Following a Cursillo retreat Nov. 10-13, nearly two dozen men of the Diocese of Trenton were commissioned to go forth to their home parishes to share the Good News of the Gospel.
Cursillo de Cristiandad, which means “short course of Christianity,” is a Catholic lay movement designed to deepen the spiritual life and bring about Christian involvement in daily activities, particularly by evangelizing.
Father Roberto Padilla, spiritual director for the diocesan Spanish language Cursillo and parochial vicar in St. Mary of the Assumption Cathedral, Trenton, celebrated the closing Mass of the Spanish language Cursillo weekend Nov. 13 in the Cathedral’s old convent chapel for the 23 men who participated, and the 12 current Cursillo members who helped facilitate.
After Mass the men were each presented with a Crucifix symbolizing the Cursillo experience and their commissioning. Their families and communities were invited to a reception in the Cathedral dining hall following the Mass. The presenting of the Cursillo Crucifix and reception following comprise the Clausura, or “closure,” of the Cursillo retreat.
Bienvenido Quezada, lay director for the diocesan Spanish language Cursillo movement, noted that this was the 50th Cursillo retreat for men; a corresponding retreat was held for women in mid-October, marking their 49th Cursillo.
History of Cursillo in DOT
The three-day weekend is just one aspect of the Cursillo movement, which began in Spain in the early 1940s by a group of men who wanted to bring the young men of Mallorca to the knowledge of Christ. The movement came to the United States in 1957, and has spread and evolved since then, with weekends offered in both Spanish and English.
In the Diocese of Trenton, the Cursillo movement began in the early 1970s, offering two sets of weekends each year – one in the spring and one in the fall – with separate weekends for men and women.
Cursillistas (those who’ve made a weekend) invite those they meet in the movement’s discernment process to make a three-day Cursillo retreat. The retreats include talks, meditation, prayer, spiritual direction, Sacrament of Reconciliation and Mass. As the weekend ends, they are challenged to live their “fourth day” – the rest of their lives – actively in piety, study and service. After the close of the retreat, the new Cursillistas, facilitators, clergy and presidents meet frequently in small groups at least once a month.
“The purpose is to put their teachings and new ideas into action,” Quezada explained, “teaching others what they have been taught by past members. They also have ‘Escuela Diregente,’ or ‘leading school’ seminars, which new Cursillo members can take to become facilitators.”
While the English and Spanish language Cursillo groups in the Diocese of Trenton function separately, they maintain a common spirit. Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M., has named spiritual directors for each language group: Father Ed Blanchett for English and Father Padilla for Spanish. Leadership groups called secretariats for each language group, are led by a lay director which changes every few years; current lay leaders are Robert Lauricella in English and Quezada in Spanish.
To mark the 50 years of Cursillo within the Diocese, Bishop O’Connell celebrated an anniversary Mass in June to which both English and Spanish language groups were invited; about a dozen Spanish-speaking Cursillistas attended the Mass and reception following.
Quezada, who entered the Cursillo movement in 2016, said that the most important aspect of Cursillo is “to bring more people to active participation in the Church … the movement’s fundamental focus is for the people to be better Christians, and to bring more people to join the Church … and being able to help find your gift and use your talents to serve the Church.”
For more information about Cursillo, reach out to a member in your parish, or visit trentoncursillo.org. For Spanish language, contact Quezada at 609-227-3358.