From the Pastor - 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time

July 10, 2026

Today’s readings call us to tackle the challenging issues of fear and trust — two concepts that must be confronted and dealt with by all of us who wish to live the stewardship way of life.

The Lord knows that facing down our fears and choosing to trust Him with all areas of our lives is an ongoing challenge for us. He is generous with reassurances to us throughout the Scriptures. Today’s Gospel passage from Matthew is a case in point. In the span of eight verses, Jesus addresses the topic of fear four times.

•   “Fear no one.”
•   “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul.”
•   “Rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body.”
•   “So do not be afraid.”

And the reassurance continues. “Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin? Yet not one of them falls to the ground without your Father’s knowledge. Even all the hairs of your head are counted.” Notice that Jesus says, “your Father” in describing God’s intimate knowledge and tender care for each one of us. He is truly “Abba,” our Dad, Who knows us inside and out.

With that, let us all breathe a huge sigh of relief. All is well. Our Father knows us through and through, sent His Son to save us, and will always take care of us.

Let’s stop wasting any more time with fear. Instead, let’s put all our energy, all our time, our talents, and our treasure into trusting this great and loving God, using all that we are and all that He has given us to bring Him glory. © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2026.


Pastoral Pondering

In a discussion that I was having with some friends recently, the question arose why intercessory prayer was important because God knows everything. In other words, why bother if we can’t really change His mind. It was a good discussion, and I hope the following is a help if you have had that question as well.

The question assumes a kind of tension: if God already knows what He will do, why ask? But this frames prayer as if it were a negotiation with a reluctant bureaucrat. That misunderstands both God and prayer entirely. Hence, first point to be made is that the end on intercessory prayer is not to change God – it is to change us and to participate in Him.

1. God Works Through Secondary Causes — Including Your Prayer

God is the First Cause of all things, but He has chosen to govern the world through secondary causes — human acts, natural processes, and yes, prayer. The question is not why we pray if God is sovereign, but precisely because He is sovereign — and because He works out His sovereign will frequently through secondary causation.

In other words, your prayer is not competing with God's will. In many cases, it is part of God's will — the very instrument through which He has chosen to dispense certain graces.


St. Thomas Aquinas puts it plainly in the Summa Theologica: "God bestows many things on us out of His liberality, even without our asking for them: but that He wishes to bestow certain things on us at our asking, is for the sake of our good, namely, that we may acquire confidence in having recourse to God."

So some graces are reserved — held by God, waiting for the asking. It is a graced moment from God to be asked to pray for another — a sign of His love that He wants us to participate in His immense work of redemption, making some part of His plan dependent on our prayers.


2. Intercessory Prayer Is an Act of Love — a Spiritual Work of Mercy

There are many ways to love one's neighbor, but intercessory prayer — praying on behalf of other people — is one of the most powerful. Praying for the living and the dead is one of the Spiritual Works of Mercy.


Through intercessory prayer, we bring someone else's needs before God, trusting God to take care of others, whether they are loved ones, friends, enemies, or total strangers. This is love made active — a concrete participation in the life of the Body of Christ.


3. Prayer Invites Grace Without Violating Freedom

Prayer invites God's grace into a situation, which can influence hearts without compelling them. For example, praying for someone's conversion, as St. Monica did for St. Augustine, may lead to a change of heart over time. St. Monica prayed for decades, and her son — who became one of the greatest Doctors of the Church — was the fruit. God never violated Augustine's will. He opened doors. Grace moved. Augustine chose.


4. Scripture Shows God Responds to Intercession

The New Testament makes this viscerally concrete: we see the effectiveness of intercessory prayer in Acts, when King Herod had the Apostle James killed, then ordered Peter arrested under heavy guard — but "prayer by the church was fervently being made to God on his behalf," and God sent an angel to release Peter and lead him out of prison. The early Church prayed. Peter walked free.


5. The Deepest End: Union with God Himself

The Church teaches that prayer is not just a request for favors but a means of growing closer to God. Intercessory prayer, at its summit, is not primarily about outcomes. It is about conforming the soul to the heart of Christ, who is Himself the eternal Intercessor (cf. Hebrews 7:25). When one intercedes, one enters into the very priestly act of Jesus — standing before the Father on behalf of others.

Prayer becomes a way to participate in God's work, not to dictate it.


