From the Pastor – Pentecost

May 29, 2020

From the Pastor – Pentecost

Today we celebrate the Feast of Pentecost, which is significant to us as Catholics in multiple ways. It marks the completion of our Easter season, but it is also known to many as the birthday of the Church. We recall that it began with Jesus calling to His Apostles to “Follow me.” Now some three years later the Lord sends them out filled with the Holy Spirit to preach the “Good News.” Throughout His ministry Jesus prepared His followers for this moment, as it was clear He intended to give them the authority to build the Church and to do His work.

The Lord breathed on them granting them the Holy Spirit, just as God breathed life into the first humans during creation. Thus, this was a moment of re-creation. St. John Chrysostom pointed to Pentecost as the time when those who follow Jesus (which includes each of us), paralleled Moses when he came down from the mountain carrying tablets of stone in his hands, the Ten Commandments. St. John Chrysostom said, “The Apostles came down from the mountain carrying the Holy Spirit in their hearts. They were a living law, living tablets.” That should be true of us as well.

The First Reading today from the Acts of the Apostles reports the happenings on this day. It was on this day that the Holy Spirit was gifted to Jesus’ followers and on this day, we received the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which allow us to live, proclaim, and model a Christian way of life. We hear that “they were all together in one place” when this occurred.

That is what we do when we gather, and that is what we are doing at this moment. At Mass we share gifts, especially the gift of the Eucharist, but we also share a love for God, a trust in the Lord. We, too, are filled with the Spirit. However, before we can be filled, we must recognize and acknowledge our emptiness.

We gather together to worship, to pray, in obedience. By being here we accept the fact that we need the guidance and help and strength of the Lord to carry out our mission. We have to rely on God.

St. Paul, in the Second Reading from his First Letter to the Corinthians, speaks of the spiritual gifts we have received. He points out that each of us has received that gift but acknowledges that the gift we receive may vary in some ways. Nevertheless, all of our gifts combined make up the Body of the Church. Are you using your gifts? Have you prayed and considered what they might be and how you might use them to serve the Church and one another? Pentecost serves as a reminder to us that we must do that for the Church to be whole and for the Church, including our parish to be effective.

Every gift and every one of us is important in the eyes of God and important to the health of the Church. The Holy Spirit is always present in us but sometimes it may be more apparent both to us and to others. We must understand that the gifts we have received are intended to benefit all, not just us.

Pentecost falls 50 days after Easter. Our Gospel Reading from St. John records the first time Jesus appeared to His Apostles after the Resurrection, in other words on Easter Sunday. Just as today we are reminded of our call, so we are through this reading. Jesus says, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” We have been given a mission to continue the work of Christ here and now. Every time we gather for Mass and receive Christ through the Eucharist, we should have awareness and an understanding of that mission. When we leave here today, whenever we go out in the world, we are to share and spread the Good News.

The best way to do that has to do with how we live, what those around us see and experience through us. There is an idea that best explains what that means; that concept is stewardship. On Pentecost it became clear to the followers of Jesus that they were the stewards of His mission, the stewards of His Church. That sense of stewardship has been handed down for centuries and now rests on us. With the help of the Lord, permeated with the Holy Spirit, we need to go forth from here; indeed, we need to go forth each and every day, to accomplish that mission. That is what the Church is all about, and that is what life should be all about for us.

Pastoral Pondering

As we celebrate Pentecost, we are invited to ponder the wonderful ways in which the Lord calls us to spread the Gospel as we seek to follow Him. The apostles were fearful until the Spirit descended. Afterward, they went forth in boldness and courage to proclaim Jesus Christ without hesitation.

In many ways we have been living in fear and uncertainty during these past months. The COVID pandemic has consumed our attention, turned our lives upside down, and, at least for some, changed our lived irrevocably. Nonetheless, as followers of Jesus Christ, we are called to be courageous even in the face of uncertainty. We are called to persevere when everyone else seems to give up.

These past months have been difficult and challenging. Yet, we can be thankful that we are able to come together now for Holy Mass; albeit, while still practicing safety precautions. In truth we, as a parish, never really closed down as so many others did. Our charitable outreach and our efforts to stay connected were a top priority throughout this time.

As we move forward and gradually discover what the new normal might look like, I would ask that everyone continue to pray for all of those who have been negatively impacted either directly by the virus itself or due to the restrictions and closures that have left many in an economically precarious situation. As a people who have hope because of our faith in Jesus Christ, let’s work together to continue to be His hands and feet in our parish and community.

Before closing I wanted to let you know of some staff changes that you will see in this bulletin as well. First, Aubrey Quintero, who has been our leader for music at the 5:00 p.m. Sunday Mass has taken a full-time position at another parish. Aubrey has been a blessing to us and has done much to enhance our Lifeteen and Edge programs. She will be missed. Second, because of the numbers of students enrolled in our Middle School Edge program and in light of the importance of limiting gathering size, we are seeking a part-time person to assist in our Edge program which will be significantly expanded in the fall to provide smaller groups and greater choice for our families. If you or someone you know might be interested and have the requisite requirements for these positions, please let us know.

