From the Pastor - 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

September 8, 2023

Today’s readings are all about relationships. Among the many lessons we have learned from the global pandemic is the deep importance of the relationships and communities in our lives. Our families, neighbors, friends and parish family need us, and we need them to be our best selves.


St. Paul gives us simple instruction in our second reading from Romans to guide us in our dealings with others, reminding us what Christ Himself taught: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love is the overarching principal that guides us to be good stewards of our relationships.


In our Gospel passage from Matthew, Jesus further refines this instruction on good stewardship of our relationships, even when they involve conflict. He says, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have won over your brother.”


Jesus teaches us to confront the offending person directly and discretely — with the goal of restoring the relationship if possible. This is how we steward our relationships even through rocky waters. Jesus also speaks to us of the power and beauty of community life. “If two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted by my heavenly Father. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”


Christian stewards, God has designed us in such a way that we must help each other on the journey towards heaven. Let us take care to steward our relationships well. © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2023

 

Pastoral Pondering

Last week I wrote about divorce and remarriage and mentioned briefly the role of the Diocesan Tribunal. I have worked in the Tribunal since 1994 and have been the Judicial Vicar of the Diocese since 2003. Even though the Tribunal is competent to process all the various types of cases under canon law, most people associate it most of all with marriage; specifically, petitions for decrees of marriage invalidity or nullity.


As noted last week, the Church’s understanding of marriage involves understanding the properties and ends of marriage. The following canons from the Code of Canon Law provide the Church’s understanding of marriage. These laws are rooted in the natural law.


CAN. 1055 §1. † The matrimonial covenant, by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life, and which is ordered by its nature to the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring, has been raised by Christ the Lord to the dignity of a sacrament between the baptized.


§2. † For this reason, a valid matrimonial contract cannot exist between the baptized without it being by that fact a sacrament.

CAN. 1056† The essential properties of marriage are unity and indissolubility, which in Christian marriage obtain a special firmness by reason of the sacrament.


If a party impugns the validity of his or her marriage, it will generally be due to a defect in the understanding of one or more of these ends (c. 1055) and properties (c. 1056). Another common area of examination is the capacity of the parties to understand the commitment involved with marriage and whether he or she was free to do so at the time of the exchange of vows. In addition to these, an additional requirement when at least one Catholic is a party to a marriage, is that the marriage be celebrated according to the prescribed canonical form as indicated in the approved liturgical books.


The Tribunal of the Diocese of Charlotte generally processes about 300 cases per year. This includes both formal (requiring the full judicial process) and informal (established by documentary evidence) cases. Each parish is assigned an advocate to work with Petitioners in both understanding and engaging the process. Rod Brostrum is the advocate for St. Mark. Both Deacon Louie and Deacon Rich are often the points of initial contact for someone needing the services of the Tribunal. Since Father Carlson and I are officers of the Court, we generally do not get involved with the initial stages of cases. This helps avoid conflicts of interest as the process progresses.


The aim of the Judicial process is to ascertain the truth of the matter. Specifically, the question to be resolved is whether the marriage in question was, from the moment of consent, valid. This question is answered by the collection of evidence, including the testimony of the parties, witnesses and any documentary evidence that might be helpful. Again, the objective of the process is to find the truth. It is not to achieve a declaration of invalidity, although this is often the objective of those seeking the services of the Tribunal.


Marriage enjoys the favor of the law and, therefore, is presumed to be valid until the contrary is proven. At the end of the case, the judges of the Tribunal must decide the matter and answer the original question; that is, the marriage in question has been shown to be invalid from the moment of consent (constat) or to be valid from the moment of consent (non constat).



The issuance of a decree of invalidity frees a party to contract marriage anew. It has no impact on other matters such as legitimacy of children or other matters that are often addressed by the civil courts. The focus of the Tribunal is solely on the status of the parties to the marriage in the life of the Church.


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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