From the Pastor – Nativity of St. John the Baptist

June 25, 2018

From the Pastor – Nativity of St. John the Baptist

Today is the Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist (the Feast Day of the birth of John the Baptist). To say John the Baptist and Jesus were closely related and connected is an understatement. 

Both were foretold by prophets, especially Isaiah. The only record of the birth of John the Baptist appears in the Gospel of Luke and it is at the heart of our Gospel Reading today. A key player in this event is, of course, John the Baptist’s father Zechariah. Zechariah was a Jewish priest, but when the Archangel Gabriel revealed to him that he would father a child, Zechariah refused to believe it. As a result, he was rendered speechless until John was born.

Zechariah had total trust in the Lord, however. Although it was traditional at that time to name the first son after the father, he and Elizabeth had been told that they were to name him John. As reported in the Gospel, Elizabeth said “He will be called John.” The family protested at which time Zechariah wrote “His name is John.” When he did that, Zechariah could speak once more. He did not say “should be”; he said “is.”

The trust shown by Zechariah is an example to us that we must trust in God, not just when it is convenient, but all the time. Those of advanced generations know who Lawrence Welk was. Born and raised Catholic, Welk practiced his faith throughout his life. He once said, “Never trust anyone completely but God. Love people, but put your full trust only in God.”

Pastoral Pondering

With next weekend already bringing us into July, please remember that we will begin our new Sunday Mass schedule next Sunday. The morning schedule will be Mass at 7AM, 830AM & 1115AM. The remainder of the schedule does not change. Also, a reminder that we are once again sponsoring Rise Against Hunger. The event will take place on June 14 th . It is a wonderful (and easy) way to put faith into practice by helping to put meals together for the hungry. You must register online to participate, so please take the opportunity to register today via our parish website.

Today I want to continue our consideration of Sacred Music. Much of this material is taken from Rejoice in the Lord Always, a pastoral letter written by Archbishop Alexander Sample when was the Bishop of Marquette. Last week I presented Sacred Music as the “highest form of artistic endeavor.” This week I would like to touch on the qualities of Sacred Music, which are neither subjective nor arbitrary.

The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy states that the “musical tradition of the Church is a treasure of inestimable value, greater even than that of any other art. The main reason for this pre-eminence is that, as sacred song united to the words, it forma a necessary or integral part of the solemn Liturgy (SC, 12). Hence, the musical selections for Mass are far more than just something we “tack on” to worship. Sacred Music is a necessary part of the Mass and is to help us sing and pray the texts of the Mass itself, not just ornament it.

The Church then teaches us that the purpose of Sacred Music, the reason that it exists, is to offer glory to God and to sanctify the Christian faithful. Because of this, the Church emphasizes that music proper to the Sacred liturgy possesses three qualities: sanctity, beauty and universality. In commenting on this, Pope St. Pius X states that “Sacred music should consequently possess, in the highest degree, the qualities proper to the liturgy, and in particular sanctity and goodness of form, which will spontaneously produce the final quality of universality” (Pius X: Tra le sollecitudini, I:2).

The sanctity of Sacred Music indicates that it is to be holy. The Second Vatican Council teaches that “Sacred music is to be considered the more holy in proportion as it is more closely connected with the liturgical action, whether it adds delight to prayer, fosters unity of minds, or confers greater solemnity upon the Sacred rites” (SC, 112).

The intrinsic beauty of Sacred music reminds us that everything associated with the Mass is to be beautiful because everything connected to the Mass is to reflect the infinite beauty and goodness of the God we worship. In September of 2008 Pope Benedict XVI noted that “the beauty of our celebrations can never be sufficiently cultivated, fostered and refined, for nothing can be too beautiful for God, Who is Himself infinite Beauty. Yet our earthly liturgies will never be more than a pale reflection of the liturgy celebrated in the Jerusalem on high, the goal of our pilgrimage on earth. May our own celebrations nonetheless resemble that liturgy as closely as possible and grant us s foretaste of it!” (Address to priests at the Cathedral of Notre Dame, Paris, September 13, 2008).

The universality of Sacred music means that any composition of sacred music, even one which reflects the unique culture of a particular region, would still be easily recognized as having a sacred character. The quality of holiness, in other words, is a universal principle that transcends culture” (Sample, p. 5).

Understanding these essential qualities of Sacred Music is important because there is often confusion about what is and is not appropriate or proper to the Mass and worthy of its inclusion in Divine worship.

