From the Pastor - 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time

October 16, 2017

From the Pastor - 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time - 10/15/17

Today’s Gospel from the Book of Matthew again includes parables. We have been hearing the Lord share parables with us throughout our readings in recent weeks. Interestingly Matthew contains 23 parables (or teachings classified as parables), while Luke has 28. Mark has only nine, and John has none.

The first parable we hear today is called The Parable of the Wedding Feast. In this story shared by Jesus for our benefit a king is hosting a wedding feast for his son. He sends out invitations and people ignore them or choose not to respond. It may seem somewhat remarkable to us that people turn down an invitation to a royal wedding feast.

Yet, the Lord invites us to join Him on a regular basis through Holy Scripture and the Sacraments. Many ignore the invitation, and in most cases are, not even aware of the fact they have received it. Those who read this are aware of the invitation. The question is “How do we respond?”

What do we do after we attend a Holy Mass? What is our reaction to the reception of Christ’s incredible gift in the Eucharist? We may not make light of it like some of the people in the parable, but if we merely go our separate ways, and do not strive to be active disciples, we are basically doing the same thing as those Jesus describes in this parable. In one of his first appearances Pope Francis declared, “Go make disciples of all nations.” We cannot make disciples unless we are ourselves disciples.

Pastoral Pondering

By this point we have touched on a variety of comments gleaned from the parish survey. Continuing to address the feedback from the survey overall is the task of the Pastoral Council as they formulate our Parish Pastoral Plan. Part of that process is communicating with the parishioners regarding the survey results and how those results are being addressed overall. As topics or concerns are presented to me, I will certainly address them as best I can in the limited space available here. If you have items of concern or things that you believe should be addressed in some way, please make use of your Pastoral Council members.

There are two Councils that each parish is required to have in the Diocese of Charlotte, the Pastoral Council and the Finance Council. Both are advisory bodies that assist the pastor in carrying out his role as shepherd of the flock, each according to its own area of expertise. I am very proud to say that both of these bodies work very well at St. Mark.

I am indebted to all of the parishioners that offer themselves in service to the parish in this way. They serve faithfully and often quietly behind the scenes. Their wise counsel, however, is invaluable to me and a great benefit to the Parish. I want to publicly thank Dennis Kazmierczak who has served as the chairman of the Finance Council throughout my time here at St. Mark. Dennis has completed his term on the Finance Council and Mike Buttner has accepted the role of chair. Please join me in thanking Dennis for his generous service and Mike for his willingness to take on this new role. In the coming weeks, I hope to provide brief bios of various volunteer and staff so that the wider parish can get to know them better.

From the Pastor

From the Pastor - 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

By John Putnam • July 11, 2025
In today’s Gospel passage, from Luke, we read the well-known parable of the Good Samaritan. Here, Jesus teaches us in rich detail what stewardship in action looks like. In fact, this parable could just as accurately be called the parable of the Good Steward. The first thing we note about the Good Samaritan is that he is aware of the needs of those around him and responds generously. While the priest and Levi brush right past the man on the side of the road, the Samaritan is watching for those who might be in need. He has a hospitable way of looking at the world around him and so he is able to “see” in a way that the others did not, and he was “moved with compassion at the sight” of the man. Next, we see the Good Samaritan spring into action to serve this man, setting aside his own schedule and plans to meet his needs. He does not just give the man a few dollars or offer quick words of encouragement from across the road. He goes right up to the man. He cleans and bandages his wounds. He puts the man on his own animal and brings him to an inn where he can heal. He ensures the innkeeper would continue to look after him, and he commits to re-turning to the man on his way back. That is how we live out God’s commandments. That is true hospitality and service.  That is how a good steward springs into action when he comes upon a neighbor in need. And Jesus says to each of us personally, just as He did in today’s Gospel, “Go and do likewise.” ©Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering I want to welcome Father Christopher Angermeyer to St. Mark as Parochial Vicar. As many of you know, Father was ordained in June. After completing his undergraduate studies at Belmont Abbey and St. Joseph College Seminary. He completed his theological studies and priestly formation at Mount St. Mary’s in Cincinnati. His home parish was St. Thomas Aquinas in Charlotte. We are happy to have Father Angermeyer with us. I know you will do your part to make him feel welcomed here at St. Mark. I will be away for the next couple of weeks on pilgrimage with a group of seminarians and faithful. Please know that the parish will be in my prayers, and I take all of your intentions with me to the Shrine of Our Lady.

From the Pastor - 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time

By John Putnam • July 7, 2025
In today’s Gospel passage, from Luke, we find our Lord appointing disciples to go out and prepare others to receive His invitation into the Kingdom of God. Every verse has something to say about the way a Christian steward should approach others. Let’s consider at least one of the coaching tips Christ gives. “The Lord appointed seventy-two others whom He sent out ahead of Him in pairs to every town and place He intended to visit.” In His wisdom, Christ sent His disciples out not as individuals but in pairs, as teams. This approach to evangelization certainly provided practical advantages. The disciples could lean on each other for mutual support and encouragement, helping each other to stay on task and to put their heads together to pray and problem-solve. This teamwork approach is just as relevant to us modern-day Christian stewards. It takes courage and commitment to go out and invite others into the Christian life. We need to work together to do it well. But there is also symbolic importance to working in teams. It points to the reality that when we invite others to embrace the Good News of the Gospel, we are not merely inviting them into a belief system, but into a relationship with Christ and through that relationship, into Christ’s family — our fellow Christian disciples near and far. Our parish is our immediate spiritual family in this extended worldwide fold. We are not meant to live as isolated individuals within the parish any more than we are meant to live in isolation within our families. We are meant to be a community. That is why it is so important for us to foster a vibrant, supportive, welcoming parish life. This is why we emphasize hospitality as one of the pillars of stewardship. It is not enough just to point others to Christ; we must invite them to join us in community with Him; we must offer a place and mission for them in the Church and within our parish family. © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering As you know, during the last weekend of May (5/31-6/1), we had our final push for our Growing Home Campaign. I wanted to give everyone a final update as we conclude our fundraising period. During that weekend’s presentation, I asked everyone to help us close the $325,000 gap to meet our $9.7 M goal. As we close this portion of the campaign, I am happy to report that we have reached $10.5 million in pledges and gifts, exceeding our goal by $800,000! I am continuously amazed by the giving spirit that pervades our parish. Your generosity is a tangible expression of your commitment to our amazing parish. The funds raised over the goal and any funds raised going forward will help us to address the ever-increasing cost of construction and reduce the loan amount that will be required to complete the overall project. As noted earlier this year, the Rectory project has started and is projected to take about 12 months to complete. Our hope and plan is to break ground on the Monsignor Bellow Center and Adoration Chapel next summer or early Fall. Words alone never seem adequate to express the gratitude that I have in my heart for all of you who have participated in and supported this monumental effort. Both the financial support and the support with time and talent have been tremendous and for that, I want to offer a heartfelt “THANK YOU!”. May God bless each of you for your generosity in helping us grow our home here at St. Mark.
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