Cursillo in Christianity

Most often we just use the word Cursillo to describe this retreat method which used world wide today to help people become Christian leaders. Cursillo is a Spanish word which basically means short course so the real name is Short Course in Christianity. I was blindly lead to a Cursillo in October of 1979 at the Oblate Center in Natick Massachusetts. I say blindly because I had no idea what it was or what I would experience. It was the first weekend after I closed Camp Dennen that year, so it would have been my first weekend at home without obligations and yet God gave me a strong desire in my heart to do this retreat. Although some people see me differently, I am not one to jump boldly into the unknown. I like to figure things out and understand things. This was doing something without any knowledge of what it was on a weekend that should have been the least desirable and yet God made it the desire of my heart. I could have shut that desire up with practicality but I didn't, this time I went with it and my life was changed forever. Marsha went on her Cursillo this next month and had the exact same experience, her life was changed forever. Our lives have been woven together with the Cursillo movement ever since in one way or another. Cursillo gave us an ongoing method to continue the process of growth as human beings. I think I was better husband because of Cursillo, a better father and grandfather, a better teacher, and I never would have been a priest at all without Cursillo. It's over thirty years now since my original Cursillo and I am still trying to be faithful to the method I learned in October 1979 because it works to help transform a life into something more beautiful and engaging and enjoyable and productive and faithful and ...... I go this morning to participate again in the planning of a Cursillo. It is a new community with different ways of doing things but the same tried and true method for structuring a Christian life. I cannot think of a place I would rather be. You see I still answer that inner thing where God has created the desire of my heart to be with Him and he meets me every time anew on Cursillo.