What Happens After the Emmaus Weekend?

You are invited to have a closer walk with Christ for the rest of your life; this is called the Fourth Day. Those who attend a Walk to Emmaus are encouraged to:

Expand their own spiritual lives through worship, study and active participation in their local church
Become more active disciples of Christ in service to the world

To nurture this process of discipleship, the Emmaus movement offers specific opportunities. First, groups of four to six people meet weekly to reflect on their spiritual journey and encourage one another in accountable discipleship. Second, there are monthly community gatherings where Emmaus participants meet for fellowship, worship and instruction. Third, community members are regularly informed of the support needs of upcoming Walk to Emmaus weekends, and other opportunities for servant leadership.

Reproduced from the Emmaus® International Website. Used with permission.

What happens on the Emmaus Weekend?

You will enjoy three days of singing, learning, laughing, worshiping, reflecting, praying and participating in small groups. Discussions center around fifteen talks given by laity and clergy. These talks present the theme of God’s grace, how that grace comes alive in the Christian community and how it is expressed in the world. You’ll also discover how grace is real in your life, how you live a life of grace, and how you bring that grace to others.

You will have the opportunity to participate in the daily celebration of Holy Communion and to understand more fully the body of Christ. You will experience God’s grace through the prayers and acts of anonymous service offered by the Emmaus community. You will leave with an experience of Christian love in action that will equip you for new levels of grace-filled service and leadership.

Reproduced from the Emmaus® International Website. Used with permission.

Walk to Emmaus History

The Walk to Emmaus is an adaptation of the Roman Catholic Cursillo (pronounced cur-SEE-o) Movement, which originated in Spain in 1949.

Cursillo de Cristianidad means "little course in Christianity."

The original Cursillo leaders designed the program to empower persons to transform their living and working environments into Christian environments. 

During the 1960s and 1970s, the Episcopalians and Lutherans, along with several nondenominational groups, such as Tres Dias, began to offer Cursillo. In 1978, The Upper Room of the General Board of Discipleship adapted the program for a primarily Protestant audience and began to offer it under the name The Upper Room Cursillo. In 1981, The Upper Room made further adaptations and changed the name of the program to The Upper Room Walk to Emmaus. In 1984, The Upper Room developed a youth expression of Emmaus called Chrysalis.

Reproduced from the Emmaus® International Website. Used with permission.