Summer Cursillo Weekends draw men, women closer to Christ
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Men’s Cursillo Weekend #160 and Women’s Cursillo Weekend #161 were held at Father Tolton Regional Catholic High School in Columbia this July.
“The Holy Spirit was truly at work helping the attendees have a greater understanding of and appreciation of their Catholic faith and the importance of their relationship with Christ,” said Elizabeth O’Connell, of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, assistant rectora for the Women’s Weekend. “The team and the attendees came away feeling inspired and alive in the Spirit.”
“The Jefferson City diocese will benefit greatly from these Catholic laymen who have furthered their journey toward Christ and authentic Catholicism,” stated Tony Lupo, a member of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, who was rector of the Men’s Weekend.
Men’s Weekend
The Men’s Weekend was held July 9-12.
Eight new Cursillistas joined the community from five parishes in the diocese, including St. Stanislaus in Wardsville, Our Lady of Lourdes and St. John Henry Newman in Columbia, St. Pius X in Moberly and St. Vincent de Paul in Pettis County.
The spiritual director was Father Joseph Corel, pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Columbia, with Deacon Charles Ochoa from St. John Henry Newman Parish as assistant spiritual director.
The group was small but bonded very quickly and hit the ground running.
The Holy Spirit truly moved the group to absorb the lessons of piety, study and action.
The weekend could be characterized as “intense joy,” as the candidates worked and played hard — taking very seriously the lessons learned but also experiencing the joy of men from all walks of life bonding together.
Women’s Weekend
The Women’s Weekend was held July 16-19.
Fifteen candidates attended from these parishes: Our Lady of Lourdes and St. John Henry Newman in Columbia, St. Peter and Immaculate Conception in Jefferson City, Ss. Peter and Paul in Cole Camp, St. Pius X in Moberly, St. Patrick in Laurie, St. Andrew in Tipton, St. Ann in Warsaw and Holy Cross in Cuba.
The team included rollistas and behind-the-scenes workers from Our Lady of Lourdes, St. John Henry Newman and Sacred Heart in Columbia, St. Anthony in Camdenton, Holy Family in Hannibal, St. Peter and Immaculate Conception in Jefferson City, and Holy Cross in Cuba.
Father Mark Smith, pastor of Holy Cross Parish in Cuba, St. Michael Parish in Steelville and St. Francis Carraciolo Parish in Bourbon, and seminarian Shane Kliethermes gave talks and provided spiritual direction.
The women quickly made new friends who by the end of the weekend felt like old friends.
Upcoming weekends
The Fall 2026 Cursillo Weekends for the Jefferson City diocese will be at Sacred Heart Church, 540 N. Mill St. in Eldon.
A Cursillo is a three-day course in Christianity, featuring inspiring talks, small group sharing, daily Mass and fellowship.
Priests, deacons and lay speakers from the diocese will lead the Cursillos.
The Men’s Cursillo will be Thursday through Sunday, Oct. 8-11, 2026.
The Women’s Cursillo will be Thursday through Sunday, Oct. 22-25, 2026.
The registration fee is $100 per person.
Learn more and register at jccursillo.org.
For questions or assistance in finding a sponsor, contact Bill Fay at 573-356-0593 or Becky Sander at 573-808-3758.
