Resources

Questions

Good analysis almost always starts with good questions.  Here are a handful of theologically informed questions raised by the study of worship in seminary communities. 

1. How do we understand the role of seminary chapel in Christian formation, and in particular ministry formation?
2. How do we understand the ecclesiology of seminary chapel?  How is it connected to denominational or congregational bodies?
3. What are the theologoi (words for God) that we choose in worship?
4. What is the role of theological and historical reflection in planning and evaluation of chapel? Do we explicitly use these categories? How do we evaluate the congruence between content (what we say) and intent (what we mean)?
5. How do we understand ecumenical convergence/divergence in how we organize our chapel offerings? How do we theologically defend our choices?
6. What is the eschatology (future hope) that we provide through chapel?
7. What sort of balance is intended between personal piety vs. corporate prayer?
8. How do we negotiate the wants and needs of various communities (students, faculty, staff, administrators, and other stakeholders)?
9. Are seminaries (and their chapels) servants or gatekeepers of denominational worship, theology and polity? Who decides the answer to this question?
10. What are the implicit and explicit structures of leadership in seminary chapel?
11. How is the shape and place of chapel within the institution described and defined?
12. How has the changing demographic of the student body shifted the balance between worship’s expressive and formative functions?
13. What is the educational value of chapel whether voluntary or prescribed? 
14. How do you get people who have just taken a theological class to stop thinking cynically (as opposed to critically) and encourage affective worship/spiritual formation/community? 
15. How do we fence the guitar? i.e. keep people who are spiritually immature from leading what some would say is the most important aspect of prayer?