"Cursillo is an attempt to rekindle the heart, spirit and support system of what we think of as “The Early Church.” It is a swing “back to basics.” It re-teaches us what has always been there in the Christian religion but what was, to most of us, overshadowed, down-played, even lost. Bishop Hervas, the originator of the Cursillo method, decided the most important lost element was discipline. And, discipline remains now the key to a Cursillista's success in his Fourth-Day walk. Bishop Hervas realized that discipline required first and foremost a total submission to Christ, and secondly, a support system. This support system he determined to be a group reunion. So, he invited a few men to join together in supporting each other in their efforts to totally submit to Christ's will. I say “men” because his initial effort was aimed at bringing men back into the Church. It was overwhelmingly evident that the Church had become “female” and the male lay leadership was pretty much extinct. It is interesting to note that even now, the strongest conversion experiences and strongest group reunions, by and large, involve men; for, it was largely men who had lost not only their submission to Christ (for that was looked upon as a weakness), but also their ability to have open and honest friendships with each other in Christ. The world had required of men a greater mask.

Now, I hope you have noticed the fact that the first thing Bishop Hervas did was to form a group, and then another group. It was only following those efforts that he decided to plan a weekend in an effort to encourage others to join a group. And so, it is ever so important to keep in mind this fact: the Group Reunion is the backbone of the Cursillo method; not the weekend. The weekend was developed solely for the purpose of encouraging men to group. Therefore, it stands to reason that if a person is not grouping, the Cursillo weekend (for the purpose for which it was intended) was not effective for him.

Cursillo is not a weekend “high”, and we should not be hearing statements such as these:
"The Cursillo weekend is fantastic!"
"I can't wait to work another weekend so I can rekindle my spirituality."
"I just live for each of the weekends because it is so dead in between."

The Fourth Day is the strength of Cursillo, and it is the discipline and fellowship and support of the Fourth Day that should be our mainstay. The very core of Cursillo's effectiveness is that the “high” is not lost after the weekend. It is constantly and methodically maintained each day of our lives through piety, study, action, a rule of life, and a spiritual director. If a person is honestly not availing him- or herself of all the above aspects, it probably is that he is not growing; and, if you are not growing, you are dying. It is the Fourth Day that provides the ultimate victory."
-Terri Nelson