Candlelight Service Tickets
Graduating seniors also need to obtain tickets for themselves and their guests to attend the Candlelight Service of Worship and Celebration (formerly Baccalaureate) on Friday evening.
Commencement Ceremony Tickets Q&A
Indoor "rain plan" Commencement tickets Q&A
If the University makes the decision to move Commencement indoors due to inclement weather, Messiah will host two abbreviated ceremonies, one at 10 a.m. and the other at 1 p.m., both in Brubaker Auditorium, located in Eisenhower Campus Center. Graduates are assigned a ceremony time based on their academic school and department.
It is the University's strong preference to hold the Commencement ceremony outdoors because tickets are not required and there is plenty of outside seating for all of our graduates and their guests. However, in the event the Commencement ceremony needs to move indoors, the seating in Brubaker Auditorium, where the ceremony is held, is much more limited. The University requires tickets for entry for the indoor ceremony so that all graduates are treated fairly and may have the opportunity to invite an equal number of guests.
Each graduate will be allotted five (5) tickets for guests to attend Commencement in Brubaker Auditorium, in the event that the ceremony is moved indoors due to inclement weather.
Yes, both indoor Commencement ceremonies ( 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.) will be live streamed.
- On campus: All guests without a ticket for Brubaker Auditorium are invited to watch a live video stream of the ceremony in Parmer Hall, located in the Calvin and Janet High Center for Worship and Performing Arts. You will be able to view the ceremony on large projection screens in comfortable seating; guest shuttle service will be provided to this location.
- Off campus: The same live web stream will be accessible online for both ceremonies so that guests can watch the commencement ceremony off-campus as well. View the live stream of the Commencement ceremony.
No. In the event that the Commencement ceremony is moved indoors due to inclement weather, the graduates are assigned to a specific ceremony time based on which academic school and department they are graduating from. Graduates will only be allotted guest tickets for the indoor ceremony to which they are assigned.
No, graduates do not need a ticket for the indoor Commencement ceremony, only their guests.
Messiah will be distributing tickets for the Candlelight Service of Worship and Celebration and the inclement weather/indoor Commencement plan via the University's Box Office online ticketing agent, called PurplePass. On Monday, April 28, graduates can begin ordering tickets for both the Candlelight Service and the Commencement indoor ceremony option. Graduates are encouraged to plan ahead and order their tickets in advance.
Tickets for the Candlelight Service and the inclement weather/indoor Commencement ceremony can be ordered online through these links beginning on April 28:
- Order Candlelight Service tickets (3 tickets maximum)
- Order inclement weather/indoor Commencement ceremony tickets (5 tickets maximum) NOTE: You must select either the 10 a.m. or 1 p.m. Commencement ceremony based on your assignment by academic department.
Questions about the ticket ordering process may be directed to the Messiah University Box Office via phone at (717) 691-6036, Option #1; or via mail at: tickets@messiah.edu.
How may graduates share tickets with their guests?
With this online ticketing method, graduates can directly distribute tickets to their guests. Using your student ID number, graduates can place multiple orders using different guest email addresses for ease of distribution. Your student ID will allow a TOTAL of three (3) tickets for the Candlelight Service of Worship and Celebration and five (5) tickets for the indoor Commencement ceremony.
Each guest entering Brubaker Auditorium for the Candlelight Service and indoor Commencement, will have their ticket scanned. Guests with invalid tickets, including tickets that have already been used/scanned by someone else, will not be admitted. Graduates may also distribute tickets to their guests by printing them or sharing a screenshot of the ticket (which must include the barcode) via text or email. However, it is important to remember that individual tickets may not be scanned for entry more than once.
Candlelight Service and indoor ceremony/rain plan tickets are designated for either lower-level seating or balcony level in Brubaker Auditorium. If you or your guests have accessibility issues that do not allow for climbing stairs in balcony seating, you will need lower-level seating, which includes bleacher seating and floor-level seating. Selection of lower-level or balcony level is first-come, first-serve. It is the graduate's responsibility to order tickets as early as possible if lower-level tickets are needed.
It is extremely important to note that it is each graduate's responsibility to ensure that their guests receive their indoor ceremony tickets prior to the Commencement ceremony if it is moved indoors. Due to the numerous last-minute logistical changes that will be required if the Commencement ceremony is moved indoors because of inclement weather, the University will be unable to operate a "will call" window for distributing tickets to guests.
All graduating seniors are encouraged to order their tickets as early as possible and to use the opportunity of Messiah's online ticketing to distribute tickets ahead of time to their guests.
Yes. If you are not using all of your "rain plan" tickets for Commencement, you are able to give them away if you choose. However, graduating seniors are still required to order the tickets online using their student ID before giving them away. Messiah personnel are not authorized to give a graduate's tickets to someone else on their behalf, i.e., you will not be able to "leave a ticket" for someone to pick up.
Note: It is very important to remember that the tickets that you will receive will only gain entry for the indoor ceremony time you are assigned (i.e., either the 10 a.m. or 1 p.m. ceremony).
It is very important to note that all indoor ceremony "rain plan" tickets are non-replaceable, and cannot be re-issued if lost. To ensure fair circumstances for everyone, graduates and their guests are urged to keep their tickets in a safe place and be sure to bring them to the indoor ceremony.
All indoor ceremony "rain plan" tickets are general admission for Brubaker Auditorium. So it is important for guests who would like to sit together to meet ahead of time and enter the auditorium together. It will be difficult to "save seats" for an extended period of time once inside the auditorium.
No, indoor ceremony "rain plan" tickets will only be issued to graduates for use by their family and guests.
No; there is regrettably no additional supply of extra rain plan tickets for graduates. Tickets were assigned to allow for the maximum guest count per graduate in the event Commencement needs to move indoors. The Box Office will not be managing a "wait list" or a "will call" window for indoor ceremony tickets. The only option for graduates to obtain additional indoor ceremony tickets is to secure any unused indoor tickets from classmates who are assigned to their same ceremony time.
A decision regarding any changes to the schedule will be made no later than 6 a.m. on Commencement day. Important announcements regarding the schedule and any changes will be posted on the University's web site at www.messiah.edu.