Sacred Heart Chapel celebrates 80 years since dedication

This past week, the monastic sisters and CSB+SJU students gathered to celebrate 80 years since the consecration of the Sacred Heart Chapel. Prayer services were held on Monday evening and throughout the day on Tuesday to celebrate the anniversary.

Architect George P. Stauduhar submitted plans for the original Sacred Heart Chapel on March 17, 1911. The Sacred Heart Chapel architecture style is of the Roman Renaissance.

The contractors for the project were the Butler Brothers who supervised the building process. The project began in 1912 and was finished in 1914. The building of the Sacred Heart Chapel coincided with the establishment of the College of St. Benedict campus in 1913 by the monastery. After 29 years, the monastic sisters and the community gathered for the very first dedication of the chapel on Oct. 24, 1943.

Today, Sister Jonathan is the only sister still alive who was present at the first dedication. At 102 years old, she no longer lives in the St. Ben’s monastic community. During the ceremony, her fellow sisters informed the crowd that Jonathan still recalls the day the Chapel was dedicated.

CSB sophomore Isa Kraabel attended the prayer service on Monday evening.

“The service was stunning,” Kraabel said. “I especially loved the beginning when they lit all the candles and had the incense burning.” On the same day as the Sacred Heart Chapel, the St. John’s Abbey was dedicated and blessed in 1943.

In the first proposal of the project, there was no dome planned in the architecture outline. However, Sister Priscilla Schmidtbauer insisted that a dome be built, as she saw it as an important characteristic of the space.

Today, the copper dome stands at 135 feet tall and can be seen all throughout campus. Additionally, it is pictured and highlighted on posted brochures and displayed images of the chapel.

Sister Dorothy Manuel, a member of the monastic community, arrived from Richmond, Minn. in 1955. Over the years, she has given tours of the space to guests.

“The dome is a reminder that there is a stable community here,” Manuel said.

Beginning in 1981 and lasting until 1983, the Sacred Heart Chapel underwent a thorough renovation as plaster began dropping from the dome.

Manuel remembers being a cantor as a young sister between the choir stands that were situated at the front of the chapel, in front of the raised altar, prior to the renovation.

The renovation was in close alignment with Vatican II, and the hope was that the focus of the space would be on the people of God gathered within the congregation. The sisters and a specific renovation committee outlined what they saw as important aspects of the renovation.

At the information desk within the gathering space, binders contain images of the old space and the changes from over the years since 1912.

“One of the beautiful things that we didn’t save was the raised altar in the back of the space,” Manuel said. “There were six beautiful angels that held a large crown.”

The six wooden-carved angels have been relocated to the St. Mary’s Basilica in Minneapolis. During the renovation, the altar was built in the center rather than raised at the front of the space. This change was done in the hopes that the people within the congregation can be included in the Mass from all four directions.

Manuel remembers that when the renovation was first done, there was a newly found sense of quiet and awe within the Sacred Heart Chapel.

The gathering space was built as an entirely new addition in the renovation. The space functions as a front entrance to the chapel where guests assemble before entering.

When it is light outside, the copper dome can be seen through the skylight of the gathering space.

The blessed sacrament chapel now lies on the side of the new space. The communion rails from the old space can now be found there.

Today, just under 160 sisters are part of the community of sisters of The Order of St. Benedict and gather within the space regularly.

“I think it’s so special to be a part of the dedication of the church, and especially the fact that it has been 80 years,” Kraabel said. “The Sacred Heart Chapel is such a beautiful space, and I love how it’s designed so that we are all facing each other.”