From the Pastor's Desk - May 24, 2026

Dear St. Martin’s Parishioners,

A friend of mine who is an older gentleman and lifelong Catholic tells me that in the past decade he has experienced a renewal in his faith. For most of his life he lived his Catholic faith as a series of rules to be followed, as if it were principally a moral code (with the emphasis being on negative commands). After he got involved in a program called Christ Life about a decade ago, his relationship with God came to life. Now he lives his faith with joy and real vigor, whereas before he would have described it as distant from God. Now he lives his faith from the standpoint of relationship with God and friendship with Jesus.

Relationship with God is the foundation of our spiritual life. Pentecost is the celebration of the manifestation of the Holy Spirit. And who is the Holy Spirit? He is the bond of love between the Father and the Son. In receiving the Holy Spirit, we are brought in to that bond of love that exists from all eternity between the Father and the Son. The new energy, life and zeal that the Apostles—and my friend— experienced after Pentecost is the result of living fully conscious of our being in relationship with the Father. Pray for the grace to live more from the standpoint of your relationship with the Father, in the Son, and through the gift of the the Holy Spirit.

Next Sunday, May 31, we celebrate the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity with our annual Field Mass and parish picnic. Our trilingual Field Mass begins at 12:00pm with the picnic following immediately after. I thank our various groups and ministries for preparing a fun celebration with food, music and games for the kids. You can buy your food tickets in advance after all the Masses this weekend. There is no 1:30pm Mass next Sunday.

This weekend we welcome our seminarian who will be with us for the summer, Brandon Chernowski. Brandon grew up at St. John Neumann Parish in Montgomery Village, so he is familiar with this area. Please give him a warm welcome when you see him this weekend and throughout his time here.

In Christ,

Fr. Dave