A
Message from Pope Francis
to Cursillistas
April 27, 2013
written as
Archbishop of Buenos Aires
Dear
Cursillistas,
"The
Good Seeds are those who belong to the Kingdom" (MT. 13:38)
As
we get closer to the solemnity of Saint Paul, your Patron and Model of how to "live de colores," we
give thanks to God for all the fruits that throughout the years the work
of the Cursillos de Cristiandad have generously given the church.
Your
Service of announcing Christ, being witness in the everyday environments,
is to live and renew in a concrete way the Baptism that in HIM we have
received and therefore transforms you into disciples and missionaries of
the Word.
According
to the Constitution of the Church (#33) :
The
lay apostolate is a participation in the salvific mission of the Church
itself. Through their baptism and confirmation all are commissioned to
that apostolate by the Lord Himself.
Even
as I write to you, I am very well aware of the difficulties that present
themselves while trying to insert the Gospel into our society and also
very well aware of your boldness and apostolic fervor, born of that
personal encounter between yourselves and Christ which leads you forward
to make history, for the good of many; and that the many, whether they are
on the fringes of society or not, feel the loving embrace of Jesus.
Being
a pilgrim in our society means to be open to life and pay very close
attention to what happens within our hearts just like a good Samaritan
before the difficult reality of so many brothers and sisters.
It
is necessary that the Cursillo Movement through the participation of
everyone continues its journey of pastoral conversion.
As
Cursillistas, in difficult times, you need to ask God for the Grace to
sponsor many candidates, to always have a pre-cursillo in motion, so
that you will not fall into a hopelessness that paralyzes and causes
anguish.
The
gift of the Kerygma (the apostolic proclamation of religious truths)
received during your Cursillo is missionary, just like the tripod points
out (piety, study, and action).
As
a Church all of us need unity in Christ, so that HE, only HE reigns in our
hearts and only then we will be able to recognize HIM as the disciples did
in Emmaus.
As
I thank you for your pilgrimage as Cursillistas, I ask you to never cease
to renew in Jesus' Eucharist your apostolic fervor and that of your
brothers and sisters in Group Reunions.
Now,
more than ever we need your closeness in the environment to be light and
joy for so many brothers and sisters who ignore God as a Father that loves
them with tenderness.
Today,
more than ever we need your presence so that many families can find the
transcendent love of Christ - a newer and larger dimension of human love.
Today,
more than ever we need your presence and your witness in the Ultreyas, to
keep moving forward in the proclamation and living out the Kerygma.
I
ask you to pray for me. May God and the Virgin, Mother of the Divine
Grace, be with you and take care of you!
Sincerely,
Cardinal
Jorge Mario Bergoglio, S.J.
Archbishop of Buenos Aires
Published
in Spanish by the AICA Agency
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