Evening Prayer 101

When the clock strikes half past nine on Tuesday night, a great migration begins across campus. From the farthest reaches of Ewald to the depths of Moulton, pairs of students make their way across the darkened paths. The tolling bell rings loud in nervous suitors’ ears. In the flickering candlelight of Phillips Church, everyone finds a seat and settles in. Whether attending for Reverend Thompson’s readings, the musical performances, a study break, or something a bit less innocent, many students come together in that half hour. Evening Prayer creates a sense of community at Phillips Church on Tuesday nights and additionally, students who participate are assimilated into the larger community of Exeter as a whole, with all its traditions and eccentricities.Evening Prayer, or EP, is a weekly service that combines student music and the school minister’s words. Over time it has become a romantic opportunity for many, with young lovers taking this dimly lit half hour as a date night. Students may ask one another to go to EP together, and have come to take the Reverend’s standard “welcome to Evening Prayer” as a cue to put an arm around their date and settle in.With this tradition come some pressures for new students. Emphasis is placed on the first EP of the year, and many upperclassmen offer to set up the new students with a date for the event. Some object to this, saying that it is abusing the evening service or creating unfair standards for students. Yet the dating traditions that now accompany Evening Prayer offer many benefits for students, new and old alike.The beginning weeks at Exeter can be hectic and overwhelming. New scenery, new people and new expectations--it can be hard to get your bearings. Going to EP with a date or a friend or even on your own, gives students a chance to breathe. It allows students to soak up the music of their classmates and the calming voice of Reverend Thompson. And, if one decides to go with a date, it can be a unique way to bond with someone else at Exeter. In the bustle of meeting hundreds of students, being able to spend a bit of time with one person--to talk, share stories, share the experience of EP can anchor a new student and give them at least one friendly face on the path.Exeter is a strange place, different from so many schools and homes that students have left to come here. Embracing the Academy’s traditions is an important part of becoming an active part of the environment, and Evening Prayer is one of the most special features of our school. It is an odd tradition, to be sure—a date night at a church service is a bit puzzling, but adopting the oddities of our school is what makes us Exonians. Experiencing the lulling notes of acoustic guitar mingling with adolescent energy is a time like no other, but one that so many students at the Academy have gone through. We are bonded to each other and to Exeter through our common experiences and our common traditions, and Evening Prayer is an ideal way to accomplish this.New and returning Exonians always have one thing in common—homework. It is overwhelming for everyone at one point or another and being buried by stress and syllabi can destroy a student’s spirit. EP is a break. Silence, sweet music and refreshing thoughts give students time to decompress and let the worry melt away, if only for a half hour—and that time can make all the difference. Students need to be able to breathe, and attending Evening Prayer is a time to do just that, beneath a vaulted ceiling and among one’s peers.Evening Prayer and its customs are as much of a part of Exeter as we all are. Attending EP helps each student feel a part of the community here. By getting to know at least one person here, apart from the chaos of classes and dormitory life, by embracing our school and all its curiosities, by relaxing into the atmosphere of the church and the peace it provides, we all can feel like more of an Exonian, and hopefully a more relaxed Exonian, as well. If new students can experience this by getting set up on the first Tuesday of the year, then it is that much the better. They will find out all that Evening Prayer has to offer, and will have the rest of their time at Exeter to enjoy it.