<\/p>\n
Anniversaries are joyous occasions.\u00a0\u00a0Today we celebrate the 75th\u00a0anniversary of the dedication of the Daniel L. Marsh Chapel at Boston University.\u00a0And in this spirit, this is a joyous day, as we recognize an institution that has long been at the center of Boston University\u2019s campus life.<\/p>\n
For generations, the Boston University community\u00a0has\u00a0looked\u00a0to\u00a0Marsh Chapel\u00a0as a place for\u00a0spiritual\u00a0guidance,\u00a0as a place to\u00a0affirm our university\u2019s\u00a0values,\u00a0and\u00a0as a place\u00a0to\u00a0fortify\u00a0our\u00a0worldview as\u00a0we\u00a0journey outside our campus walls.<\/p>\n
As you may be aware,\u00a0this week, events at\u00a0Boston University\u00a0have led to tensions between members of our campus\u00a0and community\u00a0\u2026\u00a0and a painful sense of being unfairly judged\u00a0and misunderstood.\u00a0\u00a0We are struggling with issues of identity,\u00a0belonging, and\u00a0political\u00a0perspectives.<\/p>\n
As a leader, my mind\u00a0goes to\u00a0security\u00a0and the\u00a0deep responsibility of ensuring the safety of\u00a0each and every\u00a0one of\u00a0our community members\u00a0no matter their viewpoint or actions.\u00a0And, yes,\u00a0I feel\u00a0sadness,\u00a0knowing\u00a0there is discord\u00a0among people who view the world differently.\u00a0I am pained by the inability to see our common humanity.<\/p>\n
But like you, I am here to celebrate. Indeed,\u00a0we\u00a0should\u00a0be celebrating. Because at\u00a0this time when we are\u00a0sometimes\u00a0confused and divided, at\u00a0the heart of our campus is this chapel\u00a0that has stood\u00a0strong\u00a0throughout\u00a0times of trial and triumph.<\/p>\n
Our\u00a0university\u2019s\u00a0values are clear. Presidents who have come before me, beginning with our first president, William Fairfield Warren,\u00a0envisioned a school in which no person regardless of race, religion, or sex would be turned away from the university. Indeed, our founders\u00a0bucked\u00a0the common practices of the day and opened\u00a0our\u00a0doors to all.<\/p>\n
Our founders\u2019 boldness makes us who we are today.\u00a0We\u00a0come\u00a0from across the country and around the world\u00a0to form this community.\u00a0We were raised\u00a0in\u00a0different\u00a0environments,\u00a0with different\u00a0religious traditions,\u00a0economic realities, and family values and yet come together\u00a0as a community.\u00a0Our diversity fosters excellence in the laboratory, classroom, and playing field.\u00a0And sometimes\u00a0our\u00a0community\u00a0is\u00a0harmonious,\u00a0and sometimes\u00a0our community\u00a0erupts\u00a0with\u00a0misunderstanding\u00a0and anger.\u00a0But,\u00a0we should not fear\u00a0discord and struggle.\u00a0Because in the wake of\u00a0struggle, we can reflect.\u00a0Marsh Chapel is a symbol of that reflection\u2026.which\u00a0has\u00a0served those before us and will continue to inspire those who will come after.<\/p>\n
Dedicated on March 14, 1950,\u00a0and\u00a0named after our fourth president, Daniel L. Marsh,\u00a0who chose\u00a0every single piece of artwork, from carvings to stained glass, chandeliers, and paintings.<\/p>\n
Marsh\u00a0left\u00a0a lasting impression\u00a0on what the chapel should offer\u00a0to\u00a0its people.\u00a0\u00a0With spiritual\u00a0guidance\u00a0he affirmed our values.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere in God\u2019s house,\u201d\u00a0he wrote in his book\u00a0The\u00a0Charm of the\u00a0Chapel, “there\u00a0shall be no prejudice, nor bigotry, nor narrow sectarianism.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marsh hoped that students would affirm these values and carry them out into the world:<\/p>\n
\u201cWe hope that the procession of immortal youth passing through the halls of Boston University for the next thousand years will be vouchsafed a vision of greatness, and that that vision of greatness will become habitual, and result in moral progress.\u201d<\/p>\n
President Harold Case recruited Howard Thurman to be Dean of the Chapel. In\u00a01953,\u00a0Thurman joined Boston University and became\u00a0the first Black\u00a0person\u00a0to serve as dean of a\u00a0predominately white\u00a0institution.\u00a0\u00a0That decision would give Boston University one of its greatest leaders.<\/p>\n
In this moment\u00a0in our history, I\u00a0read\u00a0Dean Thurman often, and\u00a0look\u00a0to\u00a0his words,\u00a0for guidance.\u00a0Born in the rural south and well versed in the pain of hatred and discrimination,\u00a0Thurman believed that the task before us was not to look outward in judgment\u00a0of others\u00a0but to look inward\u00a0to gain\u00a0understanding.<\/p>\n
Thurman defined compassion\u00a0as:<\/p>\n
\u201c\u2026the awareness that where my life begins is where your life begins; the awareness that the sensitiveness to your needs cannot be separated from the sensitiveness to my needs; the awareness that the joys of my heart are never mine alone \u2013 nor are my sorrows.\u201d<\/p>\n
That is why we\u00a0should\u00a0celebrate today,\u00a0because\u00a0through\u00a0Marsh Chapel we\u00a0have\u00a0Thurman\u2019s\u00a0spiritual\u00a0guidance. We can sit shoulder to shoulder, face to face\u00a0with\u00a0the rich diversity of society\u00a0and experience our common humanity.\u00a0\u201cwhere\u00a0my life begins is where your life begins\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Marsh Chapel is a place of spiritual guidance, and we are so pleased that one of\u00a0our most prominent community members is here with us today.<\/p>\n
Dean Lawrence Carter, the esteemed Founding Dean of the Martin Luther King, Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College, welcome.<\/p>\n
Dean Carter also happens to be the mentor of Senator Warnock, who I am also\u00a0very happy\u00a0to welcome to Boston University.<\/p>\n
