User:Asearsmauro/sandbox

Hendricks Chapel
Hendricks Chapel has been able to provide the Syracuse Univerity community with a space for social collection and individual support. This space hosts the beloved People's Place Cafe as well as the Noble room. Students and faculty at Syracuse utilize these spaces for their comfort and convenience. Community service and social engagement are expected through Hendricks Chapel's food pantry and affiliated social support programs that reach out beyond the walls of the building. These programs support the health and wellness of the community by working to elimate inhibbiting factors such as food insecurity. The continued funding of these facilities promotes the general well-being of Students at Syracuse University. Although a shining display of inclusivity, acceptance, and beauty, Hendricks Chapel is also a stomping ground for students looking to express their beliefs on campus. After issues surrounding race, anti-Semitism, and homophobia appeared on campus, activist groups began voicing their concerns, with most demonstrations originating at the Chapel. A few defining displays of this activism, which can be related directly to Hendricks, include the protests following the controversial video released by the Theta Tau chapter, the #NotAgainSU movement, and the religious groups voicing concerns about the effects of the $1 million donation gifted in the summer of 2018.

History and Architecture

Doctrine and Practice

Hendricks Chapel seeks to enrich the religious, spiritual, moral, and ethical lives of the Syracuse University community. The chapel aims to help guide students through their personal and spiritual lives while at Syracuse and beyond. Hendricks is led by Reverend Brian E. Konkol, who is in charge of coordinating and enhancing the religious and spiritual community at Syracuse. The chapel houses nine chaplaincies: Baptist, United Methodist, Roman Catholic, Buddhist, Jewish, Evangelical, Lutheran, Historically Black, and Pagan, and hosts 28 religious and spiritual student groups. Their core principles are: “Hendricks Chapel is the diverse religious, spiritual, ethical, and cultural heart of Syracuse University that connects people of all faiths and no faith through active engagement, mutual dialogue, reflective spirituality, responsible leadership, and a rigorous commitment to social justice.” The chapel furthers its mission by offering weekly religious services, interfaith counseling, food pantry, choir, and a social justice speaker series. By welcoming and accepting many belief systems and religions, Hendricks operates on a foundation of acceptance and embracing all people. All are welcome.

University Impact & Influence
The University Influence and Impact Hendricks Chapel has on the community is very impactful. Since the Hendricks Chapel opened in 1930 to the University community, It changed the University from a relatively small Methodist-affiliated society to the large, diverse, multi-faith University is today. The Hendricks Chapel is considered “The Spiritual Heart of Syracuse University.” The Hendricks Chapel leads in service to the student-centred global home for religious, spiritual, moral and ethical life on campus at Syracuse University. It is very impactful because it allows students to find a place of worship build a spiritual connection with God and help them morally. It is a chapel that can hold events for the community, even weddings one of the biggest events in ones life. It is a place students can meet new people and create strong connections. The Hendricks Chapel helps provide a “safe place” for the community which impacts to community and lets it be known they have a safe place to go to. The Hendricks Chapel is the centre activity for all members of the campus community. It holds programs for everyone to be able to interact with each other. Moreover it seems as if the Hendricks Chapel is a home for everyone on campus. Everyone is welcomed and allowed at the Hendricks Chapel, and can feel free without the worry of being discriminated, feeling uncomfortable or feeling not included.

People's Place Cafe / Noble Room
In the basement of Hendricks Chapel is the student-run café: People’s Place Café. Since the creation of the establishment in 1971, the appeal of a hot cup of coffee and a fresh pastry has compelled students through the chapel doors. In addition to the café being convenient for students to stop by between their classes, the affordable prices on the menu permit a wider range of customers. People’s Place customers may be just passers-by on their way to a new destination, or they could be coming from a separate activity in the chapel. Either way, the cafe never fails to support the students that need a place to stop and rest throughout the day.

In addition to People’s Place Café, the basement of Hendricks Chapel also cradles the Noble room. This space is used by café goers as well as university-affiliated groups. This room hosts sewing and knitting groups that allow Syracuse students a bit of relaxation on their busy days. The Chapel, and knitting, more specifically is used as an outlet for some of the students amongst the chaos of college life. Sometimes they just need a minute to breathe and knit. Hendricks Chapel provides that.

Community Engagement
Hendricks is also an easy and suitable place for students to get involved in helping their community. The Hendricks Chapel food pantry has been working for years to give everyone at Syracuse an equal opportunity to food and necessities. This service “provides free food and personal care items to students who suffer from hunger and food insecurity.”