From the Pastor

From the Pastor - Feast of the Holy Family

By John Putnam • December 30, 2025
Today, as we continue our celebration of the Christmas season, we focus our attention in a special way on the Holy Family. This is a great time to thank God for the gift of family life. The Catechism of the Catholic Church refers to the family as the “domestic church,” so today’s feast is also a fitting time to consider the importance of the virtue of hospitality — a fundamental aspect of the stewardship way of life — within the context of our domestic churches. Why is hospitality so important to a stewardship way of life, beginning with family life? Well, we can hardly expect our family members to pray together, study their faith, and serve others if we have a home where we are disconnected from each other or the atmosphere is stressful and tense. Of course there will be moments like this. But we must be intentional in creating homes where everyone feels cherished, accepted and important. We want our homes to be the place where we can get recharged and filled up to go out and bring love to everyone we encounter outside our home. Today’s first and second readings are full of practical wisdom on how to create an atmosphere of true hospitality within our homes. Our first reading, from the Book of Sirach, speaks of the blessings that will come when children give honor to their parents — both young children who respect the authority of their mothers and fathers, and adult children who lovingly care for older parents. These are the actions and attitudes that create an atmosphere of respect, tenderness and unity in the family; all key elements of hospitality. Our second reading, from St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians, gives still more specific instructions on fostering hospitality within our homes. Paul reminds us of our great dignity as “God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved.” This applies to every member of the family, from youngest to oldest and all those in between. In the daily drudge of family life it is important to remember that each one of us is cherished by God. We are not just fathers, mothers, children, grandparents; we are all also brothers and sisters in Christ. Paul’s instruction to “put on” compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and forbearance towards each other is the best possible formula for family hospitality. Paul is reminding us that (especially in the messiness of family life) we won’t always feel the feelings of compassion, kindness, and so forth. What can we do? We can “put them on” — we can act in ways that a compassionate, kind, humble person would act. This will create a transformative atmosphere of hospitality within the home that will spill out in the family’s interactions with those outside the home. Of course, this is not easy to do. But we can turn to the Holy Family for help. Lest we think that the Holy Family is somehow unable to sympathize with our struggles, we see in our Gospel passage from Matthew that this Family was certainly not free from trials and stress; quite the contrary. The very life of the newborn Jesus was threatened by Herod’s extreme jealousy such that the family had to flee suddenly into a foreign land for protection until Herod’s death. Yet Mary and Joseph remained united and ever obedient to the leading of the Holy Spirit for direction. Who better to turn to for help and inspiration for our own families? Happy feast day to all families living a stewardship way of life! © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering As we come to the end of the calendar year, it is popular to make resolutions for the New Year. Often these resolutions are short-lived and don’t come to much. Hence, I thought I would offer a Catholic take on New Year’s resolutions to offer some helps as we move into 2026. A good Catholic approach to New Year’s resolutions roots them in conversion of heart , growth in holiness , and cooperation with God’s grace , rather than mere self-improvement or willpower. Here’s how faithful Catholics typically frame them well: 1. Begin with Prayer and Discernment - Don’t just pick popular goals (lose weight, read more, save money). Spend time in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament or during a holy hour asking: “Lord, what do You want to change in me this year? Where am I resisting Your grace?” - Consider making a short retreat (even one day) or going to Confession before January 1st to get a clear look at your soul. 2. Focus on the Theological Virtues and the Cardinal Virtues Instead of generic goals, resolve to grow in: -Faith→ Daily mental prayer (15–20 minutes), reading Scripture or the Catechism, attending an extra weekday Mass. -Hope→ Practicing gratitude, spiritual reading about heaven and the saints, trusting God in areas of anxiety. -Charity→ Concrete acts of mercy (visiting the lonely, tithing consistently, forgiving a specific person). -Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, Temperance→ Pick one capital sin you struggle with (e.g., gluttony, anger, sloth) and work on the opposing virtue. 3. Make Resolutions Small, Specific, and Sustainable. Catholics who succeed usually choose 1–3 concrete, measurable goals tied to grace: - Pray a decade of the Rosary every night before bed. - Go to Confession every month (or every two weeks). - Fast on bread and water every Friday (or give up snacks between meals). - Read 5–10 minutes of the lives of the saints daily. - Perform one hidden act of charity each day without telling anyone. 4. Attach Resolutions to the Liturgical Year Align goals with seasons instead of the secular calendar: - Advent → deeper prayer and detachment. - Lent → penance and almsgiving. - Easter → joy and evangelization. This keeps resolutions from being a one-time January push. 5. Use the Sacraments as the Engine, Not Willpower The best Catholic resolutions assume: - Frequent Confession (grace to overcome habitual sins). - Daily or at least Sunday Mass + (worthy Communion). - Regular spiritual direction or at least an accountability partner in the faith. 6. Embrace the “Do-Over” Mentality In Catholicism, every day (even every moment) is a new beginning. If you fail your resolution on January 3rd, you don’t wait until next year—you go to Confession and start again January 4th. This is the opposite of secular “all or nothing” thinking. 7. Classic Catholic Resolution Ideas (tried and loved for centuries) - Morning offering + 3 Hail Marys for purity every morning. - 15 minutes of mental prayer daily (Lectio Divina, Ignatian meditation, or simple “Jesus, I trust in You” repetition). - Monthly Confession and a personal rule of life. - Spiritual reading (10–15 min/day): Bible, Catechism, Introduction to the Devout Life, Story of a Soul, etc. - Friday penance (meat abstinence or another sacrifice) all year. - Daily examination of conscience at night (5 minutes). - One new devotion (First Saturdays, Sacred Heart enthronement, 54-day Rosary novena, etc.). 8. End with a Patron Saint for the Year A beautiful modern Catholic custom: On January 1st (or the feast of Mary, Mother of God), pray and randomly draw (or intentionally choose) a patron saint for the year. Ask his or her intercession for your resolutions. In short: A good Catholic New Year’s resolution isn’t about becoming a “better version of yourself.” It’s about becoming more like Christ, with the help of His grace and His Church, one small yes at a time.  “Be holy, for I am holy” (1 Pet 1:16) is the only resolution that ultimately matters—and everything else flows from it.

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!