Chapel
A chapel (from
For historical reasons, chapel is also often the term used by independent or nonconformist denominations for their places of worship in England and especially in Wales, even where they are large and in practice they operate as a parish church.[3][4]
The
Although chapels frequently refer to Christian places of worship, they are also found in
History
The earliest Christian places of worship were not dedicated buildings but rather a dedicated chamber within a building, such as a room in an individual's home. Here one or two people could pray without being part of a communion/congregation. People who like to use chapels may find it peaceful and relaxing to be away from the stress of life, without other people moving around them.
The word chapel, like the associated word chaplain, is ultimately derived from
The word also appears in the
In British history, "chapel" or "meeting house" were formerly the standard designations for church buildings belonging to independent or Nonconformist religious societies and their members. They were particularly associated with the pre-eminence of independent religious practice in rural regions of England and Wales, the northern industrial towns of the late 18th and 19th centuries, and centres of population close to but outside the City of London. As a result, "chapel" is sometimes used as an adjective in England and Wales to describe the members of such churches: for example in the sentence "I'm Chapel."[citation needed]
Types of chapel
- A bridge chapel is a small place of Christian worship, built either on, or immediately adjacent to, a road bridge; they were commonly established during pre-Reformation mediaeval era in Europe.
- A castle chapel, in European architecture, is a chapel built within a castle.
- A parecclesion or parakklesion is a type of side chapel found in Byzantine architecture.
- A capilla posa (Posa chapel) is an architectural feature of the monastery-ensembles of Mexico in the 16th century, consisting of four vaulted quadrangular buildings located at the ends of the atrium outside them.[clarification needed]
- A capilla abierta (open chapel) is one of the most distinct Mexican church construction forms, mostly built in the 16th century during the early colonial period.
- A proprietary chapel is one that originally belonged to a private individual. In the 19th century they were common, often being built to cope with urbanisation. Frequently they were established by evangelical philanthropists with a vision of spreading Christianity in cities whose needs could no longer be met by the parishes. Some functioned more privately, with a wealthy person building a chapel so that they could invite their favorite preachers.[8] They are anomalies in the English ecclesiastical law, having no parish area, but being permitted to have an Anglican clergyman licensed there. Historically many Anglican churches were proprietary chapels. Over the years they have often been converted into normal parishes.
- A court chapel is a chapel as a musical ensemble associated with a royal or noble court. Most of these are royal (court) chapels, but when the ruler of the court is not a king, the more generic "court chapel" is used, for instance for an imperial court.
- A royal palace.
Modern usage
While the word chapel is not exclusively limited to
"Chapel" is in particularly common usage in the United Kingdom, and especially in Wales, for Nonconformist places of worship;[9] and in Scotland and Ireland for Roman Catholic churches. In England and Wales, due to the rise in Nonconformist chapels during the late 18th and early 19th centuries, by the time of the 1851 census, more people attended the independent chapels than attended the state religion's Anglican churches.[citation needed] (The Anglican Church does not function as the established church in Scotland.)
In Roman Catholic Church canon law, a chapel, technically called an "oratory", is a building or part thereof dedicated to the celebration of services, particularly the Mass, which is not a parish church. This may be a private chapel, for the use of one person or a select group (a bishop's private chapel, or the chapel of a convent, for instance); a semi-public oratory, which is partially available to the general public (a seminary chapel that welcomes visitors to services, for instance); or a public oratory (for instance, a hospital or university chapel).
Chapels that are built as part of a larger church are holy areas set aside for some specific use or purpose: for instance, many cathedrals and large churches have a "
Common uses of the word chapel today include:
- Side-chapel – a chapel within a cathedral or larger church building.
- Blessed Virgin Mary.
- Ambassador's chapel – originally created to allow ambassadors from Catholic countries to worship whilst on duty in Protestantcountries.
- Bishop's chapel – in Anglican and Roman Catholic canon law, bishops have the right to have a chapel in their own home, even when travelling (such personal chapels may be granted only as a favor to other priests)
- Chapel of rest – not a place of worship as such, but a comfortably decorated room in a funeral director's premises, where family and friends can view the deceased before a funeral.
- Chapel of ease – constructed in large parishes to allow parishioners easy access to a church or chapel.
