Appreciate your Gifts!

(And use them as Jesus intended)

In all circumstances give thanks, for this is the will of God for you in Christ Jesus Thessalonians 5:18

As Lay Directors of Twin Cities Cursillo, it is an honor and privilege to represent all of you on the Cursillo regional and national level. On April 23-25, we traveled with John Jelinek (Region VI Service Team Member) to the Region VI Cursillo Encounter in Belfield North Dakota.

Regional Encounters are similar to a Cursillo 3 day Encounter. They include Sacraments (Reconciliation and Mass), talks (4 throughout the weekend), table discussions, wonderful food and community with other like-minded Cursillo leaders.

Each time we have attended these Regional and National Encounters, we return refreshed, renewed, and excited to share what we learned. We have also developed a deep appreciation for those who preceded us and brought Cursillo to the St. Paul and Minneapolis Archdiocese.

You see, Twin Cities Cursillo is a movement which continues to deliver on its Charism or purpose, namely:

• To save souls by developing an intimate relationship with Jesus Christ

• To provide Christian community

   

We are a blessed community. Examples of some of the blessings of Twin Cities Cursillo include:

Location, location, Location! The Twin Cities geographic location allows for less travel distance to events than most other areas. In outstate areas of Region VI including Minnesota, Iowa, North and South Dakota, Nebraska , Missouri, and Kansas, Cursillistas may travel over 300 miles one way to Cursillo events.

Diversity! There is an active English and Spanish speaking community that participate in all areas of the Movement. The Vietnamese Community is in the process of becoming active. Please keep them in your prayers!

Candidate opportunity! Each year, 4 sets of weekend encounters are held ( 3 English and 1 Spanish for a total of 8 weekends) that provide multiple opportunities for candidates to encounter Jesus .

4^th day opportunities! National Cursillo considers a weekend team to include only the Rollo Team. In most areas, kitchen, palanca and liaison teams are generally not included in a 3 day encounter. Twin Cities Cursillo is blessed with opportunities for the 4^th day to participate and serve as members of the team for either English or Spanish speaking weekends.

Servant leaders opportunities! Our Secretariat has two people who share the responsibility of the position of Lay Director, Pre-Cursillo, Cursillo, Post Cursillo, and Music section heads. This allows for a more seamless transition when position changes occur. In fact we have 15 people who are currently serving you on Secretariat! We are unaware of any other diocese with such large number of servants.

Reunions following weekends. We are unaware of any Region VI Diocese that has a reunion after the 3 day encounter as we have in Twin Cities Cursillo.

Formation/Study - Each year we are fortunate to have 3-5 evening of renewals, an annual retreat, and monthly school of leaders opportunities to develop a deeper understanding of the Cursillo Movement and God’s great love for us.

Music, Music, Music! – The music talent of TC Cursillo is amazing! Most gatherings have some form of music accompaniment which deepens the spiritual experience for all of us.

Ultreya! There are 10+ Ultreyas which meet monthly. Ultreyas remain informed with Representatives who report back information from School of Leaders to the Ultreyas. We are unaware of any other diocese in Region VI which operates this way.

Weekly Group Reunion! Countless numbers of small groups meet weekly. These small groups provide Christian community that sustains them. Cursillistas perform palanca and prayers for the movement whether or not they are actively involved in Cursillo activities.

We are not sure who did the early planning for Twin Cities Cursillo, but they sure got it right. The sense of community provided by Twin Cities Cursillo (that means you!) is a gift to all of us.

A witness at the last Men’s Closura said “what we have is very special and we need to keep it going”! We agree and invite you to join us at any of the opportunities listed above. Each one is a special opportunity to see the face of Jesus or, you may be the face of Jesus to someone else. Remember, “Christ is counting on you”!

Come and journey with Jesus!

God Bless,

Sonia and Mark Lager