From the Pastor - 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

July 22, 2022

In our Gospel reading from Luke, some disciples of Jesus ask our Lord to teach them how to pray. Jesus instantly offers them the beautiful prayer which we, of course, call the Our Father.
 
  The Our Father is truly a steward’s prayer. In it, we call upon God in an intimate way, as Father. We ask that His will be done (not ours!) and that His kingdom come (not ours!). In other words, we remember that He is our Creator, everything is His, and our focus in life should be on His priorities, not our own. Then we ask Him to supply our needs (to give our daily bread), forgive our sins, and protect us from evil. That is, we proclaim our complete trust in His provision for us and mercy towards us. We, too, commit to extending mercy ourselves (as we forgive those who sin against us). 
 
As we pray the words of the Our Father, we recognize this basic truth about ourselves and God: God is our Father, and we are beloved and infinitely blessed to be His children. This is the basis of a stewardship way of life.
 
At the end of the Gospel passage, Jesus encourages us to pursue a relationship with the Father: Ask Him, seek Him, knock on His door! 
 
He can hardly wait to bless us, HIs children. Remember that this week, then go, be a blessing to others! Stewardship is just that simple. © Catholic Stewardship Consultants, 2022

 

Pastoral Pondering

Summer is flying by much too fast. Hopefully, everyone has had some opportunity to spend time with family and rest a bit. With the price of gas, I realize that traveling extensively has been a challenge for some, so vacation is closer to home.

 

On July 14th I received notice from the Diocesan Office of Worship that the sign of peace could be restored at Mass as well as Communion under both species. As you know prior to COVID we had decided only to distribute the cup on special feast days such as Corpus Christi. At present I do not think restoring the cup is appropriate but will be discussing this with the Liturgical commission. In terms of the Sign of Peace, most folks have been choosing to do it already. I would simply ask that you be mindful that not everyone around you may be comfortable with a handshake. A bow or simply saying “peace be with you” is an acceptable substitution for handshaking.

 

The description of the sign of peace in the liturgical books is useful too. The current General Instruction of the Roman Missal explains, “There follows the Rite of Peace, by which the Church entreats peace and unity for herself and for the whole human family, and the faithful express to each other their ecclesial communion and mutual charity before communicating in the Sacrament” (GIRM 82). While the Rite of Peace is optional, over the years it has increasingly become just a normal part of the Mass. However, in many places, it has become much more than it should be. GIRM, 82 continues: “As for the actual sign of peace to be given, the manner is to be established by the Conferences of Bishops in accordance with the culture and customs of the peoples. However, it is appropriate that each person, in a sober manner, offers the sign of peace only to those who are nearest. In other words, it is not a free-for-all. It is part of the Communion Rite, so the tone and nature of the Rite is to be mindful of the Eucharistic presence as well as not be a distraction to the Fraction rite which follows. This does not mean that it can only be done in a stiff manner but one that respects the nature of the celebration and is mindful of all present; some of whom may or may not be comfortable with the common sign of peace.

 

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).