From the Pastor

From the Pastor - Fourth Sunday of Advent

By John Putnam • December 19, 2025
As our Advent preparations draw to a close and Christmas fast approaches, it is fitting that today’s readings demonstrate the intensity of the Father’s perfect and passionate love for each of us, culminating in the gift of His own Son, Jesus Christ, on Christmas Day. As we reflect on the enormity of this gift, let us ask ourselves what we can offer in return. In our first reading, from Isaiah, the Lord invites King Ahaz to “ask for a sign from the Lord, your God.” And not just any sign. The Lord says, “let it be deep as the nether-world, or high as the sky!” Ahaz, though, cannot arouse himself from his bleak and limited outlook, and actually refuses this invitation. Undeterred by his negativity, the Lord says through the prophet Isaiah, that he himself will provide the sign: “the virgin shall conceive and bear a son” and his name will be Emmanuel which means, “God with us.” What great love and patience our heavenly Father has shown his people throughout all ages! In the second reading, from Paul’s letter to the Romans, St. Paul sends a blessing of “Grace…and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. This — grace and peace — is precisely the gift we celebrate on Christmas Day. Through his incarnation, Jesus brings the intimate love of God right into our midst; and through His death and resurrection, He saves us from our sins and restores us to right relationship with the Father. This is the peace that the world cannot offer. In response to such an overwhelming gift, what can we do except offer our lives as a gift in return, embracing a stewardship way of life with all the love and strength we have to give? In our Gospel passage from Matthew, we find an unparalleled example of one who embraced this way of life in St. Joseph, as he responds to God’s call to him through the message of an angel. St. Joseph immediately and humbly obeys the instruction from the angel: “Do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the Holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Open to this extraordinary role, he did as the angel commanded and “takes Mary into his home.” We never hear St. Joseph speak, but the Scriptures tell us he was always listening, attentive to the leading of the Holy Spirit for his family. It was Joseph who found the stable where the baby Jesus would be born. No doubt it was Joseph who cleaned it up and prepared it for Mary and Jesus since we know that Mary was about to give birth. Joseph protected the family, guarded them, and tended to their safety, their comfort, and their well-being at the expense of his own plans and preferences. Though we do not hear any words from St. Joseph his actions clearly show that he offered himself, his whole life, as a gift to his family through his strong guidance, protection, and service. Let us imitate St. Joseph, then, as good stewards, giving our very lives to those around us in love and gratitude to God who has given us everything we have, especially His own Son, Jesus Christ. We will no doubt find that the more we give ourselves away, the more our generous Father will fill us with His grace and peace — these are truly the best Christmas gifts we could receive. © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering Christmas is upon us and as we enter into these last days before the celebration of the Lord’s birth, I wanted to take this opportunity to express my heartfelt gratitude for the myriad ways each one of you makes St. Mark a wonderful place to pray, to worship and find a parish home. As I speak to people who visit us from other parts of the country or parishioners who, due to trips away, visit other parishes, it is nice to hear that St. Mark has something special about it. That “something special” has a great deal to do with the people who call St. Mark home. Christmas is a time to share the love of Christ, and over the past several weeks, you have done just that in our various charitable efforts, most recently our Christmas Giving Tree. Lives have been impacted for the better because of your generous response, and I know that God will bless you because He is never outdone in generosity.  Finally, please know that Fathers Angermeyer, Martinez, Huber and I wish each and everyone of you a very merry and blessing-filled Christmas!

From the Pastor - Third Sunday of Advent

By John Putnam • December 12, 2025
Good news, Christian stewards — we are gaining ground on our Advent mountain climb and it is time to take a moment to rejoice in the Good News that our Savior will come again in triumph one day. Today’s readings on this Gaudete (“Rejoice”) Sunday are filled with reminders of God’s final victory over suffering and injustice, and encouragement to remain steadfast in our mission to live as faith-filled disciples. Such a day almost seems too good to be true, especially when we look around at the dire circumstances we face in our world at present. But by faith, we know this day is coming. Lest we grow weary as we await the glorious day of Christ’s return, St. James, in our second reading, offers wise counsel. “Be patient, brothers and sisters, until the coming of the Lord.” “Make your hearts firm… Do not complain, brothers and sisters, about one another, that you may not be judged.” This is excellent advice for us Christian stewards as we face the challenges of everyday life in our broken world, especially in the hectic days that precede Christmas when stress can make us and those around us less than our best selves. St. James reminds us that we can choose our response to both the great strains and the minor annoyances of life. In other words, we can be good stewards of our attitude, “making our hearts firm” by practicing patience with others and refusing to give in to the temptation to complain. We can choose to see and rejoice in God’s presence with us, no matter the circumstances surrounding us. © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering Prior to the Hamas attack in Israel of October 7, 2023, I was planning to lead a pilgrimage to the Holy Land with our seminarians. The events of that day put that pilgrimage on hold even though we had already raised funds for the pilgrimage. Now that relative peace has been restored, we will be embarking on the pilgrimage on December 26 th . I wanted to thank all of you who supported the effort and wanted to let you know that we are finally preparing to go. Pilgrimages to the Holy Land are very special opportunities for everyone, but such a pilgrimage is especially significant for a man preparing for priesthood because it provides a completely different perspective on the Scriptures and is able to inform his preaching and teaching. Christopher Cross is organizing this for us, and I would recommend one of his trips to anyone who would like to go. Chris brings a unique blend of humor and deep faith that makes the experience come alive in a wonderful way. I have been on a number of pilgrimages, and those with Chris have been the most impactful by far.  Please keep all of us in your prayers as we prepare for the pilgrimage and certainly know that you all will be in ours as we spend the Christmas Octave in the Holy Land.