In Summary:

The end of intercessory prayer is not to bend God's arm — it is to:

  • Participate in the providential plan God has lovingly prepared
  • Exercise the spiritual authority granted to us as sons and daughters of God
  • Love our neighbor concretely through the most potent force available
  • Grow in humility and dependence on God as the Author of every good
  • Unite ourselves to Christ the eternal High Priest



The God who knows all things from eternity also knew — and willed — that your prayer would be part of the story. That is not a limitation of His omnipotence. It is a staggering expression of His love.


St. Monica prayed for seventeen years before her son knelt at the baptismal font. What if she had stopped at year sixteen — reasoning that God's will was already settled?

From the Pastor

From the Pastor - 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

By John Putnam • September 25, 2026
As Christian stewards, we are called to a high and holy standard — living as Christ’s disciples every day and with every person the Lord places in our path. But we can move towards this goal in “baby steps.” Jesus demonstrates this comforting truth through the parable He tells in today’s Gospel from Matthew. It is the story of two sons whose father instructs them to go out and work in his vineyard that day. While the second son agrees to his father’s request, he does not follow through — he fails to obey the father’s will. The first son tells his father, “no.” At least he is honest! And in the end, he reconsiders and obeys his father. The first son’s honest, less-than-perfect response is consoling to us Christian stewards. Haven’t we all felt this way at times when God’s will for us seems to be just too hard? We can be honest with God at these times. He knows our thoughts already, after all. But when we stay engaged in a real relationship with Him, even if it’s just to say, “I don’t think I can, Lord,” He will supply us with just the grace we need to change our minds and do what He is asking us to do. We can even take a step backward from time to time because our Father is merciful and kind. What matters is that we keep baby-stepping along, assured of the grace we need to more closely imitate the actions and attitudes of Christ. This is the beauty of the stewardship way of life. ©Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2026 Pastoral Pondering On the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows, the other priests, seminarians, and I, had the opportunity to attend the Final Solemn Profession of Sister Mary Lucia, DVM. It was a moving experience, and I thought it a good occasion to reflect on the importance of religious life in the life of the parish and the life of the Church. Every Sunday we gather as one family: families in the pews, single adults, children, the elderly, deacons, priests, seminarians, and, often quietly among us, men and women who have given their whole lives to God by the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience. They are not a side chapel of the Church. They stand at her heart. “The consecrated life is at the very heart of the Church as a decisive element for her mission.” — Pope St. John Paul II, Vita Consecrata What does that mean for us here at Saint Mark’s? It means that the Church is poorer—less herself—whenever we forget those who have left everything to follow Christ with an undivided heart. Baptism already consecrates every Christian. Consecrated life is a further, public, stable response to that same baptismal grace: a way of making the face of Jesus—poor, chaste, and obedient—visible in the middle of an age that is often restless, acquisitive, and self-directed. A living sign of the world to come The Catechism teaches that those who profess the evangelical counsels “signify and proclaim in the Church the glory of the world to come.” In other words, a sister who owns nothing, a brother who lives in community, a contemplative who prays through the night, a consecrated virgin living in the world, a missionary who goes where no one else will go—each of them is a living reminder that this world is not our final home. Their lives preach what our words sometimes only hint at: God is enough. That witness is not a luxury. In a culture that measures worth by productivity, possessions, and personal autonomy, consecrated men and women quietly insist that love can be total, that freedom is found in gift, and that joy does not depend on having more. They are, as one religious recently put it, a kind of medicine for the whole Body of Christ—an antidote to our easy compromises with comfort and control. Many forms, one gift Consecrated life is not one mold. From the earliest centuries there have been hermits and virgins, monks and nuns, itinerant preachers and teachers, nurses and missionaries. Today the Church recognizes religious institutes of contemplative and apostolic life, societies of apostolic life, secular institutes, consecrated virgins and widows, and the eremitic life. Some live behind cloister walls. Some staff our schools, hospitals, and missions. Some remain in ordinary workplaces while belonging entirely to Christ. All of them exist for the holiness of the whole Church. History itself testifies to this. The faith was planted and the poor were served in large part because religious families poured themselves out. That work continues. When we thank God for Catholic education, for care of the sick, for quiet hours of adoration offered for souls we will never meet, we are often thanking consecrated persons we may never see. What this asks of us First, gratitude. If a religious sister taught you the faith, if a priest of a religious order heard your confession on retreat, if a contemplative community has prayed for this parish, thank God for them—and, when you can, thank them. Second, prayer for vocations. The Lord still calls. He calls from our families, our youth groups, our college campuses, and our pews. Parents, do not be afraid if your son or daughter begins to wonder about religious life. That question is not a loss to the family; it may be one of the greatest gifts a family can offer the Church. Young people: if the thought of giving everything to Christ will not leave you alone, do not smother it. Speak with a priest or a consecrated person you trust. The Church needs the diversity and richness of these charisms. Third, our own fidelity. Consecrated life does not replace the vocation of marriage or the single life in the world. It illuminates them. The vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience are a concentrated form of what every disciple must live in some measure: detachment, purity of heart, and obedience to the Father’s will. When religious are faithful, the whole parish is strengthened. When we in the pews are faithful to our own state of life, we honor the same Lord they serve. The Church will never be without this gift, because Christ Himself is poor, chaste, and obedient, and He continues to draw men and women into that pattern of life. Let us esteem it. Let us pray for those who live it. And let us ask the Lord of the harvest to send laborers—not only priests, but sisters, brothers, and all who will make His way of life visible among us.  We thank God for the witness of the Daughters of the Virgin Mother who serve here at St. Mark and for all of the religious in the Diocese of Charlotte who give witness to the beauty of consecrated life.

