Celebrate Spirit!

Dozens of people, in reds and orange and other colors, sit and listen during Celebrate Spirit inside of the Student Fitness Center. Large orange, red and yellow ribbons hang above.

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Stewardship of Creation

Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023
11:30 a.m. - 12:45 p.m.

An outdoor shot of a Celebrate Spirit banner with students, trees and a sunny day beyond.Schedule

11:30 a.m. - 12:45 p.m. — Celebrate Mass of the Holy Spirit (Fitness Center)
Visiting presider: Fr. Damian Torres-Botello, S.J., who formerly worked on Detroit Mercy's McNichols Campus in the Theatre program as a Jesuit regent.

Many thanks to the co-hosting colleges, the College of Engineering & Science and the School of Architecture & Community Development, for their participation in the planning of this event.

12:45 p.m. — After Mass
A special Metz menu will be provided for students with a meal plan at the Titan Dining Room. All other attendees of Celebrate Spirit are welcome to a simple sandwich lunch after Mass in the Fitness Center.

Class Schedules

Class schedules are usually shifted for the day so everyone can participate in the Celebrate Spirit! activities. See the typical schedule adjustments (subject to change).

Morning Classes that normally meet

8:00-11:50 will meet 8:00-11:20

8:30-9:45 will meet 8:30-9:20

8:30-10:20 will meet 8:30-10:20

9:00-9:50 will meet 8:30-9:20

9:00-11:50 will meet 9:00-11:20

9:30-11:55 will meet 9:30 9:30-11:20

9:30-12:30 will meet 9:30-11:20

9:45-12:45 will meet 9:45-11:20

9:55-11:10 will meet 9:30-10:20

10:00-10:50 will meet 9:30-10:20

10:00-12:30 will meet 9:30-11:20

10:30-12:00 will meet 10:30-11:20

11:20-12:35 will meet 10:30-11:20

1:00-3:00 will meet 2:00-3:00

1:30-2:50 will meet 2:00-2:50

 

Our Celebrate Spirit Tradition

Celebrate Spirit! is the official welcoming event to the new school year and part of a long tradition dating from European universities in the Middle Ages. At the Celebrate Spirit! Mass, we call on God’s Spirit for inspiration and blessing as we begin a new academic year. Learn more about the tradition.

The Detroit Mercy community can also find an array of resources to support them in their efforts for this year's Celebrate Spirit theme: Stewardship of Creation.

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    Mass of the Holy Spirit tradition

    Celebrate Spirit!, the official welcome to the new school year for Detroit Mercy faculty, staff and students, is part of a long tradition dating from the founding of the great European universities in the Middle Ages. These institutions would celebrate the Mass of the Holy Spirit at the start of a new school year. Following this tradition we call on God's Spirit for inspiration as we begin a new academic year. This festive event gathers the entire University community together to rededicate ourselves to Detroit Mercy's mission, to renew friendships, and to welcome new members.

    Eucharistic Liturgy (the Mass)

    Every Mass follows the same general form, and the Mass of the Holy Spirit is no exception. We gather to listen to some portion of the sacred story handed on in the gospels and other sacred writings. Then we bring forward bread and wine, symbols of our gifts received and shared with all in need. The priest, an ordained representative of the entire church community, prays over and shares those gifts in a holy communion with God and with one another. In the "missa," or "sending," at the end of the mass, the people disperse to their ordinary lives strengthened for the task of carrying what they have heard and shared to the rest of the world.

    Procession

    A procession is symbolic movement through time and space. Our processional banners carry medallions of major world religions:

    Spirits

    • the Star of David (Judaism),
    • the cross (Christianity),
    • and the Star and Crescent (Islam) represent the three sister-communities who trace the origins of their faith to Abraham.
    • The Yin-yang symbol (Confucianism),
    • the Dharma Wheel (Buddhism),
    • and the Om (Hinduism) represent the great religions of the East.

    All faiths recognize the reality of the transcendent and attempt to engage believers with Ultimate Reality. The medallions are a sign of welcome to every expression of Spirit in this celebration as we move together through this coming academic year.

    Liturgy of the Word

    The Liturgy of the Word is a time of listening to some portion of the Bible, reflecting on it through prayer, song, and preaching, and then offering prayer for the needs of the church, the world and the local community.

    Liturgy of the Eucharist

    The word "Eucharist" comes from the Greek word for "thanksgiving." The gathered community first brings forward bread, the staff of life, and wine, a festive drink. We place these symbols of our life and joy into the hands of the priest, a chosen representative of this community and of the larger Church. He calls down the power of the Holy Spirit over the gifts, recalling the story of Jesus' own gift to us and asking that God transform them. Then with Jesus and the community he gives thanks to God. Our great "Amen" at the end is the sign of our acceptance of all that we have said and done together.

    Communion Rite

    In the communion rite believers share the consecrated bread and wine which makes Christ present within each of us and all of us together. Through this communion we become Christ's living Body present in time and space. Before we approach the holy table, we pray together as brothers and sisters and offer one another a sign of the peace we hope to realize in this communion.

    Interested in more information on the Mass?

    If you would like to learn more about the liturgy and its historical origins, or about the meaning of the Eucharist (communion), check out these web sites:

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    Class schedule change

    Revised Class Schedule for Celebrate Spirit!

    Thursday, September 14, 2023

    In order for everyone to participate in the activities planned for Celebrate Spirit! the class schedule on Thursday, September 14, 2023 will be adjusted to create a free period from 11:20 am-2:00 pm.  Afternoon classes starting at 2:00 pm and after will meet at the regularly scheduled time.  We look forward to your participation at the event.

    Faculty that normally teach their classes on Thursday need to adjust their plan of instruction and inform their students of the changed schedule for this ONE day only.  Most class periods in the morning will change from 75-minute to 50-minute periods or as noted below for those classes that are not normally 75 minutes.  ALL classroom assignments REMAIN THE SAME as the normal class time.

    See Morning Classes schedule above

A student wearing a red University of Detroit Mercy t-shirt sings near a microphone with other students singing in the background.
Students listen to a priest presiding during Celebrate Spirit inside of the Student Fitness Center in 2022.
A student prays standing indoors during Celebrate Spirit in 2022.
A student hands out an item to two other students during Celebrate Spirit.
Two students stand and speak from a podium inside of the Student Fitness Center.
Two fathers stand on a stage, one holding open his arms in front of a pulpit.