In Senator Warnock\u2019s book, he recounts a moving moment, in which Dean Carter finds himself in Marsh Chapel when he heard the news that Martin Luther King, Jr. had been assassinated.<\/p>\n
While staring up at the beautiful stained-glass window, Dean Carter prayed aloud,<\/p>\n
\u201cLord, help me to do something significant for Martin Luther King, Jr. before I close my eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dean Carter \u2013 you have\u00a0accomplished\u00a0this, and then some.<\/p>\n
[PAUSE]<\/p>\n
Senator Warnock \u2013 we are honored that you are with us,\u00a0as someone who\u00a0has\u00a0fiercely\u00a0advocated for a more inclusive world, and who\u00a0embodies\u00a0the\u00a0values that are important to us here at BU.<\/p>\n
We see\u00a0you, too,\u00a0as a member of our extended family.<\/p>\n
As pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta, where our esteemed\u00a0alumnus\u00a0Martin Luther King, Jr.\u00a0presided,\u00a0who better than you,\u00a0senator, to offer\u00a0a sermon on this occasion at Marsh Chapel, an\u00a0institution where King spent\u00a0some of\u00a0his formative years.<\/p>\n
Senator, I recently\u00a0watched\u00a0the acceptance speech you gave when you won election to the\u00a0Senate, and I was struck by how you addressed \u201cthe\u00a0multiracial, multi-religious coalition of conscience\u201d who supported you.<\/p>\n
\u201cEach of us has value,\u201d\u00a0you told them.\u00a0\u201cAnd if we have value, we ought to have a voice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yes.\u00a0This is the kind of community we must aspire to at Boston University.<\/p>\n
I am glad that you are here with us, and that you\u00a0are able to\u00a0reconnect with Dean Carter in this space that has meant so much to him.<\/p>\n
Dean Hill \u2013 we are grateful for your continued stewardship of one of our community\u2019s jewels.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
I began by telling you that we have a moment to celebrate this opportunity for spiritual guidance,\u00a0affirm our university values, and fortify our world view. To our\u00a0past\u00a0presidents, deans, and those\u00a0ministers\u00a0who stand before us today, thank you for your guidance.<\/p>\n
Over the past year, we embarked on a journey to define and embody the values that have guided us over time and will guide us into the future.<\/p>\n
After conversations with thousands of community members, we\u00a0have\u00a0identified\u00a08 shared values and words to define them:<\/p>\n
Integrity<\/p>\n
Inclusion<\/p>\n
Community<\/p>\n
Collaboration<\/p>\n
Excellence<\/p>\n
Learning<\/p>\n
Service<\/p>\n
Global<\/p>\n
In this moment,\u00a0I\u2019m\u00a0compelled to focus on our value of inclusion.<\/p>\n
Our community defined \u201cinclusion\u201d to mean, \u201cbelieving that our diversity makes Boston University a better place to work and learn, we continue to seek ways to be more accessible and inclusive of differences in identity, background, ideas, and abilities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course, we know that our values must be more than words on a page\u2014they must serve as a compass that keeps us true to who we are while pushing us to imagine what we can become.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Over these 75 years, community members from across the spectrum have found respite in\u00a0Marsh Chapel\u2019s\u00a0beauty, have protested near its steps, and held vigils\u00a0on\u00a0its plaza. They have also found solace in its message of inclusion, and\u00a0hope\u00a0and gone out into the world to do\u00a0great things.<\/p>\n
Our\u00a0campus will erupt in anger and disagreement,\u00a0but that is also our opportunity for hope.<\/p>\n
In his life, the great\u00a0The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.\u00a0experienced\u00a0anger,\u00a0fear, bigotry, prejudice, and discrimination\u00a0and\u00a0yet, he said,\u00a0\u201cI have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear.”<\/p>\n
If we learn to care about one another despite our\u00a0differences and mistakes, we will create a university that is stronger, more inclusive, and more dynamic. We will create a university\u00a0ready for the challenges of our\u00a0day,\u00a0\u00a0honoring\u00a0its roots while shaping a future of limitless\u00a0possibility.<\/p>\n
Thank you to all of you here today, who have made\u00a0such a\u00a0commitment to\u00a0guide us through\u00a0difficult times, and who have, along the way, blessed Marsh Chapel with your brilliance.<\/p>\n
As delivered on November 16, 2025.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Anniversaries are joyous occasions.\u00a0\u00a0Today we celebrate the 75th\u00a0anniversary of the dedication of the Daniel L. Marsh Chapel at Boston University.\u00a0And in this spirit, this is a joyous day, as we recognize an institution that has long been at the center of Boston University\u2019s campus life. For generations, the Boston University community\u00a0has\u00a0looked\u00a0to\u00a0Marsh Chapel\u00a0as a place […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23974,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4297"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23974"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4297"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4297\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4302,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4297\/revisions\/4302"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4297"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4297"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bu.edu\/president\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4297"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}