Most Christian universities require students to attend campus chapel during the week. I know some universities that hold chapel two times a week, and others that hold chapel every weekday. I think that this is great, but sometimes, because chapel is required, students replace church with chapel. I have friends who routinely sleep in on Sunday mornings because they go to chapel on Sunday night. They use required chapel services to justify skipping church, which can be harmful.
I have been guilty of this on several occasions, and I’m not proud of it. One reason I skip church is because it’s difficult to find a home church. Most students have grown up in the same church all of their lives, so it can be quite a shock when they’re faced with the challenge of finding a new one. Odds are, their parents chose the church that their family regularly attended. But now that students are left to themselves in the real world, they are forced to answer the question “what do I believe?” When they find the answer to that question, they must ask “What does this particular church believe?” Unfortunately, it can take a long time to find answers that match and the search can become discouraging and tiresome. So what do I do when I’m discouraged? Unfortunately, I skip church, and go to chapel instead.
You may be wondering why going to chapel instead of church is a bad thing. I’ll tell you why. When you go to chapel instead of church, you miss out on the chance to interact with a diverse set of people and to be more involved in your community. The majority of school chapel attendees are college students, just like you. Sure, they may be different races and they may be a year or two younger or older, but the majority of them are college students, just like you.
If you walk into a church, you’ll find people from every demographic whose experiences are completely different from yours. You’ll meet grandmas, infants, war veterans, struggling musicians, single mothers, government officials, college drop-outs, etc. These people make up your community. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to be a part of your community. It is good to learn from these people, to serve them, and to walk alongside them—something you miss out on when you go to chapel instead of church.
Sometimes students attend chapel in place of personal quiet time. Please hear me when I say that your relationship with the Lord is your responsibility, not your school's. It is so important to find a place where you can talk with the Lord and study His Word alone. He is our daily bread, our living water, and we need to make sure that we are meeting Him daily in a quiet place.
Now, I’m not saying that you shouldn’t go to chapel or that it’s a bad thing. In fact, it’s one of the best things about Christian universities. It’s actually one of the biggest things that drew me to my school. There’s something really unique and special about worshiping and learning with the people that you live with on campus! But it’s also important to worship and learn with the people that you interact with when you step off campus. So, I encourage you to continue to go to chapel, but also to try to find a church and get involved in your community!