- College chapel - located on college or university campuses that are or were once affiliated with a religion
- Multifaith chapel – found within hospitals, airports and universities, etc.; often converted from being exclusively Christian.
- Summer chapel – a small church in a resort area that functions only during the summer when vacationers are present.
- Wayside chapel or country chapel – small chapels in the countryside
- Military chapel – U.S. military bases often have chapels designated for use by varying denominations. As no specific denomination or faith is the "owner", such a site is commonly referred to as a chapel instead of a church, mosque, or synagogue. Service members can often receive services for nondenominational Christian, Roman Catholic, Islamic, and Jewish faiths, as well as information for other services in the local area.
- Wedding chapel – a venue for weddings.
- Funeral chapel – a venue for funerals at a funeral home, cemetery or crematorium.
The first airport chapel was created in 1951 in Boston for airport workers but grew to include travelers. It was originally Catholic, but chapels today are often multifaith.[10]
Notable chapels
Gallery
This section contains an unencyclopedic or excessive gallery of images. |
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Teller Chapel in Tartu, Estonia
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The Little Chapel, Guernsey
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Chapelle Saint-Sixte d'Eygalières, Bouches-du-Rhône, Provence, France
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St. Dimitrius Chapel on the beach of Olympiaki Akti, Greece
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Methodist Chapel in Kent, Ohio, United States
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Confederate Memorial Chapel, Richmond, Virginia, United States
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Vassar Chapel Interior, Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York
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Interior of Heinz Chapel, University of Pittsburgh
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Forest chapel in Heiligendamm, Bad Doberan, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany
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Processional Chapel in Varennes, Quebec
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Turvey Abbey, chapel interior
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Open Chapel in Steinfurt, Germany
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Eton College Chapel in Eton College, England
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Avon Old Farms School- the chapel
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Chapel in the Wood, Strawberry Hill House, near London
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Chapel in the Armenian Cathedral Deir Ez Zor
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Gothic Chapel (15th century) in The Chrobry Square, Police, Poland
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Guards Chapel, Wellington Barracks, London, largely rebuilt after bombing in 1944
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Cappella degli Scrovegni in Padua, Italy
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Chapel at Callaway Gardens in holiday resort
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German castle chapel
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Memorial Chapel at Lake Junaluska
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The modernist presidential chapel (left) at the Palácio da Alvorada, the official residence of the President of Brazil
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Funeral chapel at Woodlands Crematorium, Scarborough, England
See also
- Castle chapel
- Chapel (music)
- Church (building)
- Meeting house
- Sacri Monti
- Corpse road
- Railroad chapel car
- Capilla abierta
- Capilla posa
References
- ^ "Muslim prayers welcome at Pentagon chapel". CNN. Archived from the original on 7 March 2016. Retrieved 3 March 2016.
- ^ "CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Chapel". www.newadvent.org. Archived from the original on 9 March 2021. Retrieved 10 April 2005.
- ^ Wakeling, Christopher (August 2016). "Nonconformist Places of Worship: Introductions to Heritage Assets". Historic England. Archived from the original on 28 March 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2017.
- ISBN 9780750911627. Retrieved 28 March 2017.
- ^ Hewson, Chris (1 January 2010). "Multi-faith Spaces: Symptoms and Agents of Religious and Social Change". University of Manchester. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
- ^ "Royal Army Chaplains' Department". www.army.mod.uk. The British Army. Archived from the original on 19 March 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2017.
- ^ "Definition of CHAPEL". www.merriam-webster.com. Archived from the original on 1 January 2019. Retrieved 31 December 2018.
- ^ "Church Society - About - Our Work - St James' Church". Archived from the original on 9 May 2008. Retrieved 15 October 2008.
- ^ Also known, perhaps disparagingly, as Ebenezers – "Ebenezer". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
- ^ Cadge, Wendy (3 January 2018). "As you travel, pause and take a look at airport chapels". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 13 January 2018. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
- ^ "Cathedral | Christ Church, Oxford University". Chch.ox.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 4 March 2016.
External links
- Media related to Chapels at Wikimedia Commons
- Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 5 (11th ed.). 1911. .
- Russian chapels photo gallery