Faith-based friendships, listening to God are fruits of Cursillo

 

Annie Mammen and her husband Werner have been involved in marriage ministries for more than 28 years. Throughout their service with Marriage Encounter, Retorno Couple Prayer Retreat, and marriage preparation for engaged couples, Annie and Werner have “always shared the message that ‘God created you and He loves you as you are,’” said Mammen.  

 

But it was through a ministry of an entirely different kind that Mammen, a parishioner of St. Christopher in Marana, realized “there was so much more about God that I needed to learn about! During my Cursillo weekend, I came to hear God in a way I had no idea was even possible.” 

 

Mammen describes Cursillo as a “short course in Christianity.” Founded in the 1940s by Servant of God Eduardo Bonnin in Spain, Cursillo “attempts to give life to the essential Christian truths in the singularity, originality, and creativity of the person. In discovering their potential and accepting their limitations, they will direct their freedom with their conviction, reinforce their will with decisiveness, and direct their friendship with the virtue of constancy in their day-to-day life, personally and with others” (Cursillo National Website). 

 

“Through Cursillo,” said Mammen, “I have experienced sitting with our Lord in Adoration and letting Him speak to me in a way no one else can. I can truly appreciate the need to surround myself with other like-minded Cursillo sisters and brothers, and to continue on my journey of loving our Lord. I have learned that God wants me to focus on things in a different way. The Holy Spirit has taught me to let go and not be overwhelmed. Living my Cursillo weekend has truly helped me to learn how to prioritize my daily life and my spiritual life.” 

 

Mammen explained that Cursillo candidates are invited to register for a weekend and are sponsored by a Cursillista, someone who has lived their Cursillo. “My husband and I heard about Cursillo many years ago,” she said. “We were blessed to have two couples share their love of Cursillo with us. They planted the seed in our hearts and the Holy Spirit guided us to embrace the weekend years later and live our Cursillo. As always, God knew the right time and the right place. He prepared our hearts and minds to experience the weekend in ‘His’ time.” 

 

Cursillo continues to bear fruit in the lives of the Cursillistas. Mammen said, “The gift of Charism is one of the fruits of Cursillo, along with the essential element of friendship. Living my Cursillo weekend truly helped me to realize the gift that I can be to others, as I am an instrument of Christ. I am open to how God uses me in His right way in an effort to bring others to see His love: make a friend, be a friend, bring a friend to Christ! Another fruit of Cursillo is that, together, Cursillistas share life-long spiritual experiences. We are ‘sisters’ and ‘brothers’ in Christ and share our faith and our joys, and we lift each other up.” 

 

After participants live their Cursillo, they continue to meet with small groups and at Cursillista events like the Ultreya, meaning “onward” in Spanish. At such gatherings, one might hear the phrase, “De Colores,” a Spanish term meaning "of the colors.” Mammen explained that the words reflect the colors of a rainbow and are an expression of joy. 

 

Tucson’s English Cursillo resumed earlier this year after a seven-year pause. Mammen said, “The Cursillo community is most grateful to Rev. Richard Kusugh, VC, pastor of Saint Francis de Sales Parish,” where two retreats were hosted this spring. “It is a blessing to see the Cursillo movement grow and prosper in parish communities within our churches, creating brothers or sisters in Christ!” 

 

In the Diocese of Tucson, Cursillo is offered in Yuma and Tucson, in Spanish and English respectively, and separately for men and women. Cursillo events are included in the diocesan schedule of events, distributed in the New Outlook weekly newsletter, and listed on the local Cursillo website.  

  

Mammen invites anyone interested in living Cursillo to learn more about the Tucson Cursillo Website. “I encourage you to reach out to anyone you know who has lived a Cursillo weekend, you will be forever blessed!”