BY-LAWS FOR THE CURSILLO MOVEMENT
OF THE DIOCESE OF RALEIGH
PREAMBLE
The ultimate goal of the Cursillos de Cristiandad (Cursillos in Christianity) Movement is that there may be more saints on the Day of Judgment. This can be accomplished if its more immediate purpose, the leavening of environments with the Gospel, provides an understanding and conviction concerning what is fundamental for being a Christian, thus making Christian community possible in families, neighborhoods, work situations and other places where people live the greater part of their lives. The Cursillo movement strives to strengthen individuals so that they might live out that understanding and conviction supported by Christian community life, and attempts to make it possible for anyone in the world to live a Christian life in a natural way.
Unity of purpose is essential if there is to be a courageous and total service of Jesus Christ through the Cursillo Movement. To have individuals working for their own purposes halts the advance of the Movement and in fact disintegrates it. The Secretariat unifies the Movement on all levels and indicates the path to be followed in essential matters of practical details as indicated in the official literature. However, in all questions of importance, the Secretariat listens to the School of Leaders before deciding what should or should not be done.
The members of School of Leaders will be in constant dialogue with the Secretariat. The members of the Secretariat, for their part, should recall that the Lord, through His bishop, has given them a most serious responsibility for the implementation of the authentic Cursillo Movement in the Diocese of Raleigh. Conscious of each person's talents, the Secretariat should coordinate individual contributions into a total effort in support of the Movement in all its phases: Pre-Cursillo, 3-Day, and Post-Cursillo.
All Cursillistas are urged to support the Secretariat by prayer and Palanca. Making decisions is the difficult process and responsibility assigned to the Secretariat. In guiding the Movement, the Secretariat must be watchful not to create subservience but to build up the whole Body of Christ; not to be dictatorial, but rather view its authority as one of service to the total Movement. It must remember that Christ has entrusted the Movement's direction to it, through the bishop to whom the Secretariat will have to give an account for this charge.. The Secretariat must determine the potential of the entire Diocesan Movement so that each person may be led to discover his or her individual potential and contribute to the building up of the Kingdom of God. This it should do in love, at the same time demanding a just response from each leader.
The Secretariat, as a service unit cannot be thought of except as a Group Reunion whose apostolic plan is the promotion of the Cursillo Movement itself, programmed and carried out with the idea of the greatest service to all. (The Fundamental Ideas of the Cursillo Movement, Chapter VII)
Just as on the 3-Day Cursillo, Clergy and Religious bear the responsibility for spiritual guidance and laity regulate its overall functioning, so priests and lay members of the Secretariat will cooperate for furthering the aims and objectives of the Cursillo Movement as a whole.
ARTICLE I
In the Diocese of Raleigh there shall be only one Secretariat for the Cursillos in Christianity, which will be a functional and autonomous organism under the immediate direction of the bishop and dependent upon the Lay Director and Spiritual Advisor. In addition to Lay Director and Spiritual Advisor, said Secretariat shall include the Directors of the School of Leaders for each language group, e.g. English, Spanish, etc. (vide infra). Finally, the Secretariat will elect a Treasurer and a Secretary. Only the aforementioned members will have a vote in decision-making. Additional members with specific duties may be appointed as required.
Ordinarily, Secretariat shall meet quarterly to receive reports, provide advice, and make decisions. The format is that of a Group Reunion of Leaders of equal stature and status. On occasion, qualified members of a School of Leaders may be called to speak on specific matters as needed. Such representatives will have voice but no vote.
ARTICLE II
As a group, the members of the Secretariat shall guide and coordinate all phases of the Cursillo Movement in the Diocese of Raleigh within the pastoral plan of the bishop and the Raleigh Cursillo Movement.
ARTICLE III
Members of the Secretariat shall be nominated by the Schools of Leaders and elected by the Secretariat, with the approval of the bishop, for three-year terms. Only members of the Schools of Leaders shall be eligible for appointment, and the Lay Director, in particular, must have been an active and attending member of one of the Diocesan Schools of Leaders for at least one year.
