Written by Amanda Hourt and Sarah Kyle
The Shores Chapel prayer room, which began last year, will continue to serve students in coming school years, said Jane Messina, co-director of the Spiritual Life Committee.Messina said the prayer room was placed in Shores Chapel to bring back the original purpose of the area: to be a quiet place for students to interact with God.After much prayer and consideration, the new prayer room opened Feb. 1 of this year, Messina said, adding that the decision was an answer to a long-awaited need.”There were people who had been praying for a prayer room for a very long time,” Messina said.With poster paper lining many of the room’s walls, students are encouraged to leave prayer requests for other students to pray about or bring their own journals to write out prayers and enjoy a quiet, secluded place to pray, said David Collins, vice president and dean of students.The purpose of the decoration is to create an interactive prayer environment, where people can remain completely focused on God, Messina said.However students wish to pray, Collins said the room is intended to be a safe-haven from the stresses of life.”It’s a place for students to seek refuge from the busy schedule and the hectic day-to-day life on campus, and to find that quiet place for prayer,” Collins said.Collins said he has used the prayer chapel, especially toward the end of last semester, and that he has noticed other faculty and students talking about it.Looking forward, Messina said she hopes Harding will have a prayer chapel in the future that is in its own building, preferably on the front lawn. Messina said she thinks that sometime within the next two or three years Harding will get the funds for it, and a separate structure could be built.
