Abbey Memorial
Chapel
Abbey Chapel is used for worship services, lectures, and concerts,
and contains a main chapel seating 900 and the Abbey Interfaith
Sanctuary. A remodeling of the Chapel in 1938 resulted in the merging
of the original 1897 chapel and a new structure. The Chapel houses
a nineteenth-century Skinner organ and a Fisk Tracker organ.
The Abbey Interfaith Sanctuary is open to students of all faith
backgrounds (and no faith as well) for reflection, journal writing,
meditation, and walking the sacred labyrinth.
Formerly a small Christian prayer chapel and converted
by students, staff, and faculty in 1999, Abbey Interfaith Sanctuary
holds sacred objects and texts from the different faith groups represented
on campus. Each week, Abbey Interfaith Sanctuary is filled with
the words, songs, and shared silence of the Sunday Ecumenical Worship
Service, the Baha'i community gathering, the Buddhist Mindfulness
Meditation, Rosary Prayer, the Hindu service, and many informal
visits by individuals and groups in search of a peaceful moment
away from the busyness of everyday life.
Attached to Mary Lyon Hall, the building was built
in 1897. In 1937, the chapel was renovated and enlarged with a donation
from Emily Abbey Gill. As a result, it was renamed Abbey Chapel.
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