ARTICLE IV
The School of Leaders is the cornerstone of the Cursillo Movement, the complement and extension of the Secretariat, and its instrument for the realization of its work. The School will supply the Secretariat with teams of leaders, prepared technically and spiritually, so that these leaders may be the ferment of the Cursillo Movement in the diocese. After all, it is upon the leaders that the responsibility rests for vitalizing the Group Reunions and the Ultreyas, the specific means of perseverance in the Post-Cursillo.
ARTICLE V
The Secretariat shall be composed of a Lay Director, a Spiritual Advisor, Directors of the Schools of Leaders, a Treasurer, and a Secretary, having each one vote in decision-making. The Treasurer and Secretary will be chosen by a simple majority vote of the members of the Secretariat. Members' duties are as follows:
A. The Lay Director, in consultation with the Spiritual Advisor, will convoke, preside at, prepare and direct agendas for all meetings of the Secretariat. He or she will do everything possible to promote a spirit of unity, not only among the members of the Secretariat, but in Schools of Leaders and throughout the whole Diocesan Cursillo Movement. The Lay Director will see to it that members of the Secretariat fulfill their assigned duties, and that all essential positions, including Spiritual Advisor, are filled
B.
The Spiritual Advisor, who shall be a priest, oversees the spiritual needs of the Secretariat and the Movement. Appointed by the bishop, he maintains a link between the Movement and the Bishop's Office. To insure proper spiritual assistance to the Movement, the Spiritual Advisor is responsible for acquiring other priests, vowed religious, and deacons to assist with the Doctrinal Talks at the School of Leaders, the spiritual sessions during the Cursillo Weekends, and the Spiritual Advisor's role during the Ultreyas. He should continually challenge the other Secretariat members to discern their activities, always striving to seek God's Will instead of their own.
C. The Treasurer shall handle the financial matters of the Cursillo Movement, doing whatever is necessary to ensure that the Movement is financially sound at all times and that local, regional and national financial obligations are met in a timely manner.
D. The Secretary will keep the minutes of all meetings and see that they are distributed promptly to all whom should receive them. In addition, he or she will see that mailing lists are up-to-date and assume responsibility for all mailings sent out by the Secretariat. The Secretary will perform other duties usually connected with this position.
ARTICLE VI
Liaison shall be established and maintained with the national and regional Secretariats, which shall be supported by the Raleigh Cursillo Movement, both spiritually--by way of prayer and Palanca, and materially--by way of financial contributions to the degree required.
ARTICLE VII
The Secretariat, through the School of Leaders shall implement the Cursillo Movement in the Diocese of Raleigh according to what is essential and fundamental as outlined in the official literature of the Movement.
ARTICLE VIII
Since the Secretariat is itself a Group Reunion, there should be a sharing of Holiness, Formation, and Evangelization.
ARTICLE IX
Any member of the Secretariat may propose Amendments to these bylaws. Amendments may be made, subject to the approval of the bishop, at any regularly scheduled meeting of the Secretariat. Passage of an amendment requires a two-thirds majority vote of the entire Secretariat. Proposed amendments must be submitted to the Secretariat at least one month in advance of the meeting at which it is to be discussed. Voting on the proposed amendment will take place at the next regularly scheduled meeting following the meeting at which it was discussed.
ARTICLE X
Following official implementation of these by-laws, the initial terms of office shall be as follows: the Secretary and Treasurer serve for two (2) years. All other members of the Secretariat shall serve for three (3) years. At the completion of the initial 2-year terms, those members may then be elected to three (3) year terms. This procedure is done to insure continuity of the Secretariat members and that there will always be experienced members present.
