Cursillo
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November
2004
Calendar
of Events
October 30, 2004
Secretariat Meeting 9:00am, Blessed John XXIII Ctr, 3700 Sheridan, Lincoln
November 5-6, 2004 School
of Leaders (quarterly reunion) – 7:30pm Fri-4pm Sat, Sacred Heart, Shelby
November 13, 2004
Postcursillo Reunion – 1:00pm-3:00pm Sat, Sacred Heart, Shelby
December 4, 2004
Secretariat Meeting 10:00am, Blessed John XXIII Ctr, 3700 Sheridan, Lincoln
January 7-8, 2005
Practice Weekend, St. Joseph Church, York, NE
January 13-16, 2005
Men’s Weekend, St. Joseph Church, York, NE
January 16, 2005
Men’s Closing, 5:00pm (4:00pm Mass) St. Joseph Church, York, NE
January 20-23, 2005
Women’s Weekend, St. Joseph Church, York, NE
January 23, 2005
Women’s Closing, 5:00pm (4:00pm Mass) St. Joseph Church, York, NE
February 25-26, 2005 School
of Leaders (quarterly reunion) – 7:30pm Fri-4pm Sat, Location TBA
April 8-10, 2005
Spring Regional Encounter, Omaha, Cathedral Center
July 28 - 31, 2005
Cursillo National Encounter, Benedictine College, Atchison, KS
Change in the date of the
Women’s Winter 2005
Three Day Weekend
Women’s: NOW Jan. 20-23, 2005
(the Weekend following the Men’s)
School of Leaders (SOL)
November 5-6, 2004
Sacred Heart School
Shelby, NE
Since there is less than 1 week
between the receipt of
this newsletter (see enclosed
registration form) and the
scheduled date for SOL,
we ask that you
please CALL (402-826-2699)
to make your reservation for SOL
(the reservation is important
to help us plan for food).
Welcome New Fourth Dayers
Sacred Heart, Shelby, September
26, 2004: Steve Bartek, Les Gasal, Ryan Tramp, and Galen Warburton.
Sacred Heart, Shelby, October
17, 2004: Janet Bartek, Ann Gasal, Kathleen Roesener, Elaine Rosburg,
and Alice Trepka.
Welcome to the 4th Day! As you return to your
environments (which were just as you left them), do you recognize people
who could benefit from living a Cursillo Weekend? Make a friend,
be a friend, bring your friend to Christ ... that may not necessarily mean
bringing your friend to a Cursillo Weekend, but it might ... Remember
that Christ is counting on you, and you must count on Him!
News From Secretariat ...
-
Spring Regional Encounter ... Mark
your calendars now ... the Spring Region VI Encounter is scheduled for
April 8-10, 2005, at the Omaha, Cathedral Center. There won’t be
many Regional Meetings this close to our Diocese!
-
School of Leaders (SOL) ... The next
quarterly SOL will be held at Sacred Heart School in Shelby on November
5-6, 2004. The Doctrinal Topics will be taken from Section Two of
Part Four of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (“The Lord’s Prayer:
‘Our Father!’”). The Technique Topics will be taken from the book
Structure
of Ideas, which was the basis for the workshops at the 2004 National
Encounter.
In addition to formation (the topics mentioned above)
and holiness (Mass, Rosary, Divine Mercy Chaplet, visit to the Blessed
Sacrament), we do the work of Cursillo in the Diocese ... we evangelize
the Cursillo Movement. Even if you have never come before, please
prayerfully consider coming in November ... there is no beginning and there
is no end ... it is your gift to the Lord when you arrange your schedule
to be there.
-
Precursillo:
NOTE: Revised application forms are
included in this Newsletter.
Please pray for the teams being formed for the January
2005 Weekends, and for the candidates that God is calling you to prepare
and invite to these Weekends. As noted above, this Newsletter includes
revised application forms for our Diocese ... please throw away any
old application forms that you have on hand.
In addition, recall that new Sponsor Guidelines
are now in effect (the revised sponsor form was included as a blue insert
in the September Newsletter, and is included again in this Newsletter with
the revised application materials). The Sponsor Guidelines are in
place to help direct the selection of candidates and their proper preparation,
and to remind sponsors of the commitment they are making to their candidates.
