St. Olaf College Chapel Ministry, Northfield, MN

About this ministry:

At the heart of our ministry is the St. Olaf College Student Congregation, a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It is our mission to provide worship, study, and service opportunities for students, faculty, and staff.
There are many ways to get involved with the student congregation: worship at Boe Memorial Chapel, enjoy a community meal, engage in a learning opportunity, or participate in “The Big Three” events — our fall speaker, January retreat, and spring service project.
In addition to the ministry offered by the St. Olaf Student Congregation, students offer a wide variety of both Christian and Interfaith organizations. Each religious group offers a variety of worship and educational opportunities.
As a College of the Church, St. Olaf College places value on the study and practice of religion. We invite you to explore, to ask questions, and to grow in your faith.

From its founding in 1874, St. Olaf has been a College of the Church in the Lutheran tradition. Being a College of the Church means that students, faculty, and staff take seriously the study and practice of religion. This distinctive feature of St. Olaf is evident in Boe Memorial Chapel and in the ministry of the St. Olaf College Student Congregation.
From the beginning, the chapel has been a place of welcome for worship, music, edifying convocations, college ceremonies, the arts and private meditation.
Similarly, the congregation functions as a spiritual home for the students of St. Olaf College. All students are welcomed and invited to participate fully in its life, worship and ministry.
Together Boe Memorial Chapel and the St. Olaf Student Congregation offer an open and engaging environment for students to grow in their faith during their years at St. Olaf College.

Opening Wide Our Chapel DoorsIn considering the relationship between worship and evangelism/outreach, we have divided our discussion into two broad areas – present promise and future possibilities. We view our current worship experience at St Olaf College with great optimism. As we gather each weekday morning for a 20 minute chapel service and each Sunday for a worship service, there is great promise. However, we are keenly aware that there are many on our campus who do not worship. How might worship at St Olaf College foster the faith development of our students? What is the most effective way to move forward into this world of worship possibility?
Present Promise: The St Olaf College Team looks forward to an intentional time of reflection on the current worship experience at Boe Memorial Chapel. The 2012-2013 academic year is a time of transition at St Olaf College. Both our senior pastor and cantor joined the St Olaf community at the beginning of this year. The previous senior pastor and cantor both served at St Olaf since the 1980s. In other words, this is an ideal time to examine the worship life at St Olaf College. Our team is quick to recognize that there is a long history of very strong worship at St Olaf. Our congregation is healthy. Our worship is reverent and relevant. And the bottom line, attendance, is strong. With this in mind, it is necessary to examine this worship tradition. We need to, as best as we are able, understand the congregation and the worship tradition that we have inherited. Here, we will take great care to understand and celebrate the past and present promise that is the Student Congregation of St Olaf College.

Future  Possibilities: We will create one-year, five-year, and ten-year plans that seek to address the question, “How does the worship at Boe Memorial Chapel foster faith development for our diverse body of students, faculty and staff?”

Address:

1520 St. Olaf Avenue
Northfield, MN 55057
www.stolaf.edu

Team Members:

Matthew Marohl, Pastor
Jamie Bobb, Cantor