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The Walk to Emmaus is a spiritual renewal program intended
to strengthen the local church through the development of
Christian disciples and leaders. The Walk to Emmaus experience
begins with a 72-hour short course in Christianity, comprised
of fifteen talks by lay and clergy on the themes of God's
grace, disciplines of Christian discipleship, and what it
means to be the church. The course is wrapped in prayer
and meditation, special times of worship and daily celebration
of Holy Communion. The "Emmaus community," made
up of those who have attended an Emmaus weekend, support
the 72-hour experience with a prayer vigil, by preparing
and serving meals, and other acts of love and self-giving.
The Emmaus Walk usually begins Thursday evening and concludes
Sunday evening. Men and women attend separate weekends.
During and after the three days, Emmaus leaders encourage
participants to meet regularly in small groups. The members
of the small groups challenge and support one another in
faithful living. Participants seek to Christianize their
environments of family, job, and community through the ministry
of their congregations.
The Upper Room of The United Methodist Church sponsors the
Walk to Emmaus and offers it through local Emmaus groups
around the world. The three-day Emmaus experience and the
follow-up groups strengthen and renew Christian people as
disciples of Jesus Christ and as active members of the body
of Christ in mission to the world.
Many church leaders acclaim Emmaus as much more than a program.
It is a powerful movement of spiritual renewal that is making
a difference for countless individuals and many congregations.
Between 1978 and 1995, nearly half a million persons participated
in Emmaus. During this same period, the Emmaus movement
has taken hold in 300 sites around the world, including
the U.S.A., Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Costa
Rica, Germany, and India.
Emmaus is an experience in which growing Christians of all
sorts come together in common affirmation of the essentials
of the Christian faith. Bishop Adriel de Souza Maia of Brazil
worked to take Emmaus to his homeland because, as he put
it, "We need a church renewal movement which brings
together the two sides of the Christian life: prayer and
action, personal spiritual growth and social concern. Emmaus
holds together these two sides of the coin."
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