Cursillo Thunder Bay
About Cursillo
The word Cursillo is a Spanish word that means “short course”. Cursillo Thunder Bay is a short course put on for lay Catholics by other lay Catholics assisted by a Priest and/or Deacon. However, often religious persons such as priests, deacons, sisters, brothers etc will also make a Cursillo weekend.
Canadian Conference of Catholic Cursillos Website
The Purpose of the Cursillo Movement is to bring the Good News that God loves us by the best means possible, friendship, to the best that is in each person. “The Cursillo in Christianity, is a Movement, that by means of its own method, attempts, from within the Church, to ensure that the realities of Christianity are brought to life in the uniqueness, the originality, and in the creativity of each person. From their deep conviction, their freedom finds the right direction and they discover their potential, accepting their limitations. Thus their will is strengthened, friendships are developed by virtue of their decision and perseverance in their daily, personal and community life”. Our goal is to work at Christianizing the environments one person at a time.
Secretariat
Lay Director: Keith Moore
An Open Letter to All Diocese of Thunder Bay Cursillistas
The Diocese of Thunder Bay Cursillo movement needs your help. We need people to step up and fill some of the vacant roles on the Secretariat.
At this time the following positions require filling.
Secretary: The role of the secretary is to take minutes at monthly meetings. To send out notice of upcoming Secretariat meetings and the agenda for those meetings. Distribute notices of upcoming events such as Ultreyas. Distribute the CCCC newsletter Fully Alive when it is published.
This position requires approximately 2 to 3 hrs work per month and the Secretariat does not meet in July or August.
Treasurer: The role of the treasurer is to keep track of the movement’s income and expenses and report on such at monthly meetings.
4th Day Chair: The role of the 4th Day Chair is to arrange Ultreyas. Finding monthly witnesses (not necessarily on their own but with the support of all active cursillistas). Ensuring the venue is open each month for the Ultreya (obtaining keys if necessary). Ensuring that (with help) the venue is left in the state it was found prior to the Ultreya.
NOTE:
None of the above roles require a large time commitment and all of the roles are critical to the survival of the leadership (Secretariat) of the Diocese of Thunder Bay Cursillo. We need your support. We need people to step up and keep the Secretariat functioning so Weekends can be arranged for all those who would benefit from living a Cursillo Weekend.
The Weekend is just the first step on a lifelong journey living as Christ would have us live by the best possible means loving friendship. Ultreyas also depend on a functioning Secretariat. It would be a terrible loss to the Diocese if Cursillo could no longer function due to lack of a Secretariat.
Please, please take time in prayer and ask the guidance of the Holy Spirit to discern if this is the path for you. Please pray concerning all of the cursillistas you know to determine if you feel one of your friends might be the one to step up and this time of great need for the Thunder Bay movement.
Send email responses to; ourtwopit@gmail.com or phone 807-621-4468
De Colores
Reino
Prayer Line
The Canadian Conference of Catholic Cursillo website has a box on the upper right hand side reading PRAYER LINE. The prayer line is a place to ask for prayers for yourself, loved ones, friends, neighbours, or anything else you wish prayers for. I have personally seen the power of prayer and the miracles that can occur through community prayer.
The prayer line can also send you the prayer requests, if you wish, so that you may also pray for those in need. The prayer line is seen by Cursillistas all over the world, so there are a large number praying for the daily requests. Yes the prayers are posted daily.
The email address for the Cursillo prayer line is simply; cursilloprayerline@gmail.com (the lady who runs it is Yvonne and she lives on the west coast) You can send your prayer requests to that email or send a request to join those who pray daily. We cannot help everyone with everything they may have going on in their lives but we can pray for them.
This is a powerful method of support for our Cursillista families and my wish is that we all make it one of our New Year’s resolutions to make use of and/or join in by requesting the daily emails.
Information
Below is the most recent Cursillo application form.
The Fourth Day
Our Response to Live the Fourth Day
Dear Friends in Christ,
I grew up in Veracruz, Mexico, the oldest of six children. In 2001 I came to Canada as a student, later married my husband, who is Jewish, and built a family here. Life was good, but in 2021 COVID changed everything. My father, a faithful Cursillista and devotee of Our Lady of Guadalupe, passed away. His death shook me deeply, but it also became a turning point. Through sorrow, I felt God’s strength and began to draw closer to Him.
In 2023, I made my Cursillo Weekend. From that moment, my faith was renewed. I found belonging in community, especially at Ultreyas where prayer and friendship strengthened me.
My journey has not been without trials. In 2024, my son faced a severe health crisis, and at the same time one of my sisters went through a very difficult personal struggle. Those were dark moments, but my community surrounded me with prayer and support. By God’s grace, both began to heal, and I learned to trust Him more deeply.
These experiences have changed me. I am more compassionate, more attentive to others, and more open to God’s will. My family now prays and shares Scripture together. My son has been reading the Bible in its entirety, and by doing that he is able to engage in thought-provoking conversations with me, my husband, and others, and he is discerning his vocation. My husband and I, though from different faith traditions, have grown in mutual respect and understanding. We even participate in Christian–Jewish dialogue in our community, which has strengthened both our marriage and our faith journey.
As Eduardo Bonnín said, our life should be 24 hours of apostolate. Everything we do, we do because it is the Holy Spirit who motivates us to be Apostles.
I serve in various apostolates, like helping at the Soup Shack, where I see Christ in those in need. And on October 1st, 2025, I will join a mission trip to Ghana to serve in education, healthcare, and clean water projects in 12 villages. None of this is from my own strength — it is God working in me.
Today, in my Fourth Day, I live with gratitude and trust. God has transformed suffering into blessings, weakness into strength, and community into hope.
May today’s Word inspire us all to keep walking in faith, serving with love and proclaiming the Good News with joy.
Make a Friend, Be a Friend, Make your Friend a Friend of Christ.
De Colores!
Mary Braitman
September 2025
Ultreya 2025 Dates
Good day to my fellow Cursillistas!
We have to change the timing of our Ultreyas at Corpus Christi, due to other events scheduled on the first Wednesdays of the month, this year.
Our next Ultreya will be on Wednesday, September 24th at 7 pm at Corpus Christie. Please take note of this date change.
We are now hoping to have the 4th Wednesday of every month, as our regular Ultreya day.
Hoping you are able to join us on that day!
De Colores!!
Marcia
The 2025 Ultreya's will be held at Corpus Christi Church (Downstairs). The dates are as follows:
September 3rdOctober 1stNovember 5thDecember 3rd
Music, Faith Sharing and Fellowship
DE COLORES!!!
Campaign 2025
Attached are three documents concerning funding for the campaign to spread the Cursillo Movement. Please read. If you have any questions or suggestions, please contact Deacon Reino Pitkanen at: ourtwopit@gmail.com
Events
CCCB Bulletin - Fully Alive
September 2024
Canadian Conference of Catholic Cursillos Fully Alive September 2024 (93) PDF
It is a resource document that the Canadian Cursillo Movement publishes three to four times per year. It is an exciting read, and I encourage our Cursillistas to read it. They can always forward any questions to the Resource Centre, and they will answer them.
The email address for the Resource Centre is
ccccresource2@gmail.com, or they can ask me, and I will pass it on. My email address is ccccsupplycentre@gmail.com.
February 22nd, 2024
Good day folks.
Below is the 2023 Bulletin. It is well worth the read, informative, strengthening and supportive, of the Cursillo experience, both individually and worldwide.