From the Pastor - 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

July 9, 2021

Our readings today remind us to live our lives in total surrender to God’s care. 


The Gospel recounts when Jesus instructs His twelve apostles to begin their missionary work two by two. He encouraged them to take very little — a walking stick and sandals. 

If you can recall a time you packed for a trip, or even left the house for a day’s travel, you might remember making a list or packing days in advance. We tend to pack so we know we will be comfortable. 


If we extend this concept of "comfort" into other areas of our lives, we will most likely find a few instances where we ensure life is comfortable. It could be buying extra food at the grocery store, making sure we have the most updated technology, or even feeling safe in our bank accounts. 


It is not bad to have extra food in the pantry or a new phone. And it isn’t bad to save money. These things can be good when used properly. 


But what if we are looking to these things for comfort, security or even happiness?


Imagine if Jesus approached you and said, “Go out and do my work, but you can only bring a walking stick and shoes.” Would you be willing to surrender all the rest? 

A key component of living out our call as Christian stewards is total surrender. It is trusting in God during our best moments and our hardest. It is looking to Him for security, comfort and happiness. 


Reflect on the ways you might be looking for comfort in the things of this world. Tangibly find a way to become independent from that "thing" so that you can become more dependent on God. (© Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2021)


Pastoral Pondering

This weekend we are happy to celebrate our welcome back events. The staff and volunteers have been working over the past several weeks to celebrate our ability to come together again as a parish family. We look forward to celebrating Septemberfest next month as well.


Stained Glass Windows – With the completion of our Rosary windows in the main nave of the Church, we are beginning the process of developing Stained Glass Windows for the transepts of the Church commemorating the saints. Thus far, a window dedicated to St. Kateri Tekakwitha is in process. Two other windows, one honoring St. Michael the Archangel and another honoring St. Faustina Kowalska are being sponsored by different groups in the parish. Should you or a group wish to sponsor a window, any saint can be commemorated who is not already represented in the church by statue or image. If interested please call the office or reach out to Rose Abell at rmabell51@gmail.com.


Left Transept and Masking – Please be mindful that at the Saturday evening Mass at 5:00 p.m. the left transept is reserved for those who, for whatever reason, continue to desire or need a higher level of protection. Masks are required in this section of the Church. Please be mindful of this and respectful of this. If you cannot or do not wish to mask, please sit in one of the other areas of the church. There is ample seating to accommodate, and the ushers will ask you to move seats in order to accommodate these requirements. Thank you for your cooperation.


I will resume the catechesis on the Precepts of the Church next week.

From the Pastor

From the Pastor - First Sunday of Advent

By John Putnam • December 2, 2025
Today we begin the beautiful season of Advent — a season of preparation. For what are we preparing? The celebration of the birth of our Savior, and the anticipation of His second coming. These are weighty tasks with eternal consequences. So, let us as Christian stewards make the words of the Prophet Isaiah our motto for the season: “Come, let us climb the Lord’s mountain to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may instruct us in his ways and we may walk in his paths.” In the weeks leading up to Christmas, it seems everywhere we turn we are pushed to spend more, do more, entertain more, and generally rush around at a frantic pace — all to create a “perfect” Christmas day. In contrast to this worldly pressure, the Church’s guidance to use these weeks as a time to focus on our spiritual lives can indeed seem like a mountain climb. But the intentional and wise use of the gift of time is exactly what the Christian steward is called to do, and with even greater intensity during Advent. How can we use our time to prepare for a holy celebration of Jesus’ birth on Dec. 25 and for his second coming at a date we do not know? We can push back against the world’s pressure to have the “perfect Christmas.” Scale back on the material kind of gift-giving, the complicated menus, the unessential trappings of the season so that we have more time for the spiritual preparations: Confession, weekday Mass, adoration, family prayer time, lighting the Advent wreath, acts of kindness. It may feel like a mountain climb, but in the end, we will be prepared to celebrate a truly meaningful Christmas, we will have become more like our Savior, and we will be ready for Him to come again. Let’s go climb the Lord’s mountain! © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 From the Pastor Advent brings a time of new beginning. A new liturgical year is upon us, but it is also a time to prepare our hearts for something – for the coming of the Lord. The first weeks of Advent focus on the Lord’s coming at the end of time, and the latter weeks of Advent focus on preparing to celebrate His coming at the Nativity. Both, however, are interconnected. The first coming of the Lord facilitates His coming into our hearts, which, in the end, facilitates His second coming to judge the living and the dead. The “in between” of these two comings is where time and eternity come together. We are called to live each day in expectation of His coming. We are called to hope for His coming and to expect it even when it seems long delayed. It is in this expectation that we must learn to live our lives. Daily life is messy and unpredictable. We must deal with disappointments, sickness and loss. Yet, we do so as people of hope who know that in these crosses, there lies ultimate joy because of the love of the Father who sent his Son to love us to the end. As we begin a new journey in a new liturgical year, let us do so with joyful expectation. Knowing that the end of the journey, if we are faithful, is paradise.

From the Pastor - Solemnity of Christ the King

By John Putnam • November 21, 2025
On this Feast of Christ the King, our readings show us that we serve the greatest of Kings, who is at the same time the humblest of Kings. Christ is the perfect model of servant leadership. And what an indescribable privilege that He has called us to be servant leaders — stewards in the work of advancing His Kingdom. In our second reading, from St. Paul’s letter to the Colossians, Paul describes the great power and dignity that characterize Christ the King. “All things were created through him and for him. He is before all things and in him all things hold together.” It makes you want to stand up and cheer. That’s our King! Yet, what a contrasting description of the same King we find in our Gospel passage, from Luke. Now we see our King nailed to the Cross. Everyone from rulers to soldiers, to the criminals on either side of Christ is mocking, sneering, and reviling him. They tauntingly urge him to prove His kingship by coming down from the Cross to end his suffering with a great show of power. “if you are the King of the Jews, save yourself.” But He does not. Amazingly, it is in this moment of seeming-weakness and humiliation, when all appears hopeless and lost, that the full breadth of his greatness as king is displayed. Though all things were created through and for Him — Christ chooses to live entirely for others, for us! What does this mean for us as his followers and stewards of His kingdom? It is precisely that our lives are not about us. They are about Christ and others. And we will advance his kingdom to the extent that we embrace this mindset: my life is not about me; it is about serving the King of kings. © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025