Please take the time to review the new application materials ... the success
of a candidate’s 4th day is directly related to the involvement / commitment
of his/her sponsor!
-
Three Day Weekend:
-
Winter Cursillo Weekends ... The January Weekends
are scheduled as follows:
-
Men’s - January 10-13, 2005
-
Women’s - January 20-23, 2005. Note the date change.
Both Weekends will be at St. Joseph School, York, NE ... a new location!
-
TRY OUT THOSE NEW APPLICATIONS!
PLEASE prepare candidates early. The earlier candidates are prepared
and invited, the earlier the NEW applications can be completed …
the easier it is to keep the 4th Day community informed about the candidates
for the Three Day Weekends ... and the better the sponsors can prepare
the candidates for the Three Days and for the Fourth Day.
-
Postcursillo:
-
Ultreyas are the strength of the Movement ... Did
you read the special mailing three weeks ago?
-
Survey of Cursillistas in the Lincoln Diocese
Included in the September newsletter was a survey
to gather information for updating the Diocesan Cursillo Directory. It
is not too late to complete and return the survey!
We have received a good response thus far, and are
in the process of updating the Cursillo database so that the information
can be used for the Directory and future Cursillo activities (for those
who are volunteering time, talent, and/or treasure).
We express a big Thank you to those who returned
their surveys ... and invite others to do likewise. In returning
your survey, it will save much time for Ultreya Center representatives
who will otherwise need to collect this information for the directory from
those who do not respond.
-
Ultreya Center Representatives ... The
Beatrice and Wahoo Ultreya Centers are scheduled to elect/appoint representatives
for three-year terms to run from 2004 - 2006; the Lincoln and Plattsmouth
Ultreya Centers are scheduled to elect / appoint representatives for three-year
terms to run from 2005 - 2007; and the David City, Hastings, and McCook
Ultreya Centers are scheduled to elect / appoint representatives for three-year
terms to run from 2006 - 2008. Please discuss this at an upcoming
Ultreya and provide the names of the representatives who will bring information
to / from the Secretariat and the Ultreya Center.
-
Planning Ahead -- A Year at a Glance ... The
Secretariat continues to review a tentative/proposed schedule of Cursillo
activities for the Lincoln Diocese through August 2005. We have already
made some changes to the previously published schedule (e.g., the dates
of the Women’s January Weekend, the date and location of the Region VI
Spring Encounter, and the final date of the December Secretariat meeting).
In addition to the activities listed in the
Calendar of Events at the top of this Newsletter, the following
are additional activities / events:
(1) Secretariat Meetings – 1/29/05; 3/19/05;
4/9/05; 6/11/05; and 8/6/05; (2)
SOL – 4/22-23/05; and 7/8-9/05 or 7/15-16/05; (3)
Other Postcursillo Activities – the Postcursillo Reunion for the
Winter Weekends, which was originally scheduled for 3/19/05, will need
to be rescheduled due to the change of the Women’s Weekend); and 6/26/05
(Grand Ultreya).
The tentative/proposed schedule is intended to provide
cursillistas adequate notice to allow them to adjust their schedules to
participate in Cursillo to the fullest extent possible.
From the Lay Director ...
In recent weeks, I’ve been reminded often, and in
varied ways, of the beauty and importance of friendship ... John and I
recently celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary …during the Mass that
Msgr. Hain prayed on the day of our anniversary (he presided at our ceremony
25 years ago, too), he referred to the only definition of “love” that he
thinks has ever stood the test of time ... Thomas Aquinas’ definition,
as
borrowed from Aristotle … that is, love being “benevolent friendship” …
self-sacrificing (not selfish) friendship … not what’s in it for me, but
rather, what can I do for the other ...
