The Abraham S. Kay Spiritual Life Center, in its very architecture and design, embodies the spirit of a broad range of faith-based programs and services. Officially dedicated on October 3, 1965, the Kay Center's activities reflect the vision of faith and service of its original donor, Abraham S. Kay. Mr. Kay was active in the Jewish community and a prominent member of AU's Board of Trustees from 1955 to 1963. The Kay family, Mr. and Mrs. Jack Kay, and Mr. and Mrs. Harold Greenberg, have added to the family fund. Following Mr. Kay's death, the Kay Foundation generously provided additional funds. The Catholic Church, Protestant bodies, and other religious communities also have provided support through the years.
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35 Years of Worship and Service
An old adage is often invoked to clarify the essence of a university: "It's not the buildings, it's the people." This insight applies equally to the Kay Spiritual Life Center, as Bruce Poynter's fine history of the center shows.
Virtually from the founding of American University more than a century ago, there existed a sentiment that space would eventually be found for the construction of a chapel to provide a place for students to worship, pray, and meditate. Expressions of religious observance are deeply rooted in the school's founding philosophy and ecclesiastical base. Across the decades, American University has emphasized a dual claim on the education vocation - the search for truth flowing from scholarly inquiry and the search for the truth of divine revelation. In this preface, our University Chaplain explains the significance of the events leading up to the creation of the Kay Spiritual Life Center.
The Abraham S. Kay Spiritual Life Center
Writing in the Washington Post on October 26, 1965, music critic Paul Hume observed: "Those who regularly pass by American University at Ward Circle have been watching in recent months the completion of a circular building of intriguing design ... Its interior, which can be furnished suitably for a variety of religious services, is, when not so adorned, a simple but attractive setting for music ... In its first concert last night, the musicians ... were seated on chairs that stood on a raised wooden platform which, in turn, was placed in the center of a gently concave space. Behind them was a wall of wood and plaster and slender stained glass windows, all of which act as excellent reflectors for sound. It is the nearest sound to that of the Coolidge Auditorium in the Library of Congress that I have heard anywhere in Washington." This brief history of the building of the Kay Spiritual Center details the philosophy its creators.
