This page contains some of the questions that are more frequently asked of members of our Community and the Board of
Directors. If you don’t find the answer to a question you are interested in, please click on the Contact us link in the navigation or bottom of the page and we will get back with you.
The Walk to Emmaus or a Face to Face Encounter is a journey with Christ based on the Emmaus Road Encounter in Luke 24.
The Gospel of St. Luke relates the story of the risen Christ appearing to two who were going along the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus. Two friends were walking together, sharing their hearts’ deepest concerns. The risen Christ joined them and explained the scriptures as they walked, how it was ordained that Christ should suffer and so enter his glory. This experience on the road was a heart-warming experience as the risen Christ walked and talked with them. The illuminating climax of the experience was when Christ took bread and said the blessing, then broke it and gave it to them. The two had their eyes opened and they recognized him as the risen Christ and they rushed back to Jerusalem to tell the others. (Luke 24: 13-35)
What is the Walk to Emmaus?
The above story provides the image for Emmaus, an Upper Room program that calls forth and renews Christian discipleship. Like its predecessor, Cursillo de Christiandad (Spanish for “short course in Christianity”), the Walk to Emmaus is a three-day experience which takes a New Testament look at Christianity as a lifestyle. It is a highly structured weekend designed to strengthen and renew the faith of Christian people, and through them their families, congregations and the world in which they live. Emmaus is a combined effort of laity and clergy toward the renewal of the church.
What is Face to Face?
Face to Face, is a Christian spiritual formation program for adults 60 and older, adapting the format of the Walk to Emmaus weekends for older adults who may not be able to attend a three-day live-in retreat. For the Fredericksburg Community, it involves 4-sessions at a local church, focusing on discipleship, faith, community, grief, and end-of-life issues within a framework of structured Bible study, prayer, worship, and fellowship.
What happens at Emmaus?
The “Walk to Emmaus” is a 72 hour experience. The weekend begins on Thursday evening and ends Sunday evening. At Emmaus, you will spend three busy but very enjoyable days. The Fredericksburg Community holds its Walk to Emmaus weekends at Camp Rappahannock in Richardsville, Virginia. You will live and study together in singing, prayer, worship, and discussion.
Discussions center around fifteen talks given by laity and clergy. These talks present the theme of God’s grace, and how that grace comes alive in the Christian community and expresses itself in the world. You’ll also discover how grace is real in your life, and how you can live in the life of grace, bringing grace to others. You will have the opportunity to participate in the daily celebration of Holy Communion, and to begin to understand more fully the presence of Christ in his body of believers. You will experience God’s grace personally through the prayers and acts of service of a living support community.
What happens after Emmaus?
One of the primary strengths of Emmaus is the follow-up. Your weekend lasts only three days, but you are invited to build on it for the rest of your life. Those who attend a “Walk to Emmaus” are encourage to do two things following their weekend:
- Expand their own spiritual lives through study and congregational participation.
- Become more active disciples of Christ in the world through their churches.
To nurture this process of discipleship, the Emmaus movement offers specific opportunities. First, reunion groups meet weekly to reflect on their quest for spiritual growth and encourage one another in their discipleship. Second, there will be monthly meeting called “Community Gatherings”. All people in a particular Emmaus community or area are invited for fellowship, worship, and information instruction. Third, through a newsletter, the Community is made aware of support needs for upcoming Walks to Emmaus and of opportunities to work in a variety of ways during future weekends.
History Of Emmaus
Originating in Spain in the late 1940’s, Cursillo moved to America in the late 1950s. It was primarily a Roman Catholic movement until the 1970s. As Catholic centers started accepting applications from Protestants, efforts began among some groups to make the Cursillo experience available to all Protestants. In the late 1970s, The Upper Room formed The Upper Room Cursillo Community in Nashville, Tennessee. In 1981, by mutual agreement between the National Secretariat of the Roman Catholic Cursillo movement and The Upper Room, the name of the Nashville Protestant community was changed to Emmaus. The Emmaus movement is ecumenical.
What denomination is the Walk to Emmaus?
The Walk to Emmaus is an ecumenical Christian movement. It is open to all Christians regardless of church affiliation and tradition.
How do I get scheduled to attend the Walk to Emmaus?
In order to attend a Walk to Emmaus, you must be sponsored by an individual who has already been on an Emmaus Walk. If you need assistance in locating someone in your church to speak to about attending, please contact us through the link at the top or bottom of this page.
How do I get scheduled to attend a Face to Face Encounter?
Unlike the Walk to Emmaus, for Face to Face, you can register yourself to attend an Encounter. Please check out our homepage to see when the next Encounter is scheduled for and if there is not yet information on how to sign yourself up the Encounter, please use the Contact Us link in the navigation or bottom of the page.