From the Pastor - Third Sunday of Easter

April 16, 2021

In addition to celebrating all Christ did for us this Easter season, we also are reminded of how His sacrifice impacts our lives.


Today’s Gospel reminds us that Jesus should be the center of our lives. This passage begins with two disciples realizing Jesus had just appeared to them.


We can learn a valuable lesson from these disciples. To recognize Jesus’ appearances in our lives, we need to know Him. And the best way to know the Lord is to spend time with Him. It can start with just 10 minutes of quiet prayer a day and increasing that each week. We might begin by reading Scripture, books on the lives of the Saints, or even a decade of the Rosary. Yet the goal should be to carve out time each day, in a quiet space, for just you and the Lord.


As the disciples mentioned, they recognized it was Jesus in the breaking of the bread. We, too, can better know the Lord through the sacraments, most especially the Holy Mass. The Eucharist is Jesus Himself — Body, Blood Soul, and Divinity. What better way to grow in intimacy with Christ than to receive Him frequently or to go talk to Him in front of the Blessed Sacrament? As we make Jesus the center of our lives through prayer and the sacraments, we will be able to recognize Him in day-to-day moments.

As we are still in the midst of this Easter season, take time to think about what Christ did for us and the changes we should make in our daily lives to help us grow closer to Him. © Catholic Stewardship Conference, 2021


Pastoral Pondering

I want to thank everyone that played a role in helping out Easter Masses and services go so smoothly. St. Mark takes a lot of human resources to get things done, and the entire Triduum throughout the weekend was beautiful. Thank you!


I also wanted to update you on some projects that have been in the works over the last couple of years.


Stained Glass Windows – Our final window in the main nave of the church was installed before Easter. With that installation, our original window project was completed. There are still a few details such as memorialization that that need to be completed, but the bulk of the work is done. When we originally began this project, the hope was to be able to add some additional windows to the transepts commemorating saints who were not otherwise represented in those areas. During the course of the year, a request for a window in memoriam was made, and that window, of St. Kateri Tekakwitha, is in the process of being designed and fabricated. More information about this project will be included in upcoming bulletins.


Stenciling – When you study the history of Catholic architecture, one of the points that come up repeatedly is that church buildings are supposed to be tangible witnesses to the faith professed. Hence, in the ancient churches in Europe, you can observe various elements that teach different aspects of the faith. And while every parish church cannot and probably should not be St. Peter’s Basilica, a church building should form and educate those who walk through its doors. With that in mind, we are working with Lisa Autry who has assisted us in the past to do some stenciling in the church. This involves adding a significant verse of Scripture to highlight the Church’s mission of evangelization. As plans materialize, I will keep you updated.


Rectory Project – When the Forward in Faith, Hope and Love campaign was launched several years ago, each parish was encouraged to develop a project that would benefit from funds returned to the parish from this campaign. At that time, it was suggested that the rectory needed some more space to accommodate parish clergy and seminarians who might be assigned to the parish more comfortably. Over the intervening years, the Pastoral and Finance councils have discussed various options and considered possibilities for moving forward. At first it was suggested to raze the present rectory and build new. However, this proved to be less cost-effective, and the plan is to expand the present rectory to accommodate a greater number of residents. The Diocese hopes to have a full-time chaplain assigned to CTK in the not-too-distant future, and a logical home for such a priest would be St. Mark. Additionally, we have regularly had seminarians assigned to the parish and often find ourselves out of space. With eight seminarians presently from St. Mark, we are hopeful that the future for the parish having another priest is a real possibility. With the approval of the Diocese, architectural plans have been developed and we are presently seeking bids from contractors on the project. Once those are received, we can then work with the Diocese and our own leadership councils to determine the best way to move forward.


I have been averse to beginning a capital campaign, and such an effort may not be necessary. However, I wanted to make you aware of the project and share that should someone want to support this project or any of those discussed above, there will be links on the parish website do so. As the project progresses, I will keep you posted.

