It all began with Cursillo originating at Majorca, Spain, in 1944 as a Lay led Roman Catholic "Short Course in Christianity". It quickly spread throughout Europe. Cursillo was introduced to the U.S. A. in 1957 at Waco, Texas. Originally Cursillos were in Spanish only, but in 1961, the first English-speaking Cursillos was held in San Angelo, Tx.  The first Cursillo in California was in San Francisco, 1961 and spread rapidly.

 

     In the beginning, Cursillos had been for men only, but the desires of the men to share their joy with their wives brought about Cursillos for women. It is a rule that no wife can attend a Cursillo before her husband, and both must agree to attend before either one can. 

     Now there are adjacent weekends for men and women with couples strongly encouraged to attend the same pair of weekends. 

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     In 1964, the first non-Roman Catholic attended from St. Jude’s Episcopal Church. It soon spread to many other Protestant denominations.

 

     The Cursillo came to LA in 1972, to San Diego in 1976, and to Hawaii in 1977. 

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     Because of its interest in the Cursillo Movement, the United Methodist Church, through the ministries of The Upper Room, sponsored two “model Cursillos” in Peoria, Illinois. At the same time a community was forming in Nashville.

 

     As The Upper Room Cursillo developed, it was greatly aided by ecumenical Cursillos across the country. Not only was the Cursillo an effective tool in energizing disciples for the local church, it was a tremendous experience in sharing the fundamental nature of our common faith in the Christian community. 

 

     In 1981 it was mutually agreed upon by the National Secretariat of the Roman Catholic Cursillo Movement and The Upper Room of the United Methodist Church to change the name of The Upper Room Cursillo to the Emmaus Movement. Thus began the life of the Emmaus Movement in equipping knowledgeable church leaders with vital piety. 

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     The name was taken from the "Emmaus Road" experience of Jesus that two of his disciples had after the Resurrection.  In Luke 24:13-35, they were met by someone they first saw as a stranger. He was wise about scripture and helped them see that the tragedy they felt with the crucifixion, was in reality the gift of the Messiah that changed everything. 

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     Southern California Walk to Emmaus also started in 1981. The first Community Lay Director was Fred Hanover. The first set of Walks were held at Riverside UMC and Walks E-5 and E- 6 were held at Trinity UMC, but Trinity was not the permanent home for some time. 

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     Southern California Walk to Emmaus has been very blessed over the years to be able to have Trinity UMC as our host church.

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     In addition, the Southern California Emmaus Community has been the "midwife" of at least eleven additional Emmaus/ Chrysalis/ Kairos/ Epiphany Spiritual Renewal Weekend Communities in the Southern California region.

 

     The beauty of that historic church, ample storage, and plenty of parking are major advantages of Trinity UMC over other facilities. Over the years, the Board of Directors has looked at other facilities, and nothing comes close to this church so our Emmaus mission continues at Trinity UMC.

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     As of 2024, there have been over two hundred and thirty weekends offered by our beloved So. Calif. community alone.  We thank God for all the inspired hearts and willing pilgrims that have shared the powerful 72 hours that is the Walk to Emmaus.