Scarritt-Bennett Center - Wightman Chapel

Built in 1928, this beautiful place of worship is named in honor of Mrs. Maria Davies Wightman, President of the Women’s Board of Foreign Missions of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, from 1894 to 1908. These were crucial years in the struggle for women’s rights in the church and across the nation, and Maria Davies Wightman was a pioneer in that struggle. She advocated for the training of women as missionaries for the denomination. Built in classic gothic cathedral style, Wightman Chapel is a historical and architectural treasure. The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. preached in Wightman Chapel on April 25, 1957. The Chapel was also featured in the PBS television production, “Designed for Worship”, as one of the finest sacred places in Nashville. Built for acoustics, music soars through its Gothic arches from the organ, vocalists, and instrumental groups in concerts.

The Labyrinth Garden is our beautiful round garden containing one of only two permanent outdoor prayer labyrinths in Nashville. An international peace pole stands in the garden’s west end, with “May Peace Prevail on Earth” written in seven languages, while cherry blossoms and dogwood trees burst with color in the spring, ripen to a vibrant summer green, then transform into a rich, multi-colored canopy in the fall. Our historic bell tower creates the perfect, breathtaking backdrop for your garden ceremony, and the space easily converts to an open or tented reception after you say, “I do.”

Small, intimate, and stunning, Skinner Chapel is a small memorial chapel located on Scarritt Bennett’s campus, tucked back in a first-floor corner of Fondren Hall near Harambee Auditorium. Skinner Chapel has stained glass windows along the west and south walls, and is perfect for prayer and meditation, destination weddings, elopements, or small memorial or worship services.