Not every student on the Syracuse University campus has regular access to their necessities. These students may struggle to feel safe sharing their food insecurities, but the Hendricks food pantry exists to eliminate some of those worries and create a comfortable space for students to seek help if they need it. This space is about creating an equitable environment for students given external obstacles. The success of the food pantry is the success of the chapel, the University, and the student body, for it highly contributes to a community of fairness and health on campus. This type of community service directly impacts the Syracuse University student community, but other types of service groups work out of Hendricks as well.

In late 2018 the chapel sponsored 2 relief trips to Puerto Rico to provide aid after Hurricane Maria. Though this effort was not contained to the chapel’s doors it did originate there. Syracuse University student volunteers traveled to Puerto Rice to help people in areas directly impacted by the terror of Hurricane Maria. They aided in rebuilding homes and assisted cleanup efforts in the region.

The various, nonreligious activities that take place at Hendricks Chapel are a part of the overall community the chapel hosts and supports. The community at Hendricks Chapel is one that fosters creativity, comfort, and equity in the Syracuse University community.

http://dailyorange.com/2019/02/quilters-knitters-gather-hendricks-chapel-give-back-syracuse-community//ref> http://dailyorange.com/2018/12/hendricks-chapel-will-sponsor-two-relief-trips-puerto-rico//ref> http://dailyorange.com/2018/11/hendricks-chapel-food-pantry-expands-outreach-new-leadership//ref> https://chapel.syracuse.edu//ref>

Activism
Positioned in the center of Syracuse University, Hendricks Chapel has been home to numerous student demonstrations surrounding issues involving race and gender. Being described by the university as a beacon of “service to our common good as a student-centered global home for religious, spiritual, moral and ethical life,” the religious institution has become the perfect place for individuals and collectives seeking to express dissatisfaction with both on-campus and global affairs.

Activism
Positioned in the center of Syracuse University, Hendricks Chapel has been home to numerous student demonstrations surrounding issues involving race and gender. Being described by the university as a beacon of “service to our common good as a student-centered global home for religious, spiritual, moral and ethical life,” the religious institution has become the perfect place for individuals and collectives seeking to express dissatisfaction with both on-campus and global affairs.

Theta Tau Fraternity
In 2018, a video depicting graphic scenes and language from members of the former Theta Tau fraternity sparked campus-wide outrage. The video, described by the university as being “racist, anti-Semitic, homophobic, sexist and ‘hostile to people with disabilities,’” set off a frenzy of protests, originating from a Hendricks Chapel gathering. At the event, protestors also took it upon themselves to voice anger stemming from past discriminatory conflicts, including the 2014 incident involving a Syracuse Womens’ Soccer hailing racial slurs.

#NotAgainSU
During the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year, a string of racist attacks, which included verbal assaults and graffiti, lead to extensive student protest. The movement, labeled #NotAgainSU, was initiated by students of color who were displeased with the ineffective handling of the vandalism that plagued Day Hall and the physics building. Eight days of constant occupation at the Barnes Center culminated in a demonstration at Hendricks Chapel, in which a large collective of students presented 19 demands to Chancellor Kent Syverud. When the Chancellor refused their requests, the congregation promptly exited the Chapel while calling for the resignation of their opposer. The group of students then marched to Syverud's’ home on Comstock Avenue before returning to the Barnes Center. During this time, the #NotAgainSU organizers and Chancellor Syverud continued negotiations at Hendricks Chapel with 16 of the demands being met after minor adjustments. The protests concluded on March 18th when students concluded their sit in, “leaving the campus deserted mid-semester".

Hendricks Chapel Student Opportunity Fund
In the summer of 2018, after receiving awards for his work in “spiritual and religious growth,” dean of Hendricks Chapel Brian Konkol received a $1 million donation. The generous sum of money was donated by an anonymous Syracuse University alumnus, and went towards creating the Hendricks Chapel Student Opportunity Fund. Aimed to provide funds for students “having difficulty paying for clothing, food, emergency travel, and healthcare,” the donation also acted as focus for religious groups looking to voice concerns over Dean Konkol’s leadership within the Chapel and University. On example of these concerns emerged as members of the Muslim community as Syracuse University voiced discontent over the recent changes in faculty and space delegation within the Hendricks.

Sexual Abuse
Hendricks Chapel has also taken on the burden of speculation after 57 Syracuse priests had “credible claims of sex abuse” against them in 2019. The scandal exploded within the Syracuse University community prompting the creation of the “Speak About It” program, which is focused on consent education. Also, prominent local figures have taken it upon themselves to utilize Hendricks Chapel as a means of recreating trust within Syracuse religious communities.