Men’s and women’s Cursillo weekends set for July

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UTAH — Two Cursillo weekend retreats, one for men and the other one for women, have been scheduled for July.

The men’s Cursillo weekend will be July 10-13; the women’s Cursillo weekend is July 24-27.

The Cursillo is an apostolic movement within the Catholic Church that began in the 1940s in Spain. Its name is a Spanish word meaning short course. The three-day weekend, one aspect of the Cursillo Movement, is meant to deepen participants’ faith.

These retreats are an opportunity for participants “to develop a closer relationship with Christ to know yourself better, because from knowing yourself better you can know Christ better,” said Christine Benavento-Christiansen, who is helping to organize the weekends. 

People who have attended the retreats “go out into the community to be that example of Christianity in action to all the people,” she added. 

Benavento-Christiansen is one of five lay people who will make presentations during the weekends. The others are Rita Stelmach, Veronica Dominguez, Frank Lujan and Jose Rodriguez.

The Cursillo Movement is divided into three basic steps: the pre-cursillo, the cursillo itself, and the post-cursillo. During the pre-cursillo, a person is searching for Christ. To participate in the Cursillo, this potential candidate must have a sponsor to share the Cursillo. 

“Usually the sponsors (called cursillistas) approach the person and invite them to participate in the retreats,” Benavento-Christiansen said. “in the Cursillo we have the slogan ‘be a friend, bring a friend to Christ,’ so we have a personal relationship with them.”

The message that Cursillo offers is important these days because “it is an uncertain world, and it is important to be rooted in Christ,” Benavento-Christiansen said. “Christ is an example, he shows us the way on how to treat his people.  He was Christianity in action and we want to be Christianity in action.” 

By the end of each of the weekend retreats, candidates typically have a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and a better understanding of the power of the Holy Spirit, she added.

WHAT: Men’s Cursillo weekend 

WHEN: Thursday-Sunday, July 10-13

WHAT: Women’s Cursillo weekend  

WHEN: Thursday-Sunday, July 24-27

For information and applications, text or email Christine Benavento-Christensen, 801-913-1181 or christine_01@ymail.com; or contact Rita Stelmach 801-647-0143 or rita.stelmach@gmail.com