Spiritual Life

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Full Moon Gift Gathering

All are invited to gather on the EMU campus hill (or Discipleship Center if raining) for a time of shared hope and connection. Bring a "gift" or simply come to receive gifts.  What is a gift? Anything that is a balm to your soul: a poem, song, scientific discovery, hopeful encounter, art, a new recipe, anything that takes just 1-3 minutes to share. All ages, faiths, and no faith welcomed. There will be no pre-screening or censorship, but please respect the potential of young ears present. Campfire and water to drink provided. Bring your own water bottle and chair or blanket. Please consider walking or parking farther away so that those with accessibility needs can park closest for easy walking. This gathering is co-sponsored by the EMU Office of Faith and Spiritual Life and Community Mennonite Church. Organization: Faith & Spiritual Life. Categories: Spiritual Life. Event Locator: 2026-AANPCX. Wednesday, July 29, 2026, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM. Discipleship Center, Room 101, Discipleship Center, Hill.

Full Moon Gift Gathering

All are invited to gather on the EMU campus hill (or Discipleship Center if raining) for a time of shared hope and connection. Bring a "gift" or simply come to receive gifts.  What is a gift? Anything that is a balm to your soul: a poem, song, scientific discovery, hopeful encounter, art, a new recipe, anything that takes just 1-3 minutes to share. All ages, faiths, and no faith welcomed. There will be no pre-screening or censorship, but please respect the potential of young ears present. Campfire and water to drink provided. Bring your own water bottle and chair or blanket. Please consider walking or parking farther away so that those with accessibility needs can park closest for easy walking. This gathering is co-sponsored by the EMU Office of Faith and Spiritual Life and Community Mennonite Church. Organization: Faith & Spiritual Life. Categories: Spiritual Life. Event Locator: 2026-AANPCX. Friday, August 28, 2026, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM. Discipleship Center, Room 101, Discipleship Center, Hill.

Enkutatash (Ethiopian New Year)

Ethiopian New Year interviews with Ruth Abera, EMU student, The Ethiopian New Year in Ethiopia is a celebration of new beginnings. It’s a celebration of coming together and reflecting on the last year and welcoming the new year in. It’s celebrated on September 11th in America but in Ethiopia, it’s celebrated on September 1st due to our calendar difference. Ethiopian New Year to me means an event of celebration, coming together, and acknowledgment of my culture which involves my identity. It’s a place where I can share who I am and do it with others who share that similar experience with me and share it with those who are not aware of my culture. Upcoming expected dates are September 12, 2027; September 11, 2028; September 11, 2029; September 11, 2030. You can access the complete Multifaith Religious and Cultural Holidays Calendar here. Organization: Faith & Spiritual Life. Categories: Spiritual Life, Center for Interfaith Engagement, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Interfaith Calendar. Event Locator: 2025-AANBXZ. Friday, September 11, 2026, 7:00 AM.

Rosh Hashanah, September 11-13

Rosh Hashanah (or Yom Teruah), also spelled Hashana or Ha-shanah, comes from Hebrew and, most simply put, means “beginning of the year.” Rosh Hashanah not only marks the new year—it also honors the creation date of Adam and Eve some 5,700 years ago, the first relationship, and the human connection with God's world.  https://www.dictionary.com/e/rosh-hashana/, The following is from an interview with Courtney Joiner, EMU Faculty, Rosh Hashanah is celebrated as a "Day of Awe," along with Yom Kippur.  These holidays and the eight days in between Courtney describes as "a space in time; it becomes a thin place, where I experience God’s closeness in those ten days."  They take place between mid-September and early November each year.  Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year, celebrating God’s creation of the world, and God renews us every year.  It's symbol is the apple. The month leading up to Rosh Hashanah is called Elul which is meant to be introspection, so that when Rosh Hashanah comes, you’re ready to… Organization: Faith & Spiritual Life. Categories: Spiritual Life, Center for Interfaith Engagement, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Interfaith Calendar. Event Locator: 2025-AANBZA. Friday, September 11, 2026, 7:00 PM.

Campus Worship: Jonathan Swartz

Gather with Jonathan Swartz, EMU Dean of Students, for our campus worship series entitled, What's Your Story? Reflections on Call and Vocation, featuring faculty and staff sharing reflections on their sense of calling and vocation (purpose and meaning).  -Who or what impacted and inspired your sense of who you were and what gave you meaning through your growing up years? -How has your faith or spirituality informed your sense of calling and vocation/purpose? -How are you continuing to lean into the fullness of your sense of calling and vocation in your present work and life?   Campus Worship is an invitational space for gathered worship in Christian traditions and a variety of styles. Campus Worship is held in Martin Chapel (Seminary Building) on Wednesday mornings every other week scheduled opposite of Convocation. Read more here about campus worship and other worship services on campus. 2 Engage Points, This event will be livestreamed on EMU's YouTube: … Organization: Faith & Spiritual Life. Categories: Spiritual Life, Worship, Faith & Spiritual Life, Spiritual Renewal, EMU Engage. Event Locator: 2026-AANQRF. Wednesday, September 16, 2026, 10:15 AM – 11:05 AM. Seminary Building, Room 215 Martin Chapel, Seminary Building, Room 218 Fellowship Area.

