From the First Sunday in Advent (2025 November 30) Nov 30 - Advent 1 In today’s First Reading Isaiah envisions “all the nations” streaming towards God’s temple on Zion: “In days to come … many peoples shall come and say: ‘Come, let us climb the LORD's mountain, to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may instruct us in his ways, and we may walk in his paths" (Is 2:2-3). In the past weeks, we have had occasion to recall now that “those days” have come, the Lord’s mountain is

From the bulletin for The Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe (2025 November 23) Nov 23 - Christ the King Some speak of “separation of church and state.” The Bible, in contrast, speaks of an intermingling of “wheat and tares” both within the Church (see 1 Jn 2:19) and in the world (see Acts 18:10). There, the relevant separation is between those who gather with Christ and those who scatter (Mt 12:30); those who are “of the truth” (Jn 18:37) and those who

5:30 - 7:30 PM | Carolyn Hall This is for you, dear reader, as a member of the WHOLE PARISH FAMILY. "Really, for me?" Yes. In no uncertain terms. The evening will feature meal (pizza), formation, adoration, and small group discussion. Please RSVP so we have a good headcount for pizza!

Start Advent off with the spirit of giving! And everyone in the family can get involved! Beginning November 30th, look for the Giving Tree in the St. Mark’s vestibule right as you enter the church for Mass! Take a moment before or after Mass to grab an ornament tag and help a local family in need. Then purchase the listed item and turn it in with the ornament tag attached on or before December 17th in “Santa’s Gift box” next to the Giving Tree! Make the most of your Advent

7:10 PM | The Church (2001 Dayton Ave) Have yourself A French Baroque Christmas with La Grande Bande! Tickets required! 7:10 - Organ Prelude 7:30 PM - Concert Performance $35 (Sec A), $25 (Sec B), $15 (Sec C/Students) Use discount StMarks1225 to save 15% Tickets can be obtained at lagrandebande.org/tickets or by phone at 507-237-6539 About La Grande Bande: La Grande Bande was founded by Dr. Michael Thomas Asmus in 2011, with the goal of bringing high-quality arts programmi

December 6 (9:00 AM - 5:00 PM), December 7 (9:00 AM - 1:00 PM) | Carolyn Hall (Moore St./Dayton Avenue - Free Entry! ) Mark your calendars now for the annual CCW Christmas Boutique, held on Saturday, December 6 from 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM, and on Sunday, December 7 from 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM. Come to Carolyn Hall for homemade Christmas goodies and Christmas treasures for sale at a remarkable savings. There will be coffee and doughnuts after the Sunday masses. Volunteer help needed!

From the bulletin for Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (2025 November 16) Nov 15 - 33rd Sunday The end is nigh.  Mirroring the maple trees on Wilder Street, the liturgical year now blossoms with an apocalyptic flourish as we approach the cycle’s end. Having started it with our Advent expectations and Yuletide rejoicings, then marching through our Lenten campaign of Christian soldiering and solemn Paschal celebrations, and now completing our admiration of Our Lord’s active

9 AM - 12 PM | Carolyn Hall ”The Marriage Enrichment Retreats are a great way to keep Christ at the center of our marriage while we connect with other parish couples of all ages.” -Pat & Karen Shrake, married 36 years Advent is for Couples! Don't forget to mark your calendars for our Advent Retreat for Couples coming up on Saturday morning, December 13th.  Fr David will be with us LIVE to offer a half day retreat on "Waiting for the (day of the) Lord."  Advent is a liturgic

7:00 - 8:00 PM | Church *note there are parish holy hours every Thursday unless noted otherwise Live for the day of the Lord in 2025-2026! Like how a silver setting magnifies the brilliance of golden apples, so too can a "silver setting" for adoration make us more receptive vessels to grace! Every second Thursday (or at least the schedule below), come to Emmaus: candlelit adoration, musical accompaniment, and Confession! Sep 11 Oct 09 Nov 13 Dec 11 Jan 08 Feb 12 Mar 12 Ap

