Come and connect

We gather for worship and conversation every Wednesday @5:15pm in the MIT Chapel. After worship we eat dinner together, usually a home cooked meal served in the dining room in W11. For more information, contact the Rev. Andrew Heisen. (See contact information below.)

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Graduate reflection from Alvin Tan

In Easter season, Alvin Tan preached for LEM on Thomas’s encounter with the resurrected Jesus. Here is an excerpt from his reflection:

Anyone can become disabled any time. And even if we identify as able-bodied, that is only temporary. Eventually, through the aging process, we lose some of our capabilities and we become fully disabled at the end of our life.

Jesus died. He was fully disabled. He was a victim of violence instigated by religious authorities allied to an abusive government.

And, if we claim that Jesus is God, then God was disabled by the power of a violent empire. This didn’t just happen once. This happens time and time again. Who are those in power today, and who are the people being disabled, disempowered, and disenfranchised?

…We fight the oppressive powers of this world – misogyny, homophobia, xenophobia, able-ism, and racism – with gentleness, care, and compassion. I see tenderness in that moment between Jesus and Thomas, when Jesus invites Thomas to touch the mark of his wound.

In that tender moment, Thomas essentially says, “I believe you.”

And that’s what you say to a survivor of violence.

Support Our Ministry

We are grateful for the support of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts and the New England Synod of the ELCA. We also rely on alumni and friends for a great deal of our funding. Do you want to help provide spiritual formation, a strong community, and healthy meals to students at MIT?

Yes! I want to make a contribution to the Lutheran Chaplaincy at MIT.

Yes! I want to make a contribution to the Episcopal Chaplaincy at MIT.

Lutheran Chaplin

Rev. Andrew C. Heisen
617-999-9796
heisen@mit.edu

Pastor Andrew Heisen (he/him) has been serving as the Lutheran (ELCA) chaplain at MIT since 2019. He grew up in New York and New England, spending six summers working on staff at Calumet Lutheran Camp in Ossippee, NH. He attended Dartmouth College, graduating with degrees in music composition and computer sciennce. This led to four years of working in Johnson & Johnson’s IT “Advanced Technology Research” division and two years as a bartender before attending the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia and then Andover Newton Theological School, from which he received a Master’s Degree in Divinity. Before becoming a chaplain at MIT, Pastor Heisen served for seven years as pastor in Shrewsbury, MA, where he now lives with his wife and two children. His interests include ecumenical and interfaith cooperation, creativity in fostering communities of faith, teaching, spiritual discernment, music, and social justice.

Episcopal Chaplain

Rev. Kevin Vetiac
kvet246@mit.edu

Kevin Vetiac (he/they) is a Boston native with years of ministerial and higher education experience. Kevin graduated from the Boston University School of Theology with a Master of Divinity degree. Recently ordained a transitional deacon in the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, Kevin has a big heart for ecumenical ministry and college chaplaincy. Kevin also has a deep love for music and served as the Music Director of The Crossing at St. Paul’s Cathedral in Downtown Boston for six years. Kevin also served as the Cathedral Administrator for three years. Kevin is thrilled to join the Lutheran Episcopal Ministry at MIT and looks forward to continuing the work of creating inclusive and liberating Christian spaces for college students.