Yom Kippur, September 20-21

Yom Kippur, or the Day of Atonement, is known as the holiest day of the Jewish year. Leading up to and on that day, Jews traditionally ask for forgiveness for wrongdoings from God and from fellow human beings. This is from an interview with Courtney Joyner, EMU faculty. “The Book of Life opens on Rosh Hashanah and closes on Yom Kippur.” You have those ten days to repent of your sins and to try to make reparations with the people you have harmed. It’s about asking forgiveness for sins we have done against other people. This needs to happen before Yom Kippur.  “I have felt more absolved of my sins in practicing Judaism than in Christianity, strangely enough. There is something about having to enter into the action of making peace with people you have harmed that seems to be largely absent from the Christian theology of sin and salvation. I feel like I have actually done something to improve my relationships with other people.” Many Jews are at the temple all day on Yom Kippur. It’s traditional to… Organization: Faith & Spiritual Life. Categories: Spiritual Life, Center for Interfaith Engagement, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Interfaith Calendar. Event Locator: 2025-AANBZF. Sunday, September 20, 2026, 7:15 PM.

Sukkot, Sep 25-Oct 2

This is from an interview with Courtney Joyner, EMU faculty. Sukkot, the Feast of Booths, starts five days after Yom Kippur, and the holiday runs for seven days. Sukkot celebrates the wandering of the Israelites in the desert for 40 years, when they had to rely only upon God for food and protection.  “Sukkah” is a temporary structure that is built during the holiday, made of sticks and greenery. You must be able to see the stars through the ceiling. It’s to bring to mind the “mishkan” or the tabernacle in the wilderness.  You are supposed to eat your meals in this structure. Sukkot is also a harvest holiday and the beginning of the season of prayers for rain. Sukkot is one of the three “Pilgrimage Festivals” which include the holidays of Pesach (Passover, or the Feast of Unleavened Bread), Shavuot (the Feast of Weeks), and Sukkot (the Feast of Booths). Current and upcoming dates for Sukkot include: Evening of Fri, Sep 25, 2026 – Fri, Oct 2, 2026, Evening of Fri, Oct 15, 2027 – Fri, Oct 22,… Organization: Faith & Spiritual Life. Categories: Spiritual Life, Center for Interfaith Engagement, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Interfaith Calendar. Event Locator: 2025-AANBZH. Friday, September 25, 2026, 7:15 PM.

Full Moon Gift Gathering

All are invited to gather on the EMU campus hill (or Discipleship Center if raining) for a time of shared hope and connection. Bring a "gift" or simply come to receive gifts.  What is a gift? Anything that is a balm to your soul: a poem, song, scientific discovery, hopeful encounter, art, a new recipe, anything that takes just 1-3 minutes to share. All ages, faiths, and no faith welcomed. There will be no pre-screening or censorship, but please respect the potential of young ears present. Campfire and water to drink provided. Bring your own water bottle and chair or blanket. Please consider walking or parking farther away so that those with accessibility needs can park closest for easy walking. This gathering is co-sponsored by the EMU Office of Faith and Spiritual Life and Community Mennonite Church. Organization: Faith & Spiritual Life. Categories: Spiritual Life. Event Locator: 2026-AANPCX. Saturday, September 26, 2026, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM. Discipleship Center, Room 101, Discipleship Center, Hill.

Campus Worship: Professor Laurie Yoder

Gather with Dr. Laurie Yoder, Associate Professor of Chemistry, for our campus worship series entitled, What's Your Story? Reflections on Call and Vocation, featuring faculty and staff sharing reflections on their sense of calling and vocation (purpose and meaning).  This story will connect with themes of environmental sustainability in some ways. -Who or what impacted and inspired your sense of who you were and what gave you meaning through your growing up years? -How has your faith or spirituality informed your sense of calling and vocation/purpose? -How are you continuing to lean into the fullness of your sense of calling and vocation in your present work and life? Campus Worship is an invitational space for gathered worship in Christian traditions and a variety of styles. Campus Worship is held in Martin Chapel (Seminary Building) on Wednesday mornings every other week scheduled opposite of Convocation. Read more here about campus worship and other worship services on campus. 2 Engage… Organization: Faith & Spiritual Life. Categories: Spiritual Life, Worship, Faith & Spiritual Life, Spiritual Renewal, EMU Engage. Event Locator: 2026-AANQRG. Wednesday, September 30, 2026, 10:15 AM – 11:05 AM. Seminary Building, Room 215 Martin Chapel, Seminary Building, Room 218 Fellowship Area.