Friendship … that would also encompass preparations
for the Fall Cursillo Weekends … and the Cursillo Weekends themselves (new
friendships formed and old ones renewed) … and our October Ultreya (which,
in addition to gathering together just for the friendship, had ‘friendship’
as the central theme of the witness’ remarks) … my weekly Group Reunion
(this week, since we can’t meet on Saturday morning because of the Secretariat
meeting, we’re planning to meet on Sunday evening instead … because we
don’t want to miss the sharing … the friendship …) … working together on
this Newsletter … laughing and talking and enjoying one another’s conversation
and company as we work … Friendship … SOL, with the community
and friendships formed there …
Friendship … that would also include my “saint friends”
... those “friends” who are part of the communion of saints ... the Church
triumphant ... those who [through formation and prayer] give me their wisdom
and love and friendship as I journey through life ...
And the most important friendship of all … my friendship
with Him … the ultimate Friend … He called me ‘friend,’ you know … and
I call Him ‘Friend’ (talk about self-sacrificing friendship on His part!!)
… I count on Him, just as He counts on me … we count on each other … because
we’re friends …
At the last two Region VI Encounters, the talks/rollos
have come from the book, 1st Conversations at Cala Figuera (hereafter
referred to as “Conversations”). We have referred to this
book several times in recent newsletters (it’s one that we’re going to
study at upcoming SOL’s … right after we finish the book, Structure
of Ideas). Conversations, which is “about the foundational
charisma of the Cursillo Movement”, says that friendship is “the
deepest form of sharing (contact).” It further says that “to
be a friend [and the book makes a clear distinction between ‘friend’
and ‘acquaintance’], is to be able to think about life out loud”
… that “if man does not have someone to sustain him, he will not have
endurance and therefore he will become unsustainable” … it says that
“Cursillo is … a song to life and homage to friendship” …
I wholeheartedly agree with ALL of that …
The introduction to Conversations states
that there are “ten ‘runways for takeoff’ … a decade of concepts that
well understood (or believed with the heart) bring the individual near
to the Foundational Charism of the Cursillos in Christianity, the foundation
(origin) of the personal flight, of the daily closeness towards God.”
Friendship is one of those ten runways, or concepts (the others are Person;
Freedom; Love; Conviction; Sincerity; Criterion; Life; Normality; and Joy)
… but today, I want to talk about friendship …
In the chapter on Friendship (the talk/rollo given
by Eduardo Bonnin at Cala Figuera), Conversations says that “when
a person, by conscious and divine Grace, experiences the friendship of
Christ, they discover that He is truly a friend, par excellence.
He Himself looks at us with joy, He is a friend who truly loves us forever.
He listens to us with passionate desire, He knows our intention, He rejoices
with us in our pleasure.
“When the friendship between two friends is ratified
and reinforced with the friendship that both have in Christ [and that
would be Cursillo …], then the joy of being friends increases and the
friendship reaches a deep level, because the friendship made and tested
in the light of Christ, is a friendship guaranteed and secured by Him
[thank You, Jesus!]. There are many things that can be said about
Christ as our friend but they are not sufficiently adequate to explain
what a human being can really feel when he consciously lives, aware and
alive with Christ.
“… When this [friendship between friends]
is a true and intimate friendship, the partners in the friendship know
themselves inwardly. Although each one has different qualities, there
is a reciprocal respect. They help each other to overcome the problems
of life when they meet together to speak, to dialogue and to share each
other’s problems [sounds very much like Group Reunion …]. They
understand each other, even without words [I have friends like that
…]; by looking into the face of the other they can interpret each look,
since every smile expresses the closeness that they feel and every gesture
speaks of the friendship.
“Friendship is the best way for coming to a good
understanding of a person; it is the most profound way of living happily
together with others. The dialogue that is possible between each
friend when it isn’t necessary to use annoying ‘filters’ to avoid misunderstandings;
to be able to express what you feel inside, without fear of not being heard
or understood, to express thoughts and feelings; enhancing life; breathing
fresh air into the relationship; making the friendship more interesting,
more enjoyable and pleasant. “The authenticity of each individual
life can be seen in the friendship. Communication grows with sincere
friendship and the richness of all that is possible in friendship is realized.
Real friends are not possessive, they want freedom for the other and they
help each other to reach the best thing for both, they help each other
to reach their potential, to become all that each of them can be.
