From the Heart of the Shepherd

From the bulletin for The Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (2026 July 26)

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time - July 26

I once heard this story. Perhaps it is apocryphal. But it was presented as true.

So there was this rural town in Mexico. (OK that part is definitely true). It was hot there, all year round. Really hot. Since the village was poor, no one had air conditioning. Maybe not even electric fans. The best they could do in the heat of the day was to sit out on their porches, hope for a breeze, and fan themselves (with their sombreros, I imagine). 

Until the Yankees came. Some go-getting group of American missionaries, or philanthropists, or Spring Breakers had occasion to visit the town. Or maybe it was an eccentric billionaire. (On this point, obviously, I am a bit fuzzy on the details). Whoever it was, they felt compassion for these poor Mexican villagers who endured such awful heat most of the year. So what did the Yankees do? They donated an air conditioner to each home in the village. Aww!

Know what happened next? The town collapsed. Turns out its culture and civic life depended on those afternoon porch sits, in which people would visit one another and chat and maintain relationships as they shared news, struggles, and swapped stories and songs (I imagine). Once the AC units were installed, everyone just stayed in their homes. No one spoke to each other anymore. They fell out of touch, out of contact. Young people had less keeping them there and, when they came of age, they moved away. And the old died off, in the cool of their homes. All thanks to those darn Yankees!

Why am I sharing this story? Oh, no reason. Forecast calls for high temps this Sunday. You might be feeling them right now. You might be asking, “Why doesn’t St. Mark’s have AC like all the other churches?” Nobody knows! Probably not because of what happened to that town in Mexico. 

In any case, let it be known that we are exploring options, especially after learning that with just three mini-splits we can cool the gym down significantly. However, we want to be sure that such a solution would not mar the aesthetics of our church, inside or out. Also, we want to be sure that the investment will mesh with the hope-for renovation of the lower church, which might involve an HVAC solution. When the time comes to pull the trigger, trust I will let you know via a plea for the necessary funds (BTW, it’s looking like it would be in the ballpark of $80K 😃). 

Know where it is air-conditioned at St. Mark’s? The Adoration Chapel. It warms my pastor’s heart to see so many coming and going in that chapel this summer. How Jesus must delight that souls from near and far can come to our parish to keep Him company, pour out their hearts, and receive the special blessings He so longs to bestow on His little lambs!

I also delight that some of you are making use of our chapel on Sundays to escape from the heat, but not from the liturgy, on Sundays. We presently are looking into solutions to get audio from the sounds system in there (again, without marring the aesthetics). 

Just as we are aware that St. Mark’s is blessed to have an (air-conditioned) Adoration Chapel, we are also all aware that St. Mark’s is even more blessed to have so many babies attending its Masses and adoration times (babies, the credit goes to your parents). We are aware of this fact, in part, because babies and other little ones tend to make their presence heard.  

Hopefully we all agree that this is an enormous blessing. All the more so since babies are the future and they tend to attract more families with babies to our parish. Which has such a bright future! Learning the lesson of those darn Yankees, I think we should be very careful not to do anything at our parish that might have the unintended consequences of occasioning its death… by making parents with small children feel unwelcome. 

That said, I am also very aware, as pastor, that little ones can create challenges. (I suppose their parents know this better than anyone else.) I am usually a pretty cool cucumber up there at the altar, but I too must admit that there are some Masses in which some little yodeller is vying with God for my pious attention. Vying… and winning. 

This happens in the Adoration Chapel too. We ought to admire those parents who, for their own benefit or their children’s, undertake the surely challenging task of bringing their little ones to see Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, if only for a few minutes. Who recognize in this way how much they need His grace, even if coming to ask for it is not pretty or convenient. If we are tempted to be annoyed by the squeals or shreeks, we might think of Jesus’ word to His indignant disciples, as the little ones were approaching His presence: “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 19:14). Surely, that saying applies to our chapel!

I am also aware, however, that the presence of little ones in the chapel can be… challenging, and not just for their parents. The natural environment of adoration is silence and stillness, so that we can be aware of the Sacred. We want our chapel to be a refuge of divine tranquility and God-mindfulness. And that can be hard when a junior adorer is being fussy or running around in the pews, or banging books… whether observers are bothered by their antics or distracted by their cuteness. 

What to do? At bottom, I beg for mutual consideration. Parents, know that you and your children are most welcome in the chapel–you have a right to be there, and it is “good for all of us to be here” as St. Peter said in the same Presence. But also be considerate of others who are present. Try to keep the experience positive for all, which may mean removing children who are in a yelling mood, or tailoring visit length to your child’s capacities. (For that matter, don’t feel as if you are a bad Catholic or parent if you don’t have a committed hour at this stage of your life or bring your children to adoration… parental spirituality has its own particular grace–usually one of self-sacrifice–and hardly requires long stretches of stillness and/or deep contemplative prayer). Others, be considerate and compassionate with parents. Admire them for bringing children into this world and into our church and chapel. Remember when you were in their shoes, or recognize that you haven’t been yet. Be more ready to support than to criticize. And to suffer a little in solidarity with them knowing that Jesus is probably not as cross as you are at the babies. And recognize that the annoyed glances or judgmental thoughts are probably not from the Holy Spirit. (But, again, parents, don’t let your child become an occasion of wrath for the worshippers around you, who are not as desensitized to the shreeks!)

Remember, we are all on the same team here. Let’s “bear each others’ burdens,” not add to them, “and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Gal 6:2).  In the spirit of trying to make things easier, not harder for parents, as well as other adorers, St. Mark’s is instituting a weekly time of adoration for parents and little ones. Fridays at 9am have now been pithily dubbed the “Let the Children Come to Me Hour.” Not that they are not welcome at other hours. But so that for at least one hour, parents can feel free to bring their little ones–regardless of how much chapel etiquette they have internalized–to see Jesus, and so that the parents can have a moment of adoration too perhaps while their kids are distracted with the other kids their present. And other adorers will be on notice, then, that the chapel might be a little chaotic or rambunctious during that time, but should trust that Jesus, behind the veil of the Sacrament, is beaming warm and wide. 

From the Heart of the Shepherd: Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time