“God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him” (1 Jn 4:16). These words from the First Letter of John express with remarkable clarity the heart of the Christian faith: the Christian image of God and the resulting image of mankind and its destiny. In the same verse, Saint John also offers a kind of summary of the Christian life: “We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us”. This is the first paragraph of the Encyclical Letter DEUS CARITAS EST of the Supreme Pontiff Benedict XVI to the Bishops, Priests and Deacons, Men and Women Religious and all the lay faithful on Christian Love. What a fitting theme and backdrop for the 17th National Encounter held on June 29-July 2, 2007 at the University of Arlington in Texas.
Despite the erratic weather we experienced from Friday to Sunday, over 1000 cursillistas, from different ethnic backgrounds coming from various regions of the United States including our own Region XI, attended this event. Friday night activities included inspirational talks from National Cursillo Executive Director Victor Lugo, a video message from our Cursillo Movement Founder Eduardo Bonnin and spiritual talks from keynote speakers in the person of Most Reverend James A. Tamayo, D.D., Bishop of the Diocese of Laredo and Rev. Einer Ochoa, National Spiritual Advisor to the National Secretariat.
The Saturday schedule was even more exciting as we gathered at the University Center for breakfast. This was the time we saw familiar faces and started fellowship as we lined up to get food. After that sumptuous breakfast, we all had the chance to burn the calories by walking to the Texas Hall for the rest of the day’s activities. A comprehensive and tight schedule was prepared following the morning prayers and devotion to the Blessed Mother. Mass followed right before noon. The workshop for Saturday was divided into three presentations followed by group discussions:
The first presentation was conducted by Rev. Msgr. Sylvester Fedewa. He introduced some Greek words the he was going to use for his talk. They were as follows: KOINONIA – Communion, Fellowship; ECCLESIA – Assembly; EUCHARISTIA – Thanksgiving; AGAPE – Sacrificial Love; KERYGMA – Teachings; DIACONIA – Acts of Service; PHILIA – Friendship; KOINONOS – Partner. After a crash course in Greek, he proceeded to tackle his topic on CHRISTIAN KOINONIA. The talk centered on how we share and have Philia and Koinonia to our Koinonos - the church. He expounded and referenced Pope Benedict XVI’s encyclical Letter DEUS CARITAS EST saying that the church’s deepest nature is expressed in proclaiming the word of God (KERYGMA MARTYRIA), celebrating the sacraments (LEITOURGIA) and exercising the ministry of charity (DIACONIA).
The second speaker for the day was our very own Filipino priest, Rev. Msgr. Fernando Gutierrez. His sense of humor, knowledge and experience earned him applause and a standing ovation from the participants. Msgr. Gutierrez, who obviously prepared his talk on DIACONIA for months, did not get his PowerPoint presentation to work for some mysterious reason. Even so, he delivered his talk from the heart and his message was still clear, simple and inspiring. This incident gave him the opportunity to say, “Man proposes, God opposes”… meaning God is in control no matter what. The message of his talk was targeted towards the laity – how we should minister to one another (Christian DIACONIA) and that it is only noble if we are serving God. Finally, he said that DIACONIA with KOINONIA and AGAPE becomes triumphant when we serve the community in EUCHARISTIA.
The last presentation was delivered by Rev. Modesto Perez from the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. His talk was about KERYGMA … a proclamation and teaching of good news. He proclaimed that in order for one to be able to teach, there must be three paradigm shifts to undertake: One is METANOIA, a change of mind and heart; next one is to have VISION – in order for one to see all possibilities, to know that Christ came in the world for all of us; third and last is RENEWAL which requires understanding of oneself who must be deeply rooted in faith. He likened our faith to what it should be like - that of a Sequoia tree, visibly standing tall but not visibly rooted deep and entangled with other roots. The day ended with a fiesta gathering where each ethnic group was given an opportunity to share culture and talents. Without any rehearsal, the Filipino group, who proudly wore their “barongs”, sang a rendition of “Dahil Sa Iyo” and “I Believe”. The Korean community presented a colorful fashion show of several cultural outfits and explained its meaning.
Sunday was the highlight of the three-day event when everyone went to a pilgrimage to Waco, Texas, the birthplace of the first Cursillo class in the United States. This year also coincided with the 50th anniversary of the first Cursillo class held on May 27, 1957 at St. Francis Catholic Church. A total of 16 buses took the participants to the Waco Convention Center. Fun, fellowship and prayer made the bus trip worthwhile. Lunch was served at the Convention Center in Waco and immediately after, everyone walked to St. Francis Catholic Church which was just a few meters from the convention center. Even with the 100-degree weather, the trip was well worth it due to the witnessing of the actual place of the first class, including the refectory and the retreat house itself. St. Francis Church looked like a mission church, except this one was adorned with lots of gold trimmings. While going around, we had the opportunity to personally talk to one of seven surviving graduates of the 1957 class. Like a celebrity of sorts, some people asked for the autograph of Bro. Louis Salinas. He vividly shared with us that during his three-day cursillo class, there were about 17 of them in the class ranging in age from as young as 16. The seven graduates of the first class sat on the stage and were given the opportunity to share their personal testimonies and perseverance techniques. Their names are: Lorenzo Hernandez, Deacon Jose Jimenez, John Rosas, Domingo and Gregorio Concha (real brothers), Luis Lopez and Luis Salinas. Just before heading back to the convention center, we did a group reunion with other brothers and sisters from the other ethnic groups.
Back at the convention center, the participant attended the Clausura of an on-going cursillo weekend. It was an overwhelming experience for the 25 new graduates as about 1,000 people came to their clausura. With almost all of the graduates speaking in Spanish, it was still a truly awesome experience altogether witnessing the joy and tears in their faces. It surely gave life to all of the talks delivered in the previous days. The weekend came to a close and all the participants prepared to go back to their respective homes.
In conclusion, this three-day weekend lived up to its purpose – that GOD is LOVE. God, being love, has the perfection of that love which is goodness. He sheds light upon those who seek truth (love of God) and then put the acquired truths into practice (love of neighbor). One who truly loves God will act in a way that demonstrates sincerity in worship (piety), authenticity in wisdom (study), and humility (action).

De Colores.

Article written by: Sis. Len Robrigado