“Each of us is different and our circumstances
are different, but we each have a place inside ourselves where even we
do not know ourselves. Friendship is capable of helping us (consciously
or unconsciously) to know ourselves in that deep interior place.
Just as gravity causes water to flow into a hollow, a friend who knows
us deeply can help us to see ourselves as they see us, as our lives flow
with the same rhythm, with ups and downs, but always buoyed up by the friendship.
“Essentially all friendship requires a mutual
respect for the inner part of each one, where each person meets God in
the intimacy of his or her being. This area is a place of mystery
that exists inside each person; this place that cannot be described in
words is where confidentiality [one of the hallmarks of Cursillo …
we need to feel ‘safe’ in sharing …] must be firmly respected.
This means that in some particular circumstance or condition, a friend
can arrive at the very edge of the boundary of this interior place, but
it is very dangerous for the friendship to overstep that boundary.
“Whenever and wherever true friendship exists,
it is because both friends have entered into the process, be it long or
short, of growing in the relationship, with frequent meetings [Group
Reunion, Ultreya, SOL …] and rare confidence, where words are spoken
and listened to with devotion and respect … In friendship we open
ourselves to our friend, but this opening must always be dynamic, trusting
and confident. Friendship is one of the best ways of becoming a whole
and balanced personality because it nurtures and completes the well being
and wholeness of the person.”
There is much, much more in the book (even in the
chapter on Friendship), but this is a good beginning … I have been
so humbled by the beauty and blessedness and joy of friendship of late
that it seemed like a logical topic for me to pick for the Newsletter ...
to talk to my friends about! It is very much a central theme/key
of Cursillo … After all, we’re asked to “Make a friend, be a friend,
and bring that friend to Christ” … so we ought to know something about
friendship!!
De Colores!! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kathy Springer
From the Spiritual Advisor ...
Our Holy Father, Pope John Paul II has designated
October 2004 - October 2005 as the Year of the Eucharist ... a year of
reflection on and increased devotion to the Eucharist. Pope John
Paul II said that the year is an opportunity for the Church to “start
afresh from Christ” by “contemplating more assiduously the countenance
of the Incarnate Word really present in the Sacrament.”
A decade ago, in preparation for the Jubilee Year
2000, Pope John Paul II called us to spend the year of 1995 as a Eucharistic
year. In the weeks after the close of the Jubilee Year, Pope John
Paul II said that what we can take with us from the Jubilee Year, was the
experience of “gazing on the face of Christ”. Now, after the
Jubilee Year 2000, he again calls us to a Eucharistic year. Really,
time with our Lord in the Eucharist is about “gazing on the face of
Christ”.
In his Apostolic Letter, “Mane Nobiscum Domine”
(Stay with us, Lord), issued Oct. 7, 2004 in which he proclaimed the Year
of the Eucharist, our Holy Father said: “When the disciples on the way
to Emmaus asked Jesus to stay “with” them, he responded by giving them
a much greater gift: through the Sacrament of the Eucharist he found a
way to stay “in” them. Receiving the Eucharist means entering into
a profound communion with Jesus. “Abide in me, and I in you” (Jn
15:4). This relationship of profound and mutual “abiding” enables
us to have a certain foretaste of heaven on earth. Is this not the
greatest of human yearnings? Is this not what God had in mind when
he brought about in history his plan of salvation? God has placed
in human hearts a “hunger” for his word (cf. Am 8:11), a hunger which will
be satisfied only by full union with him. Eucharistic communion was
given so that we might be “sated” with God here on earth, in expectation
of our complete fulfilment in heaven.
What a gift Jesus has given us in the Eucharist!
He comes to us to abide in us, to transform us into Him. Reflecting
on this great gift, should move us to be very thankful ... which is what
the word Eucharist means ... “thanksgiving”. Each day that we are
able to receive Him in Holy Communion, and each day that we are able to
spend time with Him in Adoration of the Eucharist ... sitting at His feet
and “gazing on His face” ... should move us to be more thankful ... and
that will move us to structure our lives so that they are ever more centered
on the Eucharist.
