Fr Mark's Blog

Stewardship Appeal 2025

One of the wonderful aspects of our annual Stewardship Appeal is its balanced approach to all areas of life. We see this balance in play as we make our commitment to give our time in prayer, our talent in ministry, and our treasure in financial offerings. As stewards, aware of our total dependence on God for everything, we come in awe and gratitude every Sunday. At the same time, we approach our Lord with an awareness of the great dignity He has given us, creating us in His

Today’s Gospel ends with a bombshell: "But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?"

It's the mother of all questions, addressed to us now in the twenty-first century. We might look at our families, nation, or world in despair sometimes and conclude that faith in the God of peace has all but vanished. A better approach might be to dig deeper into your own faith in the God of peace and Jesus's way of love, and pray, "I believe in you, God of peace, saving Jesus, Holy Spirit of love, and, come what may, I will continue to adore you, love you, and serve you." Le

The Power and Importance of Gratitude

This week we begin our Annual Stewardship Appeal . For the last three years each one of us have been making a conscious effort to commit specific time to prayer, talent to ministry, and treasure to the Church. Our parish is growing and more people are coming here to the love of Jesus! Gratitude is the key to this whole way of life. Thank you for your prayer, ministry, and generous financial offerings. Today’s Bible readings demonstrate the power and vital importance of gr

Upon This Rock I Will Build My Church

Sobre esta roca edificaré mi iglesia During June, we have celebrated deep mysteries in the life of the Church — Pentecost, the Most Holy...

The Eucharistic Revival exceeded expectations!

¡El Renacimiento Eucarístico superó las expectativas! Today’s Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi) marks...

Trinity Sunday, Father’s Day, and the Gift of the Creed

Domingo de la Trinidad, Día del Padre y el Don del Credo The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity that we celebrate today happens to be...

Pentecost: The Church’s Birthday — and Ours

When we consider the Christian way of life we live, we often focus on the challenges it poses. Surrendering ourselves to the Holy Spirit is indeed a challenging way to live. But it leads to a life that is exciting, creative, and deeply rewarding. Being a Christian 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!

Our Summer Mission: Living as Joyful Disciples

On this Feast of the Ascension, we celebrate Christ’s triumphant return to the Father after accomplishing His mission on earth. But we can also view this Feast as a celebration of the “launch day” of our mission as Christ’s disciples. Being Christ’s disciples with its emphasis on the use of our 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 commitm

Teachers, Mentors, Leaders: Women in the Heart of Pastoral Ministry

Maestras, mentoras, líderes: Mujeres en el corazón del ministerio pastoral Jesus promised the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, to continue to...

From Seminary to St. Peter’s: A Personal Connection to Pope Leo XIV

Please join me in continued prayer and rejoicing for our new Pope, Leo XIV! I mentioned at Masses last weekend that we graduated from the same seminary! This happened way back in the 1900s. Remember the 1900s? Pope Leo (Robert Prevost) earned his Master of Divinity degree from the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago (CTU) in 1982. I earned mine in 1995. We never met each other, but I pray that since we share some of the same formation, I might share in some of his cha

A Church Alive in the Spirit

Una Iglesia Viva en el Espíritu Throughout the Easter season, our Bible readings have given us glimpses into the life of the newborn...

The Heart of a Shepherd: Praying for the 267th Successor of Peter

El corazón de un pastor: Orando por el 267º sucesor de Pedro Our Bible readings continue with hope in the abundant new life of our Risen...

A Duet, Not A Duel: Living the Sacrament of Mercy

Archbishop Amarante, the rector of the Lateran University, spoke about the difference between a duel and a duet in the spiritual life. There’s just one letter different, but the spiritual difference is huge. A duel is a fight; there has to be a winner and a loser. A duet is a song together; there is give-and-take, there is harmony, not competition.