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WHAT IS CURSILLO? |
The following is excerpted from The Cursillo Movement: What Is It? (2006, The National Secretariat of the Cursillo Movement in the United States):
"To explain Cursillo to someone who has not experienced Cursillo is, at best, difficult. It's not because Cursillo is a secret, but because it is a living experience that one must experience firsthand. No one can fully explain how God touches a person. Christ, through the Cursillo and through His grace, touches the person who is open to a personal relationship with Him in a special way.
The Cursillo can help the person in developing a deeper understanding of what it means to be fully Catholic by being fully Christian in order to exercise their mission as baptized individuals.
The world [in the mid 20th Century] was in chaos because baptized men were not aware of the potential that the Grace of God gives them to be and live as Christians.
Cursillo put its emphasis on being Christian, not on doing Christian things; it opted for an apostolic movement based on the associated strength of friendship.
In summary, the mentality of the Cursillo Movement consists of:
Proclaiming the best news of the best reality:
That God, in Jesus Christ, loves us!
Communicated by the best means Which is: friendship Towards the best in each person;
Which is His being; capacity of Conviction; Decision; Constancy.
The purpose is the reason why we do what we do. The Cursillo Movement, therefore, pursues a two-fold purpose: an immediate and an ultimate one:
Immediate Purpose: To provide a foundation so the person may live what is fundamental for being Christian: love of God and love of neighbor, experienced through three essential encounters: an encounter with one's self, with Christ, and with others.
Ultimate Purpose: To vertebrae Christianity in society, through those who live what is fundamental for being Christian, the love of God and the love of neighbor, in their daily lives by making a conscious effort to speak to the world about Christ while strengthening the three encounters that are nourished by the Group Reunion and Ultreya.
As laity in the Church, we have a mission to fulfill. The future of our society is in our hands. We must realize that we, as individuals, can have a great impact on society. More importantly, we can have an even greater impact when we find other individuals that are ready and able to accept the challenge.
Throughout history great things have happened because individuals decided to do more than was "expected" of them. As Church, we are called to be apostles, saints, and men and women of our times. Our society needs us to be apostolic. Our Church needs us to be apostolic. Our world needs us to be apostolic. But most of all, our Lord wants us to be holy apostles. We must incarnate Christ so that we can proclaim Him to each person in the environment where God has planted us.
Let us strive to be Christ-like. He chose ordinary persons to become 'fishers of men.' Should we do any less?"
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