What is the Cuirim House?

The Cuirim House is...

a place of Discipleship to Jesus; where in the context of community we can learn the ways of Jesus. To become like Him as we spend time seeking intimacy with Him and do the things he taught us to do. The Cuirim House is modeled after the Celtic Monastic tradition. In the pursuit of intimacy with Jesus those involved spend their days in prayer, study and work. The Work is serving the poor by equipping the Mexican Church and Mexican leaders to birth and sustain new Kingdom initiatives. There is a beautiful and strong partnership between the Cuirim House minsitry and the Mexican Church. Over the many years Brian and his family and others involved have established strong friendships with those in the community. When short-term teams come down Brian arranges with the Mexican leaders what needs within the community the teams can serve.

The Cuirim House is located about 15 minutes south of Nogales in Mexico.




I was down there for two weekends in February with different teams who were working on the Cuirim House to get it ready for the summer work. It was a wonderful time learning about the Kingdom of God and the call to discipleship to Jesus. Here are some photographs of the community.

The Kingdom Of God





Jesus you are the Way, the Entrance into the Kingdom of Your God. Jesus I am aware how I have settled, set up camp and linger at the entrance. Not wanting or maybe not knowing how to stray to far from the Kingdom of Darkness. It sadly has become my friend a familiar place, it is a place that has formed me in a lot of ways, so to fully leave this behind is truly to die to self—I am told Jesus that you are not only the Way in but that you are the One who can teach me how to live this new life, even more the One who can change me in the inside. Please Jesus, let this be true in my life.

"The kingdom of God is at hand." Lift up your eyes! Lift up your hearts!
-John the Baptist

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I think we finally have to say that Jesus’ enduring relevance is based on his historically proven ability to speak to, to heal and empower the individual human condition. He matters because of what he brought and what he still brings to ordinary human beings, living their ordinary lives and coping daily with their surroundings. He promises wholeness for their lives. In sharing our weakness he gives us strength and imparts through his companionship a life that has the quality of eternity. He comes where we are, and he brings us the life we hunger for. An early report reads, “Life was in him, life that made sense of human existence” (John 1:4). To be the light of life, and to deliver God’s life to women and men where they are and as they are, is the secret of the enduring relevance of Jesus. Suddenly they are flying right-side up, in a world that makes sense.
-Dallas Willard

Here is excerpts of a recent interview with Brian Donohue:




Why Mexico?

We like Mexican people? We like Mexican food. We had established trust with the pastors built over nine years of short term trips. Visitors can fly into Tucson. Building is very inexpensive. The need along the border for God's work is huge

Why did you begin the Cuirim (k-ear-um) Outreach?

We have always dreamed of starting a ministry among the poor. We love story telling, art and song. We want to live daily in a place of great dependence on God's strength adn provision. We want lots of people to join us. We are inspired by the Irish Christians who gegan this movement in 500 AD.

There's so much in the news about Mexican Immigaration. What's your take on it?

We are wading into a desperate sea of humanity with an offer of eternal citizenship

What does the summer hold in store?

We have 140 people coming this summer. We hope to begin the library, begin a meal ministry, do several children's clubs, build a children's cafee adn set up our prayer room.

How does the Celtic theme fit in?

In the 5th century, Irish Christians developed a means of forming people in Christ's image while enagaging the culture around them. Cuirim House is smack in the middle of the community adn our focus is outward. But our intention is that all who serve withus will become more like Jesus when they leave.

My heart is transformed...


...by the smile of trust given by some people who are terribly fragile and weak. They call forth new energies from me. They seem to break down barriers and bring me a new freedom.

It is the same with the smile of a child: even the hardest heart can’t resist. Contact with people who are weak and who are crying out...is one of the most important nourishments in our lives.

When we let ourselves be really touched by the gift of their presence, they leave something precious in our hearts.

As long as we remain at the level of “doing” things for people, we tend to stay behind our barriers of superiority. We ought to welcome the gift of the poor with open hands. Jesus says, “What you do for the least of my brothers, you do for me.”-Jean Vanier

One of the Churches that the Cuirim House serves and works with!



In our day heaven and earth are on tiptoe waiting for the emerging of a Spirit-led, Spirit-empowered people. All of creation watches expectantly for the springing up of a disciplined, freely gathered, martyr people who know in this life the life and power of the kingdom of God. It has happened before. It can happen again…
-Richard Foster

This is what the tire wall looked like when we started

This is the finished Product of our two days of labor!

Why We Flee Silence



Unfortunately, in seeing ourselves as we truly are, not all that we see is beautiful and attractive. This is undoubtedly part of the reason we flee silence. We do not want to be confronted with our hypocrisy, our phoniness. We see how false and fragile is the false self we project. We have to go through this painful experience to come to our true self. It is a harrowing journey, a death to self—the false self—and no one wants to die. But it is the only path to life, to freedom, to peace, to true love. And it begins with silence. We cannot give ourselves in love if we do not know and possess ourselves. This is the great value of silence. It is the pathway to all we truly want.-M. Basil Pennington

Our Best Justifier




The tongue is our most powerful weapon of manipulation. A frantic stream of words flows from us because we are in a constant process of adjusting our public image. We fear so deeply what we think other people see in us that we talk in order to straighten out their understanding. If I have done some wrong thing (or even some right thing that I think you may misunderstand) and discover that you know about it, I will be tempted to help you understand my action. Silence is one of the deepest disciplines of the Spirit simply because it puts the stopper on all self-justification. One of the fruits of silence is the freedom to let God be our justifier. We don’t need to straighten others out.
-Richard J. Foster

Let Those
who Love
Him Be
like the
sun when
It comes
out in
full strength!
-Judges 5:31

Where God Is Found




It is necessary that we find God, and he cannot be found in noise and un-peace...See how Nature—trees, flowers, and grass—grow in stillness; how stars, moon, and sun run their course in silence. The more we receive through quiet prayer, the more we can give in the activity of our daily lives. In essence, it is not what we say, but what God says to us and through us. All our words are useless if they do not come from within. Words that do not carry the light of Christ only increase the darkness.
-Mother Teresa of Calcutta