The Cursillo Movement encourages us to spend time
with our Lord in the Eucharist. Jesus is counting on us, and we must
count on Him ... we must spend time with Him ... with Him at Mass ... with
Him in Eucharistic Adoration ... letting Him form us and shape us into
thankful people.
Pope John Paul II in his Apostolic letter expressed
this as he said: “May all of you, the Christian faithful, rediscover
the gift of the Eucharist as light and strength for your daily lives in
the world, in the exercise of your respective professions amid so many
different situations. Rediscover this above all in order to experience
fully the beauty and the mission of the family.”
There are so many things that we are asked to do
in our lives as Christians ... as cursillistas ... that are beyond our
human abilities ... but with His light and His strength, we can do much
... we can have an effect on our environments ... on our world ... but
we must count on Him.
Pope John Paul II concluded his Apostolic Letter
by saying: “We have before us the example of the Saints, who in
the Eucharist found nourishment on their journey towards perfection.
How many times did they shed tears of profound emotion in the presence
of this great mystery, or experience hours of inexpressible “spousal” joy
before the sacrament of the altar! May we be helped above all by
the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose whole life incarnated the meaning of the
Eucharist.”
If we want to be perfect ... if we want to be in
Heaven with Jesus and with His friends ... the saints ... then we need
to constantly turn toward Him for nourishment for the journey. By
reading the lives of the Saints and learning of their love for and devotion
to the Eucharist, we will find examples of how other men and women counted
on Christ and “gazed on His face” in order to grow in perfection ... how
they found joy and union with Jesus ... in the words of St. Francis de
Sales and St. Louis Marie de Montfort: “Jesus live!”
Jesus come to abide in me in the Eucharist and stay
with me ... live in me ... so that I can come to a close union with You
and better make You known in the world ... “Jesus live!”
De Colores . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Father Mark Seiker
(Insert #1)
Registration Form
School of Leaders
Quarterly Reunion
November 5-6, 2004
220 S Walnut
Sacred Heart School - Shelby, NE
If you cannot be with us, we request Palanca for the success of
the School.
Name:
Address:
City/State/Zip:
Phone:
Email:
Where and when did you make your Cursillo?
Are you able to receive the Sacraments of Confession
& Holy Communion? Yes No
To which Organizations do you commit your time?
Are you living the follow-up program of Group
Reunion? Yes No
Are you living the follow-up program of Ultreya?
Yes No
Do you have any physical/medical/dietary conditions
to be considered?
Please Return this Form WITH PAYMENT
To:
John Springer, 1410 E 15th St, Crete, NE 68333
NO
LATER THAN NOV. 3, 2004.
You are invited to the Quarterly Reunion of the
School of Leaders. Come participate in the work of Cursillo ... build
community with other cursillistas ... spend time
in prayer and meditation with the Blessed Sacrament. The School is
for all
cursillistas ... men and women, couples, singles,
priests and religious.
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 5th (Retreat Phase)
7:30pm
--- Registration (NO Meal Friday evening)
7:45pm
--- Mass
8:30pm
--- Meditation, confessions, quiet time
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 6th (School of Leaders
Agenda)
7:00am
--- Morning prayer and Mass, followed by
breakfast
8:30am
- 4pm Group Reunion, Intro, 3 Sessions and Lunch
4:00pm
--- Clean up and Depart (Supper not provided)
Please bring the following with you to the weekend:
• Pilgrim’s Guide
• If you have the following:
•
Leader’s Manual (please begin praying the Leader’s Prayer on page 57)
•
Lincoln Diocese Pastoral Plan for Cursillo (click
here for link to Pastoral Plan)
•
Structure of Ideas (will be available for $7.00 at SOL)
•
Catechism of the Catholic Church
• “Classic” Cursillo accommodations will be
available.
• Advance registrations are requested; it
is fine to attend Saturday only or Friday only
• Suggested donation (if you are able) for
the weekend is $15.00 per person. Please make check payable to “Cursillo
of Lincoln” and mail with the Registration
Form.
• Please keep this half of the flyer for
future reference.
• Please bring a snack to share, if you like.
(Insert #2)
Cursillo Application
Form for Diocese of Lincoln, NE
and
Lincoln Diocese Sponsor Form
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