Wesley Foundation holds non-denominational service
Cody Arant
Issue date: 4/4/08 Section: College Life
Yesterday marked the third successful Skay-nay, a time of prayer and reflection held in the Cumberland Room on the third floor of the Curris Center.
Skay-nay was sparked by an idea from the Rev. Emily Burch, associate pastor and director of college and young adult ministry at First United Methodist Church.
"It really rose from a personal desire to bring ministry to campus," Burch said. "I had heard of a sort of listening post program at other schools. In those programs, a chaplain would set up a table in the cafeteria. There would be a sign reading 'listening post' and any student or faculty member who wanted to come and be heard could drop by and talk."
The idea behind Skay-nay stems from the word itself, which is the phonetic form of the Greek word - skene - meaning tabernacle, Burch said.
Adapting the listening post idea, Burch said she decided to provide a place where students and faculty members of all faiths could have a place to slow down in the middle of the day.
"Anyone can come in and pray or just reflect," Burch said. "We have candles and guitar music. We do provide copies of the Psalms if a student wants them, but that's totally voluntary. It's just a time of quiet, a time to be near God."
If students wish to speak to someone, Burch said she is around to offer her company or support in the form of prayer.
"I wear a nametag so people can look around and be like, 'Oh, there she is, I need to talk to her,'" Burch said.
The meetings are held on select Thursdays. The next meeting will be held around noon on April 17.
Bethany Fisher, freshman from Hudson, Ill., has class during the usual meeting time but she said she says a quick prayer for the meeting.
"I pray that God makes his presence known there and that students and faculty can use the space and really feel God working there," Fisher said.
Fisher said she encourages students to make use of the time if they can.
"Students should use the space as a time to pray if they have even a short period of free time," Fisher said. "Many times, students are so busy with classes that they forget or don't have time to really spend time with God away from hectic things in life. Since it's in the Curris Center, it's a convenient place for all people on campus."
If you are looking for a quiet place to pray or to just take a moment and remember to breathe, check the Cumberland Room. In the immortal words of Ferris Bueller: "Life goes by pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
Cody Arant can be reached at cody.arant@murraystate.
edu.
Skay-nay was sparked by an idea from the Rev. Emily Burch, associate pastor and director of college and young adult ministry at First United Methodist Church.
"It really rose from a personal desire to bring ministry to campus," Burch said. "I had heard of a sort of listening post program at other schools. In those programs, a chaplain would set up a table in the cafeteria. There would be a sign reading 'listening post' and any student or faculty member who wanted to come and be heard could drop by and talk."
The idea behind Skay-nay stems from the word itself, which is the phonetic form of the Greek word - skene - meaning tabernacle, Burch said.
Adapting the listening post idea, Burch said she decided to provide a place where students and faculty members of all faiths could have a place to slow down in the middle of the day.
"Anyone can come in and pray or just reflect," Burch said. "We have candles and guitar music. We do provide copies of the Psalms if a student wants them, but that's totally voluntary. It's just a time of quiet, a time to be near God."
If students wish to speak to someone, Burch said she is around to offer her company or support in the form of prayer.
"I wear a nametag so people can look around and be like, 'Oh, there she is, I need to talk to her,'" Burch said.
The meetings are held on select Thursdays. The next meeting will be held around noon on April 17.
Bethany Fisher, freshman from Hudson, Ill., has class during the usual meeting time but she said she says a quick prayer for the meeting.
"I pray that God makes his presence known there and that students and faculty can use the space and really feel God working there," Fisher said.
Fisher said she encourages students to make use of the time if they can.
"Students should use the space as a time to pray if they have even a short period of free time," Fisher said. "Many times, students are so busy with classes that they forget or don't have time to really spend time with God away from hectic things in life. Since it's in the Curris Center, it's a convenient place for all people on campus."
If you are looking for a quiet place to pray or to just take a moment and remember to breathe, check the Cumberland Room. In the immortal words of Ferris Bueller: "Life goes by pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."
Cody Arant can be reached at cody.arant@murraystate.
edu.
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