June and a Thank You

From Our Lay Directors

June tends to be a month of beginnings and endings. Graduations have just occurred or will be occurring soon. There are many weddings. June can be a time for the end of one way of life and the beginning of a new way of life.

I love that we have several opportunities to begin a fuller way of living our Christian lives through special feasts this month. We start off on June 1st with the Feast of the Ascension, Christ’s returning to heaven with the promise of the sending of the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:8 “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” What a promise!

And then it happens on the Feast of Pentecost. As Jesus foretold in John 14:26 “The Advocate, the Holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name—he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.” We may not think that we know the Holy Spirit as well as we know the Father and the Son, but I know that I certainly experience the Holy Spirit the most!

June’s feasts also include the Feasts of the Holy Trinity and Corpus Christi. The Feast of the Holy Trinity reminds us of the mystery of three persons in one God. From Jesus’ time on earth, we learn from John 16:15a “Everything that the Father has is mine.” And although it was so difficult for the apostles to see Jesus go to heaven, he tells them in John 16:7b “For if I do not go, the Advocate will not come to you.”

I was blessed to attend the Eucharistic Congress last year which brought me a deeper appreciation of the Eucharist. What a transforming gift to receive Our Lord, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, every time we attend Mass! Christ becoming a part of us, strengthening us in our vocation as disciples for Him!

June ends with the Feast of the Solemnity of Peter and Paul on June 29th. This feast isn’t usually assigned to a weekend Mass, but since the date coincides with a Sunday this year, we have the gift to celebrate it when we usually attend Mass. St. Peter encourages us to “get out of the boat” of our comfort zone and step out in faith. St. Paul is the patron saint of Cursillo, leading us to speak of Jesus wherever our environments are.

Both of us want to thank all those who have supported the Cursillo movement in the Toledo Diocese, and us in our position as lay directors for the past 5 years, taking the time and energy to keep Cursillo moving forward. And it is! Please keep our new lay directors Karen Frisch and Troy Peebles in your prayers as they begin this role on July 1.

What a gift the Cursillo movement has been to all of us! We encourage each other in our faith journeys, opening our eyes and lifting our hearts and minds to God in thankfulness for all the blessings that are bestowed on us every day. May your June be filled with many new beginnings in your walk with Christ!

Ultreya!

John Lyons and Kathy Otermat

April Showers Bring May Flowers

From Our Lay Directors:

April Showers Bring May Flowers

Now that Spring is officially here (as of March 20th ), we’re seeing more blue skies, but also the showers that are so much a part of this time of year. For me in my spiritual life, the showers depict the efforts and sacrifices I can choose to make to grow into a more fruitful, joyful follower of Christ. Jesus tells us in John 15:5a-b,11 “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit… I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.”

With more than half of April in the season of Lent this year, I still have time to take advantage of this season to become more fruitful. Just as the Scripture readings now are building up to Palm Sunday and the rest of Holy Week, perhaps we can take advantage of this time to grow a little more in our life with Christ. And, of course, offering prayer and palanca for the upcoming Women’s #298 is always an opportunity for growth!

We are blessed in this movement to have methods to help us to become more fruitful. I learn so much from the women that I group with, from new ways to study, deeper ways to pray and surrender, and different approaches to struggles in my life that I have difficulty in understanding and acting upon. And they learn from me, too. We build each other up. Ultreya is another opportunity for fruitfulness. I attended the Tiffin Ultreya recently. What wonderful sharing from men who attended the recent #297, plus those who have lived Cursillo for a long time. I learn so much!

Praying for you as you continue in your efforts to have a fruitful Lent! DeColores!

DeColores & Ultreya

John & Kathy

Salvation vs. Sanctification

From our Spiritual Advisor:

Salvation vs. Sanctification. What is the difference? What is the meaning to us Cursillistas?

Typically, “Salvation” is thought of as being able to achieve salvation or to lose salvation. That is being in a state of grace or being out of a state of grace. To be in a state of grace we are saved and to be in a state of sin we are not saved. But what is the truth of the matter, there is but one salvation and it is salvation to all of humankind. This salvific event has occurred because Jesus the Christ made it occur through him. The salvation event has happened, and it has happened to all humankind. This is what we celebrate at Easter in particular.

If we were to take time to reflect on this event in our human history, we would quickly understand that God, the creator of all humankind, wishes a deep relationship with all of God’s creation. The Salvation event has allowed all humankind to participate in a closer, deeper relationship with the creator. All humankind is invited through the act of salvation in Jesus the Christ.

You may ask then, if everyone is saved, what is there to do? We hear from our protestant brothers and sisters on occasion, “Once saved always saved”. In a sense this is true since Jesus sacrificed himself for all of humankind. We, as humans, can’t undo salvation. Salvation has happened. From that time of salvation until now, God seeks a deepening relationship with each of us. When we act as God wishes us to act, we deepen our relationship. When we don’t act as God wishes us to act, we strain that relationship.

It all about growing in a love relationship with God. This is where sanctification comes into play. God offers to us every opportunity to grow deeper in relationship. This process is what might be termed “Sanctification”. We have all heard about Sanctifying Grace. Remember the weekend. Sanctifying Grace is received in the Sacraments of the Catholic Church, Sanctifying Grace is received in the acts of kindness that we participate in throughout our lives. Recognizing the grace that God bestows on us when we work as God would have us work to bring about the deepening of relationship with God to others actually brings us closer in relationship with God.

As Cursillistas we pledge to “Make a Friend” and “Be a Friend” and to “Bring a Friend to Christ”. These aren’t just words but an action which is Sanctifying. We are called to be the means of Sanctifying Grace.

So, when we are speaking about others in a disparaging way or treat others in an un–Christ like way, we move ourselves and those who hear us away from a deepening relationship with God.

Ponder this suggestion. If eternity is based solely on our earthly relationship with God, what would our eternity look like? What would our eternity feel like? Heaven vs. Hell could be just that. A close relationship with God or a distant relationship with God. What might your eternity look like and are you bringing this notion of relationship with God to those around you? Watch what you post on Social Media. There is a lot of hate out there on Social Media. Don’t be part of hate speech. Jesus didn’t speak words of hate, only comfort.

Deacon Tom Soper

St. Catherine of Siena and St. Clement parishes of Toledo