From the Pastor

From the Pastor - Pentecost

By John Putnam • June 6, 2025
Today we reach the finale of the Easter season with the celebration of the great Feast of Pentecost. Reflecting on today’s readings, inspires a sense of awe as we consider the mighty power of the Holy Spirit at work giving birth to and sustaining our Church. Just as awesome — the same Spirit is calling to us this day to take up our part in the Church’s saving work. In the first reading, from Acts, we see the creative genius of the Holy Spirit moving through the newly confirmed Apostles “who began to speak in different tongues as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.” The large crowd, gathered from all over the world were “amazed” and “astounded” that each one could understand the Apostles speaking in their own language. Each one of us, young and old alike, is personally called today by the Holy Spirit into the same mission as that of the first Apostles — to advance the Kingdom of God in our corner of the world. Just as He did on that Pentecost day, the Holy Spirit speaks to us in our “own language” to give us the Good News of the Gospel and urge us to share it. We can think of our own language as the particular gifts, talents, and passions we possess. We experience the presence of the Holy Spirit through them and we are meant to put them to work in grateful service of the Kingdom of God. When we consider the stewardship way of life we are called to live, we often focus on the challenges it poses. Surrendering ourselves to God is indeed a challenging way to live. But it leads to a life that is exciting, creative, and deeply rewarding. Stewardship allows us to experience life as a great adventure because it is a life guided and directed by the very source of power and creativity— the Holy Spirit! © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering At the dawn of creation, the Spirit hovered over the waters (Genesis 1:2). In that very moment, God breathed life into the world. That same breath, that same Spirit, was breathed into the apostles when Jesus said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.” (John 20:22) The Holy Spirit is not an abstract force. He is the breath of God , the Giver of Life, who animates the Church and renews our hearts. Without the Spirit, we are like dry bones in a desert. With Him, we are brought to life and made new. In the Acts of the Apostles, the Spirit descends upon the disciples like tongues of fire, and they begin to speak in different languages. But notice this: though they spoke in many tongues, they all understood one another . The Spirit doesn’t cause confusion—He brings unity. In a world divided by language, culture, politics, and pride, the Holy Spirit builds communion. He makes us one body in Christ. He does not erase our differences, but He harmonizes them. As St. Paul says, “There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.” We are each unique, with our own gifts and personalities. But the Holy Spirit brings those together for the common good of the Church. Unity in diversity—that is the hallmark of the Spirit. The apostles were afraid and hiding before the Spirit came. But when the Spirit descended, they were transformed. Cowards became courageous. Fishermen became preachers. Ordinary men became saints. That is what the Holy Spirit does. We too are sent—into our families, our workplaces, our communities. We are sent to proclaim the Gospel not always with words, but with our lives. We are called to be witnesses of mercy, joy, and truth in a world desperately thirsting for God. And the good news is: we are not alone . The Spirit is our Advocate, our Helper, our Strength. He prays in us when we do not know how to pray. He inspires, guides, convicts, and consoles. Let us open our hearts more fully to the Holy Spirit. Invite Him into your life daily. Ask Him to stir up in you the gifts of wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. Let us not treat the Holy Spirit as a distant mystery, but as a close companion. Let us walk by the Spirit, live by the Spirit, and be on fire with the Spirit.  Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, and enkindle in them the fire of your love. Amen.

From the Pastor - Seventh Sunday of Easter

By John Putnam • May 30, 2025
On this Feast of the Ascension, we celebrate Christ’s triumphant return to the Father after perfectly accomplishing His mission on earth. But we also can also view this Feast as a celebration of the “launch day” of our commissioning as Christ’s disciples. Today’s Gospel draws our attention to the clear instructions that Jesus gave His disciples (and to us) just before ascending to the Father: “Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things." Embracing a stewardship way of life, with its emphasis on the use of time, talent and treasure, helps us to live in such a way that our very lives speak as a witness of the Good News of the Gospel. While we take time to reflect and renew our commitments in these three areas annually as a parish family, it is of great benefit to take some time individually throughout the year to take stock of the commitments we have made — looking at both our strengths and our need for continued growth in each area. On this Feast of our "launch day," take some time to celebrate your victories as Christ’s disciples and renew your commitment to remain faithful to Him and the unique mission He has entrusted to you! © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2025 Pastoral Pondering In Matthew 28:20 Jesus reminds the apostles, “I am with you always, to the end of the age.” I have always taken great strength and consolation from these words. They are foreshadowed in the Old Testament in Isaiah 41:20: “Fear not for I am with you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous hand.” These are words from a God who loves us and who desires our good. A God who desires to make His dwelling with us and to inspire us to live lives worthy of Himself. They are words that help us prepare ourselves to celebrate Pentecost and to be open to the work of the Holy Spirit in us and among us.  Next Saturday evening, we will celebrate the Rite of Confirmation and Reception into Full Communion with our candidates who have been participating in the OCIA process. Please keep them in your prayers and help them find their place within our parish community. In the morning next Saturday, we are privileged to host the diaconate ordination for seven of our diocesan seminarians. As noted previously, one of them, Michael Lugo, will be with us for the summer. This parish is phenomenal in helping these young men find their “ministerial feet” so to speak. And we always welcome the opportunity to be blessed with their enthusiasm and energy. Finally, the Diocese has approved our moving into the construction phase for the rectory project. The prep work has already been done, and the actual building phase should begin in the next few weeks. This weekend, we are making a final push to reach our campaign goal. If you have not done so, we need your help and participation. The goal is doable and, together we can accomplish much. Assuming our fundraising keeps apace our hope is to begin the main-campus project next summer. Between now and then we will be doing some evaluations and, where necessary, value engineering to help us stay on track with the plan.
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