Phillips Church: Community Crossroads

Phillips Church, crafted from gray stone, stands in stark contrast to the red brick buildings that dot the campus. Inlaid with crimson and cyan stained glass artwork, the pews offer comfort to Exonians of all different backgrounds no matter what they believe in. Here at the Academy, the word “church” describes so much more than the traditional Christian house of worship. Initially established in 1895, and then reestablished in 2002 to accommodate a more diverse range of faiths, Phillips Church is a space that hosts a variety of different events, such as the secular weekly Evening Prayers (EP), the Exeter Jewish Community (EJC) meetings and the Exonian Student Service Organization (ESSO) meetings, to name a few.

Amongst the many non-Christian groups that use the church is the Buddhist Meditation Club. Meeting almost every Friday night in the church basement, the club offers Exonians the chance to partake in an often new, but ever-fulfilling practice. Senior and co-head Cameron Najafi described a typical meeting as a casual and rewarding experience. “I really like it because it’s at the end of the week. Classes are done. I’m just going to meditate and hang out with my friends,” he said. Agreeing with Najafi, lower Amelia Demopoulos explained that she started going to Buddhist Meditation “because Exeter is a very stressful environment, and we all need meditation in our lives.” A wide range of students participate in Buddhist Meditation. Some students show up to the club with mastery of meditation, and search for comfort in their traditions; other students come to the club with no experience meditating whatsoever. Regardless of one’s prior history with meditation, all students can agree that Buddhist meditation offers a welcome respite from the fast pace and daily grind at Exeter. Najafi commented, “Mr. Daniell [faculty advisor to Buddhist Meditation Club] does a great job of guiding us through mindfulness meditation. He tells us to be aware of our breath, and our surroundings, and to be in the moment. If we do get lost in our thoughts, it’s okay. We just have to come back, and realize the moment instead of thinking about the future.”

The pews also offer an opportunity to tune in to a different type of meditation.  Meditation, a weekly talk about a subject important and personal to the speaker, who is always a member of the PEA community, is an opportunity for Exonians to convene and learn more about each other. On any given Wednesday, streams of students just released from class make their way to the church for a weekly refreshment, of the body (through the snacks that follow the talk), and the spirit (through the words of the speaker). Upper Ava Harrington remarked, “I feel that the church is a great setting for Meditation, as it has a relaxing atmosphere and just enough room for the number of people who attend regularly.” Lower Lucy Gilchrist expressed her appreciation for the Exeter ritual, emphasizing her enjoyment of listening to other people’s stories: “I like hearing the voices of the community, especially faculty and students I don’t get to interact with on a day-to-day basis in my classes.” Unlike assemblies, Meditation isn’t mandatory, but is open to anyone on campus interested in learning more about the emotional landscape of the Academy community. This openness encourages many to come to the church’s pews. “It makes me feel closer to the community. It’s relaxing but also eye opening, you leave charged with a sense of passion of wanting to make change,” Gilchrist said.

Several ESSO clubs such as Gal Pals also hold meetings in the church basement. The club meets on Friday nights, and the club members bond with older women with disabilities. “It’s a great way for Exonians to develop friendships with people who lead different lives,” senior and co-president of the ESSO board Emmett Shell said. According to Shell, the basement is also used for ESSO Tutoring and ESSO Basketball.

However, perhaps the most widely beloved of all church events is EP. The event is often referred to as Exeter’s “Date Night” as students often go with their romantic interests, although many people also go alone or with friends. The Interim School Minister Reverend Heidi Heath reads poetry, and student musicians perform by candlelight; the whole event only lasts about half an hour. Many musically gifted students look forward to this opportunity to share their music with friends and the wider community. Upper and musician Dylan Yin said, “I think EP’s a great experience for bonding in the community, and the people I’m playing with.” Continuing, Yin detailed just how unique EP is for the performers.“To be able to just sing and jam with your friends is a really unique opportunity and I think it brings us closer together in a different way,” he said.  But not all students are there for the performance. Many students go to EP with the primary goal of socializing and immersing themselves in the experience. Lower Sebastian Beck said, “I either go to EP with people I like, or am very close friends with. I go because it’s a good time; it’s cozy, and the church atmosphere makes you feel like you’re alone.”

The church stays in full swing throughout the summer as well, hosting Muslim prayers on Fridays, and an EP-like event several times a week, lead by the Summer School Minister. The church even hosts weddings. “It’s a slower pace, but it’s still active,” Heath explained.

Despite hosting a number of nonreligious events, Phillips Church wouldn’t be the same without the various religious groups that meet in its walls. Heath emphasized that the church does not have a religious affiliation. “We do not see ourselves as a Christian space that ‘hosts’ non-Christian groups,” Heath elaborated.“We function more as an interfaith center than a church.” Lower and EJC member Michael Singer shared her sentiments, stating that the “various available rooms allow numerous religions to actively practice.” Despite the diversity of religious spaces, senior and EJC co-head Noah Asch said, “The church can be a little offputting at first because you see the stained glass Jesus as soon you walk in, but you get used to the outside appearance, and realize that it’s nothing like a traditional church.”

At Phillips Church, students of all faiths are encouraged to share their beliefs and respect each others’ religions. Exeter’s Interfaith Coordinator, Alexis Simpson, who works closely with Asch, in addition to the co-heads of the other five religious groups on campus, mentioned that students in these other religious clubs felt a sense of harmony that spanned across the religious. She discussed a bonding event she held in the church: “The co-heads from the different religious groups all met each other for the first time, and shared a meal and a conversation. They shared pieces of their religious identity, and they talked with one another about what it means to be religious at PEA.” Reverend Heath noted that in today’s polarized world, it was moving to see people with so many different beliefs meeting under the same roof to practise their respective traditions. “Even in 2017, doing interfaith work that brings us all together to share space like this is the exception, and not the rule,” Heath said. “It’s a powerful statement about our values.”