The Seton Chapel of St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center
The Seton Chapel of St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center is located in the Seton Building on the 4th floor. It is situated to the right of the information desk as you enter the main lobby. The Seton Chapel is available for patients, staff, families and visitors, and is open seven days a week, twenty-four hours a day.
Groups affiliated with St. Elizabeth's may request the use of the chapel for services by contacting the Department of Spiritual Care. The request for use of the Seton Chapel should be made at least two weeks in advance for a particular activity. All requests for such are channeled through the Department of Spiritual Care and approved by the director and priest chaplain.
The purpose of the Seton Chapel is to offer patients, families, staff and visitors a quiet place for retreat and prayer.
Daily Mass is offered in the Seton Chapel Monday through Friday at 12 p.m.; on Saturday at 4 p.m., and on Sunday at 8 a.m.
On closed circuit TV, you can view the following:
- Channel 3 - Celebration of Mass
- Channel 3 - Spiritual Music
- Channel 11- Relaxation Channel
- Channel 14 - Boston Catholic Television
We Remember Service
The We Remember Memorial Service will be held on Sunday, April 7, 2024.
Quiet Reflection Time: 1:45 p.m.
Service: 2 p.m.
This special service is held annually for families who have experienced miscarriage, stillbirth, or neonatal loss.
The service will be held online (link: http://bit.ly/WeRememberApril24) and in person in Seton Chapel at St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center, 736 Cambridge St., Brighton, MA.
If you have experienced the loss of a baby either here at St. Elizabeth’s or at any point in your life, we invite you and your family to be present online or in person to remember with us. To have your child(ren)’s name included in the service, please RSVP to Elizabeth Goeke at [email protected]
Chaplain Services
Apart from a hospital chaplain’s daily pastoral visitation, there are a number of situations and circumstances to which a hospital chaplain will be called such as:
Pertaining to patients and/or family members:
- Distress experienced by patients and/or family members
- A recent diagnosis creating anxiety, depression, anger
- The decision-making process for a particular treatment or treatment change
- Issues dealing with end-of-life concerns
Pertaining to staff personnel:
- Stressful work environment issues
- Personal issues possibly affecting oneself in the work environment
- Types of code disaster situations
Chaplains are professionally trained people who are able to respond to the spiritual needs of others relating to issues of forgiveness and reconciliation, meaning of life, trust, faith, hope, love, as well as being proactive when the need for religious ritual is requested. Whatever may be a person’s spiritual need, the chaplain sustains the person’s integrity and supports that person in drawing from his/her own resources of spiritual strengths in order to cope with the ensuing circumstances. Often times, chaplains are called upon to minister to staff personnel around difficult patient issues, as well as varied personal matters.
Sacraments
Sacraments are made available to Roman Catholics and other Christian patients, in order to provide for their spiritual needs.
Eucharist
Mass is celebrated in the hospital every day for the benefit of patients, staff and visitors in so far as is possible.
- Monday through Friday at 12 p.m.
- Saturday at 4 p.m.
- Sunday at 8 a.m.
- Holy Communion will be offered Sunday through Friday. Catholic chaplains and trained eucharistic ministers offer Holy Communion to those patients who request to receive the Eucharist.
Baptism
Baptism is available to patients in critical condition who request it.
Confirmation
The Sacrament of Confirmation, after the emergency Baptism, may be administered to any patient who is critically ill, particularly if the chance of survival is minimal. The priest chaplain will be called to administer this Sacrament.
Reconciliation
The Sacrament of Reconciliation is available through Spiritual Care Department at the request of patients, their loved ones, or any member of the health care team. The priest chaplain will be notified of the request.
Anointing of the sick
The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick will be offered when:
- A patient becomes seriously ill
- A patient’s condition deteriorates noticeably
- Prognosis is poor
- A patient is preparing to undergo surgery
- Age of the patient is a factor
- Patient or a loved one requests the Sacrament
If possible, the Sacrament will be administered while the patient is in full consciousness. For this Sacrament, the chaplain gives particular attention to those patients who show signs of approaching death.
Interfaith Chapel
The Interfaith Meditation Chapel is located on the 7th floor between the Seton and Medeiros Buildings. The chapel is open 24 hours a day for meditation and prayer. The chapel is available for patients, staff, families and visitors. All are welcome. Groups affiliated with St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center may request the use of the Interfaith Meditation Chapel for services by contacting the Department of Spiritual Care.
The purpose of the chapel is to offer patients, families, staff and visitors a quiet space for retreat and prayer. Ecumenical and inter-religious services are also available. When requested, the Department of Spiritual Care will assist patients of diverse faith traditions in accessing their own spiritual care providers.
By way of the medical center’s closed circuit TV system, and for your convenience, spiritual music can be found on channel 3. Relaxation music is available on Channel 11.
Bikur Cholim Room
St. Elizabeth’s offers all of our Jewish visitors and guests access to Boston’s first Bikur Cholim (visiting the sick) room. This room, a place to rest, pray and eat, is located on Seton 6E and includes a supply of kosher food, prayer books and other religious items, as well as comfortable furnishings and a kosher refrigerator and microwave. The room is stocked with kosher food and is furnished in partnership with ROFEH (Reaching Out, Furnishing Emergency Healthcare) and Wingate Health Care. Please check with your nurse if you need access to the room.
Contact Us
Office hours for the Spiritual Care Department run from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Services can be accessed by calling the department or contacting the staff chaplain assigned to the unit. St. Elizabeth's Spiritual Care Services has a 24/7 emergency chaplain or priest chaplain available on call. They may be reached at any time by asking the operator to page the chaplain-on-call.
Spiritual Care Services are provided for all patients, regardless of faith tradition or social/religious background. It is the policy of the hospital that referral for services of Spiritual Care personnel may be made on behalf of any patient by any member of the health care team at St. Elizabeth's.
Guidelines for contact or referral purposes:
- Department - ext. 3045; ext. 3228 (during regular business hours)
- Emergency Chaplain-on-call Pager 1009 (after business hours)
Notify Spiritual Care for any of the following:
- Upon request of patient
- On admission, for all seriously or terminally ill patients
- When family members/loved ones of patient are experiencing emotional distress
- Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick
- Request for Holy Communion
- Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession)
- Emergency Baptism
The recovery and emergency rooms should contact Spiritual Care Services in critical or unusual situations where the supervisor feels the presence of a Spiritual Care provider is warranted.
St. Elizabeth's Medical Center - Department of Spiritual Care
736 Cambridge St.
Quinn Building #1
Brighton, MA 02135-2997
Phone: 617-789-3045
Fax: 617-789-3007