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From the Pastor - Palm Sunday

March 26, 2021

Today we celebrate Palm Sunday. As we read about the climax of Christ’s mission here on earth, we are reminded that He is the Perfect Steward, a model for us all on our stewardship journey.


Our First Reading, from the prophet Isaiah, portrays a suffering servant. The suffering servant, in many ways, foreshadows what Jesus endured during His passion. Even though He didn’t deserve such tortures, He humbly submitted to them. His mission as a steward was to fulfill His Father’s mission. We, too, play a unique role in our Father’s mission by bringing souls to Christ. It simply begins with the witness of our lives.


Today's Gospel shares the account of Jesus’ last days on earth, and how He lives them says a great deal about how we should be living ours as faithful stewards. Jesus does many things in these last days, and they all revolve around prayer and service — two trademark actions of a good and faithful Catholic. He hosts a Passover meal in which He gives us His Body and Blood in the Eucharist. He intensely prays to His Father. Lastly, He submits to humiliation, torture and death for our sake, calling out to God the Father in His weakest moments. We might not be called to the same type of prayer and service, but we are all called to commit time in daily prayer with our Lord, and to serve our families, churches and neighbors.


As we embark on this Holy week, let us take some time to reflect on the life of Christ as He is our model Steward, and may we strive to imitate Him daily. © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2021.


Pastoral Pondering

Holy Week each year invites us to walk with the Lord as He approaches the culmination of His earthly ministry. His Passion, Death, and Resurrection; preceded by the institution of the Eucharist and the Priesthood, are the most important events in our faith history, and in the history of the world.


How then can we benefit the most from these holy days? First, I would say, as much as possible, we should take ample time for God and spiritual exercises. This can be accomplished by making it to daily Mass and participating in the days of the Easter Triduum (Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday/Easter Sunday). Secondly, devotions such as the Stations of the Cross and Holy Rosary take on a special importance during this week. Finally, if not already accomplished, making time for a good and thorough confession is integral to the celebration of this season.



A little over a year ago now, we were observing “fifteen days to flatten the curve” which resulted in our inability to come together as a parish and celebrate these days fully. Thanks be to God, this year we can come together as a family of faith and allow the Holy Spirit to draw us deeply into these Easter mysteries.

As always, please know that all of us here at St. Mark are praying for you daily. One of the obligations of a pastor is to pray for his people, and the parish clergy and staff are committed to share this easy yoke of prayer and intercession. Please pray for our parish as well that these solemn days of Holy Week will bring us closer to the God we serve.

From the Pastor

From the Pastor - 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time

By John Putnam • February 10, 2025
Our readings today remind us of the great privilege we have in calling ourselves both children and disciples of the Most High God.  The First Reading from Isaiah describes a vision of the prophet in which angels surround the Lord proclaiming, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts! All the earth is filled with his glory!” Our God invites us to such deep intimacy and friendship with Him that sometimes we can forget just how majestic and unspeakably holy He truly is. In the Gospel passage, from Luke, Jesus instructs Simon to lower his nets for a catch despite an unsuccessful night of fishing. Peter is skeptical but obeys and is amazed at the catch of fish that he makes. He kneels down before Jesus in astonishment. This sense of awe and reverence before God should motivate us to deepen our stewardship way of life. As we contemplate the holiness of God, we come to a heightened awareness of what a privilege it is that He has chosen to include us in His work of spreading the Gospel to others through the grateful sharing of the gifts He has given us. Aware of this privilege, we will then make the words of Isaiah our own: “Here I am Lord, send me!” © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025

From the Pastor - Presentation of the Lord

By John Putnam • January 31, 2025
Today we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, when Mary and Joseph brought their infant Son to the Temple in obedience to the laws of their Jewish faith. This is a beautiful, and in many ways, mysterious feast — and one that is filled with lessons for a stewardship way of life. Our Gospel passage from Luke, recounting the details of the Presentation, teaches us a stewardship lesson through the example of St. Joseph and the Blessed Mother, the “Holy Parents.” Even knowing their Son was God, they still carefully observed the faith practices of their day bringing him to the temple “to present Him to the Lord just as it is written in the law of the Lord.” Later in the passage we read that, “When they had fulfilled all the prescriptions of the law of the Lord, they returned to their own town of Nazareth.” The Holy Parents were good stewards of their child, teaching Him to live in obedience to the practices of their faith from his infancy and throughout His “growing up” years. Those of us entrusted with the care of children, whether our own children, godchildren, nieces, and nephews, grandchildren, or students, have a vital role to play in the faith formation of these young ones. We, like the Holy Parents, must steward these children well, forming them in the faith by both instruction and example throughout their lives. What a privilege and high calling we have as Christian stewards. Let us take these stewardship lessons to heart and present our gifts and our young ones joyfully to the Lord. © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2024 Pastoral Pondering  I to offer a special thanks to all those who helped us celebrate Catholic Schools Week. Catholic education is central to the evangelizing mission of the Church as a means of assisting parents to fulfill their duty as the primary educators of their children. Today, this education takes place through our Catholic schools, our homeschools, and our private schools who maintain a Catholic ethos. None of the Church’s efforts in this arena, however, will be effective without the cooperation and support of parents. Instilling the faith and virtue in the lives of our children is essential to creating a truly Catholic culture in the parish that has the capacity to transform the local community. We are all called to be Missionary disciples who have hearts for evangelization. If we believe in Jesus, if we are worthy to claim His name, then we must learn to be instruments of His grace in the world. This is an especially important role of the lay faithful. The laity have the opportunity to reach parts of the world and the culture that priests and religious cannot. This is the evangelization that can take place in the workplace, in the grocery store, in the mothers’ groups, over even over morning coffee in the kitchen or coffee shop. The role of the parish clergy, religious and staff is to empower and form the laity to embrace this role. Over the last few years, St. Mark has partnered with Evangelical Catholic, Amazing Parish, and other apostolates to assist with these efforts. Our various evangelization programs contribute to this as well. I do hope that during the course of the year, you look for and take advantage of opportunities to take your rightful place as a missionary disciple.
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