monotone voice, remain silent while the chapel band sings, and pretend not to daze off when the chapel speaker takes the stage.

For the students who don’t want to worship or feel uncomfortable being vulnerable, that’s okay! Worship is personal and unique to everyone. However, I do ask that you respect others and the space around you during chapel time.

When we returned to school in August, Wesleyan chapels went back to normal. People went back to having their personal conversations while the chapel band sang and while the speaker talked. I quickly realized that all the passion I saw during senior chapel was a once-a-year occurrence.

I would like to challenge that thinking. The passions for worship and chapel shouldn’t be an

I know that chapel is sometimes an awkward experience. We’re high schoolers; it’s weird to be vulnerable when worshipping around peers you’re not comfortable with. But I challenge you to change that mindset. Rather than caring about what your peers are going to think about you, think about how you truly want to celebrate your love for God. Because at the end of the day, that’s all that matters.

This thinking applies to Psalm 24 as well. Even though the number of times we say the Psalm has desensitized us to the words, the next time we say Psalm 24 in chapel or Monday morning meeting, really listen to what the words are saying. Psalm 24 is an exaltation to God, and we should treat it as such.

To my fellow seniors, if we want this change in chapel to occur, we must take charge and show the underclassmen how to do it. We are the leaders of the school, and if

The next time we say Psalm 24 in chapel or Monday morning meeting, really listen to what the words are saying.

The Christian Life theme this year is Revive. Let’s lean into that word and revive a respectful and passionate chapel service. Until next time,

Caroline Croley Editor-in-Chief