Student in Chapel

Spiritual Life

St. George's Chapel is the heart of the Hilltop

From the time of St. George’s founding, faith and the search for meaning have played significant roles in the life of the school and its students. While the school is an independent school in its operations and funding, early in its history St. George’s aligned itself with the Episcopal Church, an affiliation that continues to this day.

Students attend required chapel twice a week, on Tuesday and Thursday, and there are additional, optional services held at other points during the week. On Tuesday, at “Short Chapel,” the service features student speakers from the sixth form, a hymn and prayers. The Thursday service is a full worship service and follows the Episcopal liturgy of Morning Prayer.

Recognizing the diverse faith backgrounds of the school community and the world, the Chapel Program operates in keeping with the Episcopal Christian tradition of inclusiveness, and students of all religious faiths are embraced at chapel services. Students who wish to attend services off campus in their own religious traditions are allowed and encouraged to do so.

The Beloved Community Initiative

Chaplain Jackie Kirby announced the initiative as a mission “to move St. George’s closer to what Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. described as the ‘Beloved Community,’ characterized by compassion, kindness, mutual understanding, and respect for the dignity of every human being.”
 
Since the fall of 2018, students and faculty at St. George's School have taken part in the “Beloved Community Initiative,” a program designed to integrate the full history of our boarding school into today's curriculum.

Featured Guests and Speakers 2023-24

The Chapel Program and religious studies courses in our Humanities Department are designed to support students in their lives of faith and their pursuit of truth, whatever their religious backgrounds, and to develop their knowledge of different religious traditions. We welcome many guests throughout the year to address our community. View the 2023-24 video playlist.