INSTALLATION OF OUR NEW LAY DIRECTOR, KATHY TUCKER

New Lay Director, Kathy Tucker.  In front of the Ambo
is Father Jay Bowden's Cursillo vest,
 given to Trenton Cursillo by Father Jay's family. 

DeColores! Good Evening everyone and welcome to our beautiful parish at Saint Rose of Lima.

As with all things in Cursillo we start with Prayer: Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of us Your faithful and kindle in us the fire of Your love. Send forth Your Spirit and we shall be created. And you shall renew the face of the earth. Amen

I believe all new Lay Directors say that we have big shoes to fill I too echo that responsibility.

When I first started working with Mary I found her to be a great coach, mentor and supportive of my ideas and a true friend. I also knew her as holy, gentle, kind and understanding and sometimes a (bit pushy). We work so well together I could not have picked a better lay director and a better person to collaborate with. Mary Weis has done such a tremendous job serving as Lay Director these past two years. It’s just been incredible. She has been a mentor to me as we would speak on the phone and hours would have passed as we bounced ideas off each other. At times she would say your not doing enough! Do more be Better! (My brain was saying REALLY! Mary) Mary has pushed me to be a better version of myself! What a pleasure it is to call Mary my friend!

During her tenure, there has been two weekends and we have expanded our horizons. We were published in The Monitor and we have been on the radio! We were able to re-unite with our Spanish Cursillo meeting with them at their Ultreya and at the June bilingual Mass. We want to continue to foster this relationship and bring our communities together to work together in future endeavors. (October 26^th there will be another Bilingual Mass at St Mary’s in Trenton/Bishop David O’Connell will be celebrating Mass) Everyone is welcome!! What accomplishments and teamwork! I can only hope to continue this Cursillo ministry and to be as devoted, 

prayerful, caring and hopeful as you are!

On behalf of the Secretariat and the entire Cursillo community we are truly grateful and  thank you Mary for your service.  

I lived my weekend Trenton #114 at the Vincentian Center 2007. My sponsor was Mary Ann Dowd and she was also the Rector on my weekend.


How did I get here you ask? One would say by car!! At a family function I saw Mary Ann Dowd my cousin she was wearing a cross. I said Mary Ann what’s the story with the cross? She said, “It’s not just jewelry you know”. HMMM, OK tell me. It’s about Cursillo. And so the journey began.

I agreed to go on the next women’s weekend #114. Driving to the weekend I thought I’m going to die in a ditch. Jackie Devine May God rest her beautiful soul was not a good driver by any standards. I had noticed many dents and dings in her van. She was rummaging around for directions Scary, no eyes on the road but everyone else’s were. I asked her to pull over so I could drive. I wanted to get to this Cursillo thing alive.


Before Cursillo, I followed the usual rules, go to church, be kind, be giving etc…but: 

What the Cursillo weekend meant for me is: I understood the concepts of what real Piety, Study and Action were! I have more clarity and I am more focused in my prayer life!

The "Cursillo" focuses on three basic concepts:
Piety - What are those things that will help our spiritual growth?
Study - What helps us to be more Christian?
Action - What can I do to bring change in others and/or the world for the better?

Through Ultreya I was reminded of our journey to our fifth day, that Jesus is the answer. Margherita DeGregorio and Jackie Devine were also instrumental in guiding me through Ultreya where everyone shared their ideas, fears and challenges.

They would say “Stay Focused and pray about your issues”. After a time they asked me to be the Ultreya leader. I said Jackie, really you are the best person to be the leader. In Her wisdom she said “we need younger people to carry the torch to move forward, Ultreya”. And so I accepted..

Cursillo is not a Spectator Sport you need to be a Participant!
When we say we are Catholic or Christian, we are not simply saying something about what we believe or who we are. Our Faith is meant to be put into practice. At its heart, Christianity is a way of life. And being Christian means daring to “walk the walk” and “talk the talk” daring to live our lives for Christ, daring to allow Christ to transform our lives so we can live for him. To be better version’s of our selves. Being with like-minded people helps us stay focused. The world is loaded with distractions.

1972: Cursillo came to the Trenton Diocese through the efforts of Father Jay Bowden (May God rest his soul!), and several other people who approached Bishop George W. Ahr and received his blessing to begin an English-speaking Cursillo in the Trenton Diocese.                 


2019: Trenton Cursillo celebrates its 47th Anniversary celebrating this Christ-centered movement. We have Father Jay Bowden to thank for his love for Cursillo and his community.

Because of Cursillo, I am now part of a group that makes a difference, to be involved, to help each other, work together, pray for each other and truly love one another.

With Cursillo you are never alone. Cursillistas are like family members that come to help you, attend to you and comfort you in your time of need. And they never give up, they never stop caring. I treasure my Family and Friends they have helped me grow and become more patient (because sometimes I do have zero tolerance, just saying).

Cursillo is the one of greatest gifts I have ever received. I am truly  blessed. I feel so privileged; so joyous that God would give me so much in so many ways. I look around at all of you, and see how each of you have a special place in my heart. The joys stay in my heart and they are shared with friends and fellow cursillistas. In the words of Pope Francis,

Please pray for me, our Secretariat  and our Cursillo Movement that we may be you’re worthy servants in this task that I am truly blessed, honored and privileged to accept.

The Cursillo Motto is: Make a Friend, Be a Friend and Bring that Friend to Christ!In Jackie Devine’s words “Make a Weekend you will never be disappointed”! People don’t often follow your advice but follow by example. I pray that I can be that example! For those who attend School of Leaders you know I can’t let this go without a challenge: My challenge for all of you is“Don’t be a Spectator Be a Participant” God Bless and DeColores! 

Kathy Tucker
Lay Director
Cursillo Movement of the Diocese of Trenton
September 6, 2019

I would like to Thank Father Jim for allowing us to have Mass this evening! Thank you to Karen Powell for helping to facilitate this night.