All about airport chapels
I’ve spent a lot of time in airports. I used to travel a lot for work. I’ve spent time in the lounges and food courts, the waiting areas, ticketing counters, and the lost-baggage offices. I rented a nap room in one airport, and I’ve killed plenty of time in airport bars. I’ve even been taken to the windowless area where immigration officers question you—that was in Toronto, after I had just gotten my work visa.
But there’s one part of the airport I’ve never been to: the airport chapel.
Every once in a while, when wandering the corridors of the airport, I hear an announcement about upcoming services in the chapel. And now and then, I see discreet signs pointing to the chapel. But like most travelers, I’ve never been inside. And truth be told, I’ve always wondered why airport chapels exist—and also, what they’re like inside.
Most airport chapels are interfaith spaces. That means, they’re not dedicated to just a single religion or a single faith. Instead, they can serve people of any religious faith. They have neutral décor, with simple furnishings. Some are large enough to accommodate a small crowd; others can fit just a few people.
The larger chapels have pews or rows of chairs and a simple altar. Many have copies of religious texts like the Bible, Quran, or Torah, often in multiple languages. Some have private or semi-private rooms nearby, where travelers can pray individually, meditate, or seek counseling from the on-site chaplain. The best chapels are soundproof and offer soft lighting, to provide a calm environment, a refuge from the chaos outside.
The first airport chapel opened at Boston’s Logan International Airport in 1951. At the time, air travel was just starting to become accessible to the mass market, and airports began to employ a lot of people. The chapel was specifically created for the employees. Boston was—and is—a heavily Catholic area. Airport employees work long shifts, and they often have to work at times that others go to church. So the chapel at Boston’s airport offered Catholic mass to employees who couldn’t make it to church.
The chapel was given a clever name—“Our Lady of the Airways”—and pretty soon, other airports started opening chapels too. New York’s Kennedy Airport opened dedicated Catholic, Jewish and Protestant chapels.
Today, many large airports have some type of prayer room. Over 140 airports have chapels, including 40 in the United States. The Dallas airport has one in every terminal. Both Washington, D.C.-area airports have dedicated Catholic, Protestant, Islamic, and interfaith chapels.
In Europe, large international hubs like Heathrow, Charles de Gaulle, and Frankfurt have them. There are chapels in smaller European airports, too, from relatively secular Sweden to pious Italy.
Dedicated prayer rooms are the norm in the Islamic world; they’re sometimes even required by law. The largest airport in Saudi Arabia has a mosque in the airport. The airports in both Istanbul and Dubai have more than a dozen prayer rooms each.
It might seem surprising that airports—of all places—would have dedicated prayer rooms, especially as participation in organized religion is declining in much of the western world. But there are good reasons for airports to have these spaces.
First, as we mentioned, are the employees. Air travel is a 365-day-a-year industry. Even if there aren’t flights around the clock, people work in airports twenty-four hours a day. That means, many in the industry have to work on holy days and on holidays. Those who travel—like pilots and flight attendants—can find themselves stranded away from home on days that they’d normally attend religious services. The first airport chapel was for employees, and many airport employees still use them.
Second—travelers. Observant travelers often have no choice but to be in the airport during prayer times. Airport chapels provide a safe and quiet place for travelers to fulfill religious obligations. Many airport chapels are interfaith, allowing observers of any religion to use the space.
Most air travel is for business or leisure—like vacations. But some of the people you see in the terminal are there for other, more serious reasons—like funerals, family emergencies, and hospital visits. A chapel offers a place for travelers to process difficult emotions privately.
Finally, you don’t have to be religious to use an interfaith chapel—there’s nobody at the door checking your membership card. Chapels offer space to meditate and find a moment of peace and comfort. Some people find that a moment of quiet reflection helps them feel grounded during an otherwise anxious time. This time can be especially comforting for those who are afraid of flying.
Where there are airport chapels, there are—sometimes—airport chaplains. An airport chaplain might be from any religious faith. The chaplain provides comfort to passengers who need it—whether because of grief, anxiety, illness, or traumatic events.
And chaplains can provide emotional assistance to passengers who are making difficult, life-altering journeys. Many people get on an airplane for the first time when they immigrate to another country, report for duty in the military, or travel for a serious medical procedure. Imagine taking a plane for the first time—and also having to think about major life changes and deal with an immigration bureaucracy. Chaplains can provide important emotional help to people going through these changes.
Airport chaplains also help in times of crisis. When someone dies on a flight, the airport chaplain is often the first person to make contact with the family. And, if the worst happens, the chaplains can provide comfort to survivors. A helicopter recently collided with an airplane near an airport in Washington, D.C. Sixty-seven people died. The chaplain organized a space that was safe, quiet, and away from the news media, where family members and friends could grieve and wait for information. Chaplains also provided comfort and counseling to the first responders.
In some cases, airport chaplains may be called in to help de-escalate emotional situations, as an alternative to getting police involved.
Jeff’s take
For some people, an airport might be the least romantic place in the world. But some couples met in an airport—or maybe they got engaged in an airport. So where better to get married than in the airport chapel? Yes, it’s true some couples do get married in the airport chapel.
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