From the Pastor - 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time

June 19, 2023

The readings for the 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time provide us with profound insights into the essential aspects of living the stewardship way of life on our Christian journey. In the first reading from Exodus, we witness the encounter between God and His chosen people at Mount Sinai. The Lord, through Moses, reminds the Israelites of His faithfulness and the covenant He has established with them. This reminds us of our vocation as stewards and disciples. They invite us to embrace the call to stewardship by recognizing our responsibility to care for God's creation and to generously share our gifts with others.


In our second reading from Romans, St. Paul beautifully articulates the depths of God's love for humanity. He reminds us that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us, reconciling us with God and offering us the gift of salvation. As stewards, we are called to gratefully recognize God's abundant love and respond by using our gifts and resources to build His kingdom. In our stewardship and discipleship, we discover the joy of participating in God's redemptive work, bringing hope and healing to a broken world.


The Gospel reading from Matthew recounts how Jesus is moved with compassion as He sees the crowds who are like sheep without a shepherd. He commissions His disciples, empowering them to continue His mission of healing and preaching the Kingdom of God. Like the Good Shepherd, we are called to have hearts filled with empathy and concern for those who are lost, suffering, or in need. Stewardship challenges us to extend a helping hand, offer comfort, and meet the physical, emotional, and spiritual needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ.


By living a life of stewardship and discipleship, we are challenged to move beyond our comfort zones, embracing the call to serve and witness to the transformative power of Christ's love. This requires a willingness to step out in faith, be empowered by the Holy Spirit, and to be instruments of God's grace and healing. © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2023


Pastoral Pondering

St. Mark was honored to host the Diocesan Priestly Ordinations yesterday. Three of our men were ordained to the Priesthood, Father Christopher Brock, Father Chinonso Nnebe-Agumadu and Father Peter Rusciolelli. Please keep them in your prayers as they

begin their priestly ministry.


With ordinations, there will be some changes to priest personnel at St. Mark. Father Nnebe-Agumadu has been assigned as the newest parochial vicar here at St. Mark. Father Aaron Huber has been assigned as the full-time chaplain at Christ the King and will be in residence here at St. Mark. He will continue to assist us with the weekend Mass schedule. Father Yumo has been appointed

administrator of St. Benedict the Moor in Winston-Salem. Father Carlson continues to be parochial vicar at St. Mark as well as Defender of the Bond and Promoter of Justice for the Tribunal. These changes are effective July 11th. As these new assignments begin, please keep them in your prayers.


Finally, I want to offer a word of thanks to Celi Anatrella. Celi has been our coordinator of safe environment for the last couple of years. It’s a challenging job because every employee and volunteer is impacted and making sure background checks and Virtus training is up to date can be a chore. Nevertheless, Celi has persevered and worked diligently to ensure that St. Mark was compliant. Celi is leaving us to devote all of her time to mothering and farming. We wish her well dedicated service.

