Processing down the side aisle of the auditorium behind the acolytes. Sitting on the brightly lit stage, with a large projection screen behind me, looking out at the more than 700 upper school students and faculty. Hearing the band play familiar Christian music with the lyrics on the screen.
That first day of “filling in for the chaplain” was 12 years ago. While I was not new to the priesthood, leading liturgical worship, or working with teenagers, I had no way of knowing how steep the learning curve would be going from parish ministry to chaplaincy in a school. While I originally was just coming on Wednesdays to lead the middle school and upper school chapels for a few months, my good fortune has kept me at the Episcopal School of Jacksonville for well over a decade. I now interact with students from one year olds to twelfth grade. In that time, I have been humbled more times than I can count as I have melded together my two vocations as an educator and as a priest.
As the rector of an Episcopal church, I was always happy to welcome visitors, but those visitors had chosen to come to my church on that Sunday morning. Everyone in the pews shared the same faith tradition as me or they were at least seeking to know more about this faith tradition to which I had been ordained. Now I found myself among a diverse group of students, faculty, and staff—the vast majority who were not Episcopalian, and for the most part, were not seeking to know more about the Episcopal tradition. Hopefully, many were seeking to grow in their faith or at least to know more about Jesus, but certainly not everyone was in this boat. One thing they all had in common was they were required to attend weekly chapel. So, how would I go about ministering to a group of people with such a diversity of thought, varied interests in matters of faith, and differing religious beliefs?
The challenges of school ministry did not send me running back to the doors of a church. Instead, I realized this was exactly the ministry that God had prepared me for and now had opened the door for me to answer the call to school ministry. I quickly learned the nuances of preaching to hundreds of exhausted teenagers. I discovered the blessings of walking beside students as well as faculty and staff as life happens—the joys and the struggles of life as well as the routine and mundane days in between. I formed relationships with students, faculty, and staff that have transformed me.
It is in these relationships that my call has been affirmed the most. When I started full-time at the school, I gathered with around ten faith-filled students who were part of the student vestry. I was in awe of their steadfast faith and desire to share their own faith with others. We met together to pray, reflect, study, and even plan one vestry-led chapel that would happen in the second semester. It quickly became clear that these students who were seeking Jesus in their own lives were also equipped and eager to share their faith with others. One vestry chapel became two chapels a year, then four chapels per school year. As the student vestry became more visible in their powerful witness while planning and leading chapels, the vestry grew in numbers. This school year, our vestry is composed of 162 upper school students and eleven adults (faculty and staff members) who want to serve Christ in this visible and demanding way. Working on teams, our vestry plans and leads most of our chapels. They are the spiritual leaders of our school.
What has led to such exponential growth on the vestry? There are many factors that help explain the massive amount of interest in being on the vestry. Some of the answers include belonging, service to others, and a desire to lead. However, the most prevalent reason our students are flocking to the vestry is clear when we read the applications as well as their recommitment forms each year. Overwhelmingly, our students are seeking relationships—with God and with others. They want to grow in their relationship with Jesus. They want to be in relationship with others who are seeking Jesus in their lives. The same thing that drew me to school chaplaincy also is drawing our students to apply for the student vestry.
One student, applying for a leadership position, recently wrote, “I have appreciated the connection I can build with my peers through faith. Whether it is planning a chapel or doing Faith and Formation, I feel like I am always learning more about faith and gaining an appreciation for opportunities I am given in vestry to grow stronger in my faith. I also appreciate the community of vestry, where everyone is welcoming and there is no judgment in the face of God.” We hear these thoughts over and over again. Students and adults are seeking relationships with God and with others. They want to grow in their faith and they want to walk beside their peers as they seek a closer relationship with God.
In the Spiritual Life Pillar at our school, we do not have the vast amount of events and programming that we see in the Athletics and Fine Arts Pillars. Our Spiritual Life Pillar functions very differently than our Academic Pillar. We are the pillar that supports and nurtures all else that happens at our great school. At the core of everything we do, we focus on relationships—our relationship with God and our relationship with one another.
The Rev. Teresa R. Seagle is Dean of Spiritual Life and Service at the Episcopal School of Jacksonville.