ARTICLE XI
Upon the completion of each member's term as detailed in Article X,
said member will accept at least a one (1) year waiting period prior to serving on the Secretariat again. As per Article V, A & B, the Lay Director's and Spiritual Advisor's terms may be extended for one additional term; however, at the end of their second term of service, they will also be required to accept the one-year waiting period.ARTICLE XII
Ad hoc committees and pro-tem positions may be appointed following a two-thirds majority vote of the Secretariat members. All such appointments shall contain a sunset clause after which the appointment ends. This term shall normally be no more than one year.
ARTICLE XIII
Recognizing the cultural and language diversity of the Diocese, there shall be a School of Leaders for each language group. When a new language group School of Leaders is called for, it shall be created from volunteers who have, either by significant prior experience or by at least a one-year involvement with an established School of Leaders, earned the trust of the Secretariat.
The Schools of Leaders may create sub-committee functions as needed and will advise Secretariat of these through the Chairperson. All Chairs come from the Schools of Leaders and are nominated by them for approval by the Secretariat of the Raleigh Diocese. Ideally, Schools of
Leaders meet weekly in the spirit of a Group Reunion of Leaders. Ordinarily the Raleigh Diocese Schools of Leaders shall meet monthly, not in conflict with holidays, and shall begin with a time of sharing on holiness, formation and evangelization.Each School of Leaders shall have a Director, a Spiritual Advisor, and Pre-Cursillo, 3-Day,
and Post-Cursillo Chairpersons, whose duties are as follows:A. The Director of the School of Leaders will convoke, preside at, prepare, and direct all activities relating to the School of Leaders. Upon the recommendations of the Secretariat, the Director will determine the Doctrinal and Technique presentations and presenters for meetings. He or she will see that all the essential elements of the School are maintained for continual growth of its participants.
B. The Pre-Cursillo Chairperson insures that the Movement maintains its focus on the various environments within the diocese. Continual efforts must be exerted in order to identify key environments and the influential people within those environments. He or she further sees that proper procedures are in place to effect a smooth transition from the Pre-Cursillo to the Post-Cursillo, by way of the 3-Day Weekend.
C. The 3-Day Chairperson insures that every element of the Cursillo Weekend is directed to properly educating the candidates who attend those Weekends. This includes, among other things, team selection and preparation, overseeing the facilities, facilitating comfort (proper nourishment and rest), and providing necessary supplies. It is his or her responsibility to see that required books, publications and other supplies, which are needed by the Movement and determined by School of Leaders, are always available.
D. The Post-Cursillo Chairperson insures that every Cursillista within the Diocesan Movement has the opportunity to grow in his or her own Fourth Day. This is accomplished by effecting a link between the proper School of Leaders and all the Diocesan Cursillo Areas and their Group Reunions within the diocese. Furthermore, the Post-Cursillo Chairperson makes sure that an adequate number of Ultreyas (the source of linkage between the various Group Reunions) are exist within the diocese. He or she will also determine and schedule necessary Diocesan, regional, and national Ultreyas and Meetings.
Article XIV
The Pre-Cursillo, 3-Day, and Post-Cursillo Chairpersons may appoint individuals to oversee committees respective to the work of that section. (i.e., Preparation Committee for the Pre-Cursillo section, Procurement Committee for the 3-Day section, Palanca and Communications Committees for the Post-Cursillo section). The Leaders of these various committees will report directly to their respective chairperson and not to the School of Leaders. Committee leaders are not members of the Secretariat.
Article XV
The Chairpersons of each section within a language group School of Leaders must make a best effort to coordinate with and inform their counterparts in the other language groups' Schools of Leaders
. This may be effected by exchanges of representatives, common representatives between the Schools of Leaders, and joint activities such as community Ultreyas or Celebrations. This is especially true of Cursillo activities and Post-Cursillo responsibilities for diocesan, regional and national workshops, meetings and encounters.Approved and attested to, this the ______ day of ______________, 2000.
__________________________ ____________________________
Bishop of the Raleigh Diocese Hispanic School of Leaders Director
__________________________ _____________________________
Lay Director Anglo School of Leaders Director
___________________________
Spiritual Advisor