Worcester Chapel is a place to sit, to breathe, to pray, to worship, to take time and be a little bit more human again. Everyone is welcome in the Chapel – of any faith or none – and our chaplaincy and music teams engage with students, staff and visitors across the College.
Our choral services, based in the rites of the Church of England, are likewise open to everyone – whether faith is new or familiar or totally alien to you, and whatever life-story you bring as you join us. Our aim is to offer peace and hope and a few moments with eternity as we come before God together day by day. Our hope is that our whole community might find a safe space and an inspiration in our music and our prayers.
Although our services happen throughout the week, Sunday is of course our focus. Each Sunday evening in term-time we hear from speakers from across the Christian traditions. They draw upon their experience to encourage us in faith on topics as varied as All Souls Day and LGBTQIA+ History Month, or sometimes simply and clearly explain the set Bible text of the day.
Worcester Chapel is also home to a varied and dynamic music programme of concerts, and other events, anchored around our phenomenal Choir. The Choir has a particular affinity for contemporary music and is proud to be part of a rich heritage of composition in the College, whose Music fellows have always been distinguished composers.
Do get in contact with us if you have any questions about Chapel services, faith or music. You can also find us on Facebook and X (Twitter).
Your faith in Oxford
Oxford is a superb place in which to explore your faith. For Christians, there are any number of excellent churches from every kind of tradition and stream of Christian experience. The College has always had an active Christian Union, and we are delighted to welcome the University Catholic Chaplaincy to Chapel each term for a celebration of Mass. The University’s Muslim Chaplain is based here at Worcester, and the Jewish Chaplaincy is very close to college in Jericho. You can also find support from University chaplains and societies representing several other faiths and denominations.
At Worcester, we celebrate the wide range of cultures and beliefs our students bring to Oxford. Like all the best celebrations, these often revolve around food. As well as the traditional Latin grace before formal meals, we also have a selection of thanksgiving texts from other languages and belief systems. Special events for festivals such as Diwali, Eid and Hanukkah are always extremely popular!
Multi-faith prayer room
While the Chapel is open to all, we appreciate that its ornate and very Christian decor means it is not an ideal prayer space for everyone. Our multi-faith prayer room is small, quiet and private, and available 24/7 for Worcester students. It is equipped with mats, cushions and screens, is adjacent to washrooms and a shoe store, and has a library of sacred and theological texts chosen by current students.
Worship in the Chapel
Chapel worship begins each day with quiet, spoken Morning Prayer. It’s an invitation to let God shape the journey ahead. Then, most evenings, the choir sings a service – Evensong or a Choral Reflection or a Eucharist, or a few of us sing Compline together. Whatever life brings our way, we are invited to gather in the safety and beauty of the music, letting God’s greater song of love gently heal and restore and strengthen us together.
Music in the Chapel
Worcester Chapel is also home to a varied and dynamic music programme of concerts and other events, anchored around our phenomenal Choir and world-class visiting soloists. Worcester is unique in Oxford in maintaining a choral tradition comprising both a choir of boy trebles and full SATB choral scholars. Worcester College Choir has a particular affinity for contemporary music and is proud to be part of a rich heritage of composition in the College, whose Music fellows have always been distinguished composers.
History of the Chapel
People have worshipped on the site of Worcester College for over seven hundred years. The current Chapel is a breath-taking space decorated with paintings, statutes, stained glass and mosaic. It was designed by the Victorian artist and architect William Burges in the 1860s within the shell of an eighteenth-century Chapel erected on the College’s foundation. Burges’ decorative scheme includes all sorts of hidden meanings and fanciful features, meaning every time you visit the Chapel you’re likely to see something you haven’t noticed before.