From the Pastor – Second Sunday of Advent

December 11, 2017

From the Pastor – Second Sunday of Advent

Our readings from Holy Scripture on this Second Sunday of Advent remind us of what we are supposed to be doing during Advent, in fact throughout our lives. The reading from Isaiah anticipates the coming of Christ and John the Baptist as it proclaims “… prepare the way of the Lord.” This is a time of preparation for us.

That message is repeated in our Gospel from St. Mark. Today’s Gospel is the absolute beginning of Mark’s Gospel and it immediately gives us that same signal by declaring, “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths.” Of course, we all realize that the path to the Lord may not always be straight for us, but now is a time to correct that.

God is waiting for us. St. Peter in his Second Letter, from which our Second Reading is drawn, indicates that God, however, “is patient with you.” You might say on this Second Sunday of Advent that the Lord is giving us a second chance to respond to His call. One of the basics of St. John the Baptist’s messages was that we need to get ourselves right with the Lord, perhaps turn our lives in a different direction. We can change; now is the time to do that.

Pope St. John XXIII once stated during a homily in Advent, “We are all part of an immense family. This is proven by what is in our hearts during Advent and Christmas.” Now is the time to put love in our hearts and to truly prepare the way of the Lord.

Pastoral Pondering

I want to thank all who responded positively to last week’s message about Sharing Our Gifts. Preaching all of the Masses is somewhat of a monumental task, but it is helpful from time-to-time to offer the same message to everyone. It is part and parcel of our desire to continue moving forward as a parish of intentional disciples.

As many of you know one of our parishioners, Eric Theriot, died earlier this year following a tragic automobile accident. His mom and dad wanted to do something in his memory and asked if they could place some additional kneelers around the sanctuary. Those arrived last weekend as well. They offer a nice option for those who wish to receive the Eucharist in this ancient and reverent posture.

Over the last few months a whole host of volunteers have been assisting Deacon Robert with his exercises and therapy as he copes with the aftermath of the hit and run earlier this year. The majority of those volunteers are now transitioning to become Friendly Visitors for the Deacon. Charlie Magro is coordinating the effort. If you would be interested in visiting Deacon Murphy as a part of this effort, please contact Charlie at 704-794-8532 or Magro4001@gmail.com. I do want to thank everyone who has responded so generously to this particular need. 

From the Pastor

From the Pastor - 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time

By John Putnam • October 3, 2025
Our readings today show us that living a stewardship way of life, that is, a life focused on serving God and His Kingdom, is not easy. They also show us that our lives belong to God, not to us, and that God will indeed bring about the fulfillment of His kingdom., We just need to have faith that He can do it and commit to our small part in His grand design. This is both our privilege and responsibility as Christian stewards. Jesus makes this privilege and responsibility clear in today’s Gospel passage from Luke. When the apostles as the Lord to increase their faith, He tells them that even a mustard-seed sized faith is all that is needed to move mountains (because it is God who does the heavy lifting). We need to only take the tiniest step forward, and He will do the rest. But living our lives in His service is also very much our responsibility, as Jesus explains through the parable of the unprofitable servant later in the passage. Our Lord describes a scene in which a servant has just come from tending to the master’s affairs and asks whether it would be reasonable for the master to begin waiting on the servant. Of course, it would not be reasonable! The servant would be expected to continue to serve his master until he has completed the work the master has given him that day. Jesus says that we should have the same attitude before God. The time, talents, and treasure entrusted to us are all God’s. Our very lives belong to Him. Whatever we do on God’s behalf with our lives and our gifts is simply our God-given responsibility. The stewardship way of life makes the privilege and responsibility of serving Christ and His kingdom a reality. ©Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering  As we move into autumnal colors, with shorter days and cooling weather, the late weeks of the liturgical year always provide us with an opportunity to reflect on faith and life. It is also that time of the calendar year when we start thinking about those who are less fortunate among us. In the coming weeks, we have a number of efforts to assist the least of our brethren with life’s basic needs including the coat drive, thanksgiving food drive and the Christmas giving effort (formerly known as the Angel Tree ©). There are no shortage of demands placed on all of us these days, but the spiritual and corporal works of mercy remain the bedrock of our Catholic lives. Thank you in advance for responding with a generous heart.

From the Pastor - 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

By John Putnam • September 26, 2025
We have all been given great power by God in the form of Time, Talents, and Treasure. Today’s readings remind us that this power is meant to be used for great good. And that failure to do so has eternal consequences. We see the urgency for us to put our powers to good use in today’s Gospel passage from Luke. Our Lord tells the rather chilling parable of the rich man who ignored poor Lazarus during their lifetimes. At the moment of the rich man’s death, he goes down to the netherworld, while Lazarus is taken to the eternal joy and comfort in the bosom of Abraham. The rich man keenly regrets his indifference towards the needs of Lazarus, but it is too late for regret. His choices have played out, and now the rich man will face the consequences of his failure to use the gifts God gave him. Pursuit of God’s kingdom and care for the poor are not trifling matters. Our Lord makes this clear to us over and over in the Scriptures and the constant teachings of our 2,000-year-old Church. We are free to ignore these teachings and live instead for ourselves. But there will be tragic results for us in the end. And, because we are made for eternity, living selfishly on this earth doesn’t really bring us true happiness anyway. So how can we use our great powers for great good? By embracing stewardship way of life. By putting God first in all areas of our lives — in the way we spend our time, the ways we share our talents, the ways we give of our financial resources. Stewardship living calls us out of our comfort zone and into commitment to the Lord and the things that matter to Him. ©Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering Even though this year is not a presidential or mid-term election, local elections are quite important, and we often don’t take them as seriously as we should. This year we have two parishioners running for office, Dan Boone is running for town council, and Bill Fountain is running for school board. To some these positions may seem insignificant, but it is at the local level that we, as Catholics, can have the greatest impact. I thought it might be helpful then to give a reminder of the duties of Catholics in political life. The Church teaches that lay Catholics bear primary responsibility for temporal affairs, including politics, as an extension of baptismal vocation (CCC 1913). Key duties include:  Forming Conscience : Study Church teachings to discern moral priorities; avoid reducing faith to single issues but prioritize intrinsic evils like abortion. Active Involvemen t: Vote informatively, run for office, join parties or advocacy groups, and dialogue with officials to apply Gospel values. Pope Francis stated, "A good Catholic meddles in politics," offering the best of oneself to help leaders govern justly. Non-Partisan Advocacy : The Church engages issues (e.g., life, family, peace) but avoids partisanship to focus on principles. Parishes can host voter education but not endorse candidates. For Public Officials : Catholic politicians must align actions with Church moral teachings; supporting grave evils like abortion risks scandal and cooperation in evil. Separation of church and state protects, rather than hinders, faith-based action in public life. Challenges and Encouragement In polarized environments, Catholics may feel disenfranchised, but the Church calls for renewed engagement to transform society incrementally toward justice. Resources like the USCCB's Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship (updated periodically) guide voters on applying Catholic Social Teaching. Ultimately, political action flows from love of neighbor, proving faith through works (James 2:14–17).