Cursillo leaders meet in Miami

By Marlene Quaroni - Florida Catholic

MIAMI � Clarinda Gill recalls attending a Cursillo weekend in 2007. She says it changed her priorities in life.

�My job as a realtor came first,� said Gill of St. John Neumann Parish in Miami. �If I had time, on Sunday, I went to church. Now, Sundays are built around Mass and God. It�s the Lord�s day, not another work day. I�ve gotten involved in the community. And as Cursillistas say, I try to evangelize my environment, which is one square meter around me at any given time.�

Gill was one of about 25 participants in a recent Cursillo de Cursillos, a retreat for leaders of the Cursillos de Cristiandad movement. Held Oct. 29-Nov. 1 at their retreat house, Casa Emaus in southern Miami-Dade County, it was the first English-language leadership retreat to be held in the United States.

MARLENE QUARONI| FC Father David Smith, spiritual advisor to the worldwide Cursillo movement, prays with other Cursillo leaders during the opening orientation session of the three-day Cursillo de Cursillos which took place in Miami Oct. 29-Nov. 1.

The Spanish term Cursillo means a short course in Christianity. The movement originated in Spain in 1944 with a group of laymen, most notably Eduardo Bonnin. Cursillistas are taught to use the basic tools of piety, study and action to work toward the kingdom of God on Earth, said Father David Smith, currently administrator of St. Raymond Parish in Miami who serves as spiritual advisor of Cursillo worldwide. The movement has about five million Cursillistas in about 60 countries.

�Cursillo came to the United States in 1957, when the first Cursillo took place in Waco, Texas.� said Father Smith. �Until 1961, all weekends were in Spanish. That year, the first English-language weekend took place in San Angelo, Texas.�

Those attending the Cursillo de Cursillos came mostly from the southeastern United States, but also included leaders from across North America, including Calgary, Canada, Buffalo, N.Y., and Dallas, Texas.

Father Smith said the retreat is just the beginning for Cursillistas.
�Cursillo doesn�t stop with the three-day retreat,� he explained. �It�s mainly about the �fourth day�, the follow-up where Cursillistas meet in small groups weekly to share their experiences based on the three tenets of Cursillo. In addition, participants meet regularly in larger, regional groups called Ultreya, a Spanish word meaning �onward�.�

MARLENE QUARONI| FC Xavier Jean-Jacques takes notes during an orientation session at the beginning of the three-day Cursillo of Cursillos which took place in Miami Oct. 29-Nov. 1. The Cursillo of Cursillos is a retreat for Cursillo leaders. It was the first such English-language retreat to be held in the U.S.

During the leadership weekend, participants focused on deepening their understanding of the purpose, methodology and strategy of Cursillo and correcting any deviations. The movement, which has spun off other renewal movements such as Emmaus, Kairos prison ministry and Marriage Encounter is unique, Father Smith said.

�This is not a parish-based instant conversion movement,� he said. �We are re-tooling the movement to be in line with the foundational charism, its authentic roots. We face problems with a lack of leadership, and a lack of understanding of Cursillo.�

For more information on Cursillo in Miami, including a schedule of events, go to www.cursillomiami.org.