Dec 8 | Masses at 10 AM, and 6 PM | A HOLY DAY OF OBLIGATION

from the Pastor for this year (emphasis is the editor's) "Living for the Day of the Lord" is an invitation to a conversion of life, through which God becomes truly the center of everything and the priority to which everything is ordered. Like Israel during the Exodus, we hope to undergo this conversion as a family and in stages in the course of the coming year. Recognizing the primacy of grace and God's will that we live for Him as members of a Body, in September we will fo

St. Mark’s Extremely Flexible Monthly Service Opportunity - Loaves and Fishes! St. Mark’s draws on a large pool of volunteers to field a rotating team of 10 to 20 people who prepare and/or serve dinner at two Catholic Charities locations each month. Folks can volunteer every month or once a year. Even if you never take a shift, as a St. Mark’s parishioner, you are still contributing because the food provided on these days is funded in part by St. Mark’s “Sunday Giving”. Ever

From the bulletin for The Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome (2025 November 09) Nov 9: Dedication of SJL In the Office of Readings of the day on which I write (Thursday the 6th), the Psalms contains two passages that echo one another:  Remember, Lord, the shortness of my life and how frail you have made the sons of men. What man can live and never see death? Who can save himself from the grasp of the grave?  (Ps 89:48-49) Our life is over like a sigh. Our

You can try to commit the following to memory, but don't feel so compelled. (The editor will strive to put out an infographic with the following, as well). Dec 24 - Ordinary schedule in AM (7:00 & 10:00 AM) then Christmas schedule in PM (4:30 PM and Midnight) Dec 25 - 10:00 AM only Dec 26 - 10:00 AM only Dec 27-29 - per usual Dec 30-Jan 2 - NO 7 AM Mass (Christmas Octave) Dec 31 - 10:00 AM daily Mass; 6:00 PM Vigil for Mary Mother (HDO, with choir) Jan 1 - 10:00 AM Mass

COMBINED MASS at 10:00 AM, Eucharistic Procession to Follow (with light reception after) Long live Christ the King! And he will; may we live long with him and share him with those around us! And so we will do just that on Sunday, November 23rd. And note Confessions will be from 8:30 AM - 9:30 AM.

From the bulletin for The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (2025 November 02) Nov 2: All Souls The landscape of American English and its cultural expressions are littered with stark disjunctives. “Liberty or death!” (Patrick Henry). “California or bust!” (1849 gold rushers). “God or nothing!” (2015 book by Cardinal Sarah). “Ride or die!” (1950s motorcyclists and early-2000s gangsta rappers).  Yet we Christians live our lives in the shadow of an even starker either/o

8:30 - 10:00 AM | St. Mark's Cafeteria For all women of the parish! Join your fellow women of the parish for a light breakfast, reflection, and a panel discussion on how to prepare homes and hearts for this liturgical season.

12:30 - 3:00 PM | Mendota Heights Remove invasive buckthorn [with extreme prejudice] and convert that labor into providing Christmas presents for poor children in the Peruvian Andes Mountains! RSVP

Updated 2025 Nov 12 Church of St. Mark (Carolyn Hall, corner of Moore and Dayton) | 4:00 - 6:00 PM | RSVP here Join us for an evening of prayer, fellowship, and discussion on marriage and family life according to Saint John Paul II’s Rule for Married Couples. Bring a potluck dish to share! We are a family of families; all stages of life are welcome. Childcare is provided during the talk and adult discussion! Presenting this month are Melina and Nestor Arguello on the Bea

Following 10:00 AM Mass & Procession | Carolyn Hall Hand-Carved Olive Wood Gifts from the Holy Land Did you know that 600 Christian families living in Bethlehem are completely dependent on carving olive wood figurines for their livelihood? The recent clashes in the Middle East have stopped the tourism industry in Bethlehem, causing most of those families serious harm in earning their living and forcing many of them to leave their homeland. Emptying the land of Christ from C