From the Pastor - 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time

By John Putnam • September 18, 2026
Though we can never fully comprehend the perfection of God and His ways, Sacred Scripture reminds us that God's ways are often very different from our own. In our First Reading from Isaiah, the Lord declares, "My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways." As His disciples, we are called to see life from God's perspective, using our time, talents, and treasure with eternity in mind. In today's Gospel, Jesus illustrates this divine perspective through the parable of the workers in the vineyard. Some labor all day, while others are called only near the end of the day. Yet the landowner gives each worker the same wage. Those who worked the longest grumble because they are thinking according to human standards rather than God's generosity. The same temptation can affect us. We may compare ourselves to others and wonder whether everyone else is contributing as much as we are at home, in our parish, or in our community. Instead, we should remember what a privilege it is to have been invited into the Lord's vineyard. Living the stewardship way of life fills our lives with meaning, purpose, and lasting joy. May we thank God each day for calling us to share in His work. ©Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2026 Pastoral Pondering Why the Church — and Society — Should Welcome Children God’s first blessing on man and woman was not a burden: “Be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 1:28). The Catechism calls children “the supreme gift of marriage.” They are not an accessory to married love. They spring from the spouses’ gift of self. Marriage is ordered to the good of husband and wife and to the procreation and education of children. The Church does not assign a number. She teaches a truth: married love, by its nature, is open to life. A gift, not a possession A child is a person, never a product. Couples do not have a “right to a child.” The child has rights: to be received as a gift, to be the fruit of his or her own father and mother, and to be respected from conception. When we welcome children we cooperate with the Creator. Responsible parenthood is generous discernment before God — not selfish delay, and not closing the marital act against life. For serious reasons a couple may space births. Natural Family Planning honors both the unitive and procreative meanings of marriage. Large families, received with joy, remain a sign of blessing. Couples who cannot conceive are not forgotten: their marriages can still be fruitful in charity, hospitality, and spiritual fatherhood and motherhood. Good for the Church. Good for the city. The family is the first school of the Gospel — and the foundation of the common good. Nations endure when men and women marry, stay faithful, welcome children, and raise them in virtue. Children are not a private hobby. They are tomorrow’s neighbors, workers, caregivers, citizens, and saints. A culture that treats fertility as a problem, delays marriage, or is indifferent to the unborn mortgages its own future. Advocates in public life Families also need a voice beyond the parish. The American Principles Project works to place the family at the center of public debate: parental rights, the protection of childhood, the defense of life, and policies that make it more possible for the young to marry and raise children. A bulletin is not a campaign flyer. The Church baptizes no political organization. Catholics may differ on particular tactics. We may not differ on this: marriage, children, and a parent’s duty are not partisan inventions. They belong to the natural law and to the Gospel. Here at Saint Mark’s Encourage the young couples in the pews. Thank the families who fill our Masses with life. Walk with those who wait for a child. Learn NFP as the Church teaches it. Speak and vote as people who believe every child is a gift. And if God is asking your household for another act of generosity, do not be afraid. He who blesses does not abandon. Children are not a threat to our future. They are our future — and a living sign that God has not finished creating.