THE 10 COMMANDMENTS OF ROLLO PREPERATION
as assembled by Tina Reinke, Rectora Cursillo # 816
“My Gift To You Is My Life”
October, 1998
(1) PRAY!!
(2) There is no such thing as the “perfect” rollo, so let go of your fear that yours won’t be perfect. Don’t worry - the Holy Spirit will guide you.
(3) Rollos are not meant to be free form - follow the Guidelines. The Cursillo method and the flow of the weekend work as long as you stick to the guidelines.
(4) You don’t have to do this by yourself - don’t be afraid to ask others for help.
(5) Rollos don’t have to be tearjerkers, but it is okay if people (or you) cry during your rollo.
(6) Not all rollos call for a personal witness story (consult the guidelines). But do make sure that you are in what you say, and how you say it. The candidates deserve to hear your words, not some formal script that you borrowed from some other source. A few quotes are okay, but don’t overdo it.
(7) Give the rollo that you were assigned to give - don’t give the rollo someone else has been assigned to give. Because the flow of the weekend is designed to have one topic flowing into another, you need to be sure that you are writing the correct rollo. Consult the Guidelines for the rollo that comes before yours, and the one after yours, to be sure that you aren’t writing those rollos instead. (Ex. after I had written a “Leaders” rollo, I consulted the Guidelines and realized that what I had written was better suited as a “Being Christ In Your Environment” rollo - I had “stepped on the toes” of the rollista who would speak after me.)
(8) Keep it simple. Use words that everyone will be able to understand. Avoid theology.
(9) Keep it short - 7-8 minutes. Be sure to practice it out loud, and time yourself. If your rollo is too long, you cheat the candidates out of their time for discussion.
(10) PRAY!!
A few other pointers:
- PRAY!!
- don’t use the word “should” - we’re not here to preach
- use “we” vs. “I”
- use questions vs. declarations
- we are all, team and candidates, on equal footing - not teachers vs. students - don’t lecture or seem to have all the answers
- DO include the theme of the weekend and the topic of 4th day somewhere in your rollo
- PRAY!!
Trust the Holy Spirit! “That is the miracle of grace ... it never comes too late”. BUT - it had better come to you before the Overnight!!
