ACTS

The A.C.T.S movement is a lay driven movement that has spread throughout the world, impacting one church and one person at a time. ACTS emerged from the cursillo movement which began in Spain as a short course on the Catholic faith. Cursillo literally means short course in Spanish. It spread to many places including to Our Lady of Perpetual Help parish in Selma, Texas. Three instructors of the cursillo retreats wanted to improve the cursillo and make it more relevant to parishes after the changes of the Second Vatican Council and came up with A.C.T.S.
 
An A.C.T.S. retreat is a three day weekend retreat hosted by former A.C.T.S. retreatants. The A.C.T.S retreat experience is open to everyone and is intended to be a gateway through which participants gain a deeper understanding of what it means to be an engaged, active, conscious, contributing member of St. Helena’s parish and the Roman Catholic Church. The primary purpose of A.C.T.S. is to strengthen this parish as a Eucharistic Catholic Community, through renewed participation in adoration, fellowship and service.
 
The strength and continued growth of this movement would not be possible without an A.C.T.S. CORE. The Core is a 10 member group of passionate retreatants who volunteer their time and talents to keep the community connected with one another and continue to evangelize the gospel’s message of Adoration, Community, Theology, and Service (the A.C.T.S. respectively).
 
A.C.T.S. Core Team seeks to support, direct and guide the St. Helena community by setting policies and procedures, under the guidance of our Pastor. Through the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, the A.C.T.S. Core Team continues to point the way to the presence of Jesus in the world.
 
If you have previously attended an A.C.T.S. retreat at St. Helena or at another parish and would like to be involved, get more information and receive updates please contact the Core by sending an email to sthe lena.acts2014@gmail.com and ask to be put on the mailing list.  The St. Helena community usually gathers every first Tuesday of the month in the Dolan center at 6:30 pm for “faith sharing” with a potluck meal. Everyone over the age of 18 is welcome. Please join us! (Confirm with the current A.C.T.S. facilitator listed in the bulletin for the correct date and time). 
 
We encourage everyone to attend an A.C.T.S. retreat. We hope that you will consider one of the following upcoming retreat weekends.
 

Upcoming Retreats*
September 4-7, 2014	Men's
January 22-25, 2015	Women's
July 30-Aug 2, 2015	Teen's
September 10-13, 2015	Men's
January 7-10, 2016	Women’s
June 30-July 3, 2016	Spanish Women’s
August 4-7, 2016	Teens
August 25-28, 2016	Men’s

*Retreat dates are subject to change so please contact the ACTS facilitator for current information.