From the Desk of Father Mark - Our Pastor
May 24, 2026 - Pentecost Sunday

NOT AVAILABLE IN THIS BULLETIN EDITION

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From the Desk of Father Mark - Our Pastor
July 5, 2026 - 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time

"Come to me all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light."

We all know the burdens of life. Some burdens are carried by most, like rising prices, cost of health care, taxes, are a few examples. Some burdens are carried somewhat privately, like family and work issues. Some burdens are carried very privately, like mental health and issues of the heart. Some burdens we carry with others, some burdens we carry alone. Some burdens are light some very heavy. In awareness of these burdens, Jesus offers himself a source, the source of rest.

Jesus knew well the burdens he carried. The greatest burden was the people he loved, being lost in darkness and sin. His response to their burden was often compassion. The source was love, His love for us all. Ultimately, Jesus would accept a cross, be nailed to a cross, die on a cross, be taken down from a cross, and rise from that cross. Jesus knew the burden well.

Finding rest in Jesus is the realization, that there is no burden we bear, that He cannot carry. Finding rest in Jesus is the realization that no matter the gravity of our burdens, His love is strong enough to hold us.

We feel alone at times, but as the well-known poem, Footprints in the Sand, concludes: "at the time you saw one set of prints in the sand, it was then I carried you." The yoke that is easy and the burden that is light, is love. No matter how difficult the burden is, it is easy because it is love.

"God so loved the world that he gave His only Son, that all who believe in Him may have eternal life."

Rest in God!

Happy 250th Birthday, United States of America!

Have a great week!

Fr. Mark Walter
Pastor of Our Lady of the Ridge - St.Linus Parish