From the Pastor

From the Pastor - Palm Sunday

By John Putnam • April 11, 2025
Two very different responses to our Lord’s passion are highlighted during the Gospel reading from Luke today: the response of Simon of Cyrene and the response of Jesus’ acquaintances. Of Simon we are told, “They took hold of a certain Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country; and after laying the cross on him, they made him carry it behind Jesus.” Whether Simon entered willingly and compassionately into this service or whether he took up the Cross of Christ with a grudge, we don’t know. What we do know is this: Simon did his part faithfully. He stayed near to Christ, carrying the Cross until our Lord reached Golgotha, the site of His crucifixion. We also know that Simon’s family was among the first of the early Christians. Staying near to Christ, embracing the Cross (quite literally), transformed his life and the life of his family. In contrast, near the end of this Gospel account, we are told of another reaction to Jesus’ passion and death, namely that “all His acquaintances stood at a distance.” They knew Jesus! They had heard him preaching and teaching, witnessed His signs and miracles, maybe even benefitted personally from them. Perhaps they did not participate in mocking Him or calling for His crucifixion. But they chose to stay a safe distance from Him when the going got tough. Unlike Simon, they refused to go too near to Christ. Where will you place yourself this week? Keeping your distance from all the pain and suffering Christ endured? Or close by, staying near to Him as Simon did? It is when we go near to Christ that we can be transformed by Him. It is by embracing the crosses in our lives, stewarding them well rather than trying to run from them, that we become His true disciples. ©Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering As we begin Holy Week and approach the end of the Lenten season, we can hopefully look back and see a fruitful observance of this penitential season. I want to thank all of those who have responded this far and helped us to reach $9 million in pledges and donations for our Growing Home Campaign. We still have a bit of work to do, but your support has been tremendous. We would very much like to increase participation. Remember it is not about equal amounts but equal sacrifice. If you call St. Mark home; then, you are a part of this effort. We need you. This week we are happy to host the Chrism Mass for the Diocese of Charlotte. Bishop Martin will gather with his priests and will bless and consecrate the holy oils and the sacred Chrism that will be used in sacramental celebrations throughout the year. The celebration is open to all who would like to attend. The Sacred Triduum begins with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday. Following Mass, we will process with the Blessed Sacrament to the Kerin Center for quiet adoration. This is also the evening when it is traditional to visit seven churches for adoration. Resources will be provided for those who wish to participate. Good Friday we will have stations as well as the Service of the Passion. Thursday, Friday and Saturday we will be offering confessions. However, PLEASE try to go earlier in the week. We do our best to accommodate everyone, but there is limited time and only a few of us. Have mercy.  Holy Saturday we will welcome our catechumens into the Church. The vigil begins at 8:30 pm with the blessing of the Easter Fire. Easter Sunday, of course, tends to bring a lot of folks to Mass that perhaps we don’t normally see. Please be patient and kind. We do have two Masses at Christ the King High School that might be less stressful options for families. There will be overflow seating in the Kerin Center, but the parking lot only has so much space, sooooo…..Have a blessed week!

From the Pastor - Fifth Sunday of Lent

By John Putnam • April 4, 2025
Once again, this week, we are reminded of what a loving and merciful God we serve. The theme of the readings for this fifth Sunday of Lent are summed up beautifully in today’s Gospel passage from Luke, which recounts the story of the woman caught in adultery. After all those who would have stoned this woman leave the scene, Christ says to her, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin anymore.” When we turn to God for forgiveness, He is indeed gracious and merciful. So much so, that not only will He forgive our sins without condemnation, but He will also make us completely new creations in Christ. What is more amazing is that this all-perfect and holy God of ours draws so very near to us. Our sins do not drive Him from us, but rather to us so that He can set us free from them. Look carefully at Christ’s actions and posture in the Gospel reading as He deals with both the crowd of people, the Scribes and Pharisees, and the adulterous woman. “All the people started coming to Him and he sat down and taught them.” “He bent down and began to write with His finger.” He “straightened up” when He confronted the Scribes and Pharisees about their own sins. And he “straightened up” when He assured the woman that He did not condemn her for her past. Like a skilled teacher, or loving “big brother,” Christ bends down to where we are, He sits among us, He stands to confront us when needed and He stands to look us in the eye to remind us of our true dignity. We’re all unworthy of the great privilege of serving Him. But that, quite simply, is cause for greater joy in serving Him with all our hearts. ©Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering This Sunday begins the traditional Lenten period known as Passiontide which draws our attention to a more direct consideration of the Lord’s Passion and death. The images and statues in the church building are covered as a sign of mourning. In the Liturgy, there is a shift of focus from penance and preparation for Easter to a meditation on the suffering and death of Jesus. The readings during these final weeks of Lent increasingly focus on the events surrounding Jesus’ passion and crucifixion. Passiontide culminates in Holy Week beginning with Palm Sunday, which commemorates Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem, followed by His Passion and death on Good Friday. The core themes of Passiontide are the suffering and sacrifice of Christ, which is seen as the ultimate act of love and redemption for mankind. Catholics during this time are called to enter into Christ’s suffering in a spiritual sense through prayer, penance, and reflection.  In summary, Passiontide is a deeply contemplative period in the Church, marked by somber liturgies, a focus on the suffering and death of Christ, and practices such as veiling statues and images. It is a time for the faithful to prepare spiritually for the resurrection of Christ at Easter, emphasizing the central role that Christ’s Passion plays in Christian salvation. This is our Lenten home stretch, so play to win!
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