What Should I Know Before Attending?
Emmaus is for church persons. Emmaus is designed for active church members and their leaders who
want to rekindle their faith or renew their vision. Emmaus also benefits less active church members
who are seeking to renew a relationship with God, to grow spiritually, or to discover firmer
foundations for their lives. However, Emmaus is not an evangelistic outreach to non-Christians. The
content of the Walk assumes a certain familiarity with the basics of the Christian faith and tries to build
on each person's positive relationship with the church.
Emmaus is for people who want to grow spiritually, who hunger for the bread of life. Emmaus is for
persons who simply want to understand the Christian faith more fully and to mature as disciples of Jesus
Christ. Emmaus is for persons who want to build up the church in love and contribute to its ministry.
The Emmaus Walk is mainstream in theological outlook. Emmaus has room for a great variety of
Christians who seek to grow, share, and give themselves to a three-day walk with Christ. Emmaus is a
common meeting ground for the great diversity of Christians in our churches who celebrate their
unity in Christ and feel they can learn from one another, be they traditionalists, evangelicals, liberals,
conservatives, activists, or charismatics. Emmaus is for those who seek to follow Christ without regard to
labels and camps.
Emmaus is for building faith and discipleship, not for working through grief or psychological
problems. Emmaus teams are not trained for counseling or group therapy. If you are preoccupied with
working through personal dilemmas, consider waiting to go through Emmaus when you feel freer to
focus on the message of the Walk.
Emmaus is for fostering unity in Christ, not for theological debate and arguments about
denominations. Emmaus tries to foster appreciation and openness to the different faith-perspectives of
the participants. Bring a spirit of Christian tolerance and charity toward others, including members of
other denominations. If you cannot affirm your unity with other kinds of Christians, if you tend to
define Christianity narrowly and legalistically or are intolerant of those who see things differently, then
Emmaus is probably not for you.
Emmaus is a concentrated three-day course in Christianity, not a relaxing retreat. Don't bring work
from the office or have hopes of taking an afternoon off to read. Except for break times, Emmaus is a
very full experience. Come with empty hands and open hearts, planning to give yourself completely to
the Emmaus Walk.
How Can I Go to Emmaus?
You can go by contacting a friend who has been to Emmaus. Ask your friend to tell you about his
or her experience of The Walk to Emmaus. Your friend will help you decide whether you would find
this experience helpful.
If you do not know anyone who has been to Emmaus or if you have no Emmaus sites in your area,
contact The Upper Room's Walk to Emmaus Office for information on the whereabouts of Emmaus
communities and contact persons: 1908 Grand Avenue, Nashville, TN 37212. Call toll-free 877-899-
2780, ext. 7227 or e-mail emmaus@upper room.org. Information is also available on The Upper
Room web site: www.upperroom.org/emmaus.
