St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, Columbia, MD.

06/13/2026

Youth Fund Raising Car Wash From 9am to 1pm. Thank you for your support!

05/31/2026

LESSONS LIVED AND LEARNED

One of the influences that the TV series The Chosen has had on me is in my prayer style. Often the Jesus character would begin prayers with “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe .”

As I understand it, this phrase is the opening of the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4–9), the central Jewish declaration of faith: “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is One.”

It is a good starter, for me, into prayer. It establishes and reminds me of the nature of my relationship to God. No matter how important or how unworthy I may be feeling at the moment, it declares, up front, that God is God and that I am not.

I may have told this story once before, and, if so, I apologize. Once, when living and working in Iowa, I was driving to a youth retreat in Wisconsin. As I crossed the bridge over the Mississippi River, I noted that I was ahead of my arrival time and opted to take a break in a state park with a scenic overview.

From where I sat, I could see a mile up north on the river, down south as well, and back west into the flat farmland of Iowa. It was a rather majestic and beautiful view.

My prayer was pondering about how little and inadequate I felt in my life. There was a fair amount of spiritual groping and whining going on. It only got worse as a rather persistent mosquito began to attack me… distracting me from my prayer.
I swatted at the insect, but to no avail. I moved away to a different location, but seemingly was followed, and not left alone. My prayer opportunity was defeated and I climbed into the car to seek relief.

Finally, the lesson occurred to me in the ride down the hill from the overlook. There I was surrounded by many square miles of a view, yet all I could focus on was a mosquito smaller than an inch.

I was using all my power to gain the attention of the Good Shepherd when the Lord of all, the King of the Universe, was already all-knowing of my concerns and wants.

“Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe.”It is similar with the Sign of the Cross. We place our petitions in the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

My prayer that evening long ago and occasions after that day when reminded by events, is: Thank you, Lord, for that mosquito.

- D. Scott Miller

05/30/2026

FROM THE PASTOR'S DESK (actually from a Deacon while the boss is on vacation!)

Trinity Sunday, 2nd reading, 2 Cor 13: 11-13
Brothers and sisters, rejoice.
Mend your ways, encourage one another,
agree with one another, live in peace,
and the God of love and peace will be with you.
Greet one another with a holy kiss.
All the holy ones greet you.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ
and the love of God
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you.

Commentary: The last sentence of this reading from 2 Corinthians is one of the common ways the priest begins the Mass. Let’s break it down a bit. Jesus came with an unmerited gift for each of us: grace. We cannot touch it, see it or feel it but it is real, nevertheless. Grace makes it possible for me to believe that I have been forgiven. Grace allows me to respond to Jesus’ love for me by loving my neighbors in return. Through grace I come to confess my sins and to experience the renewal of my relationship with my Lord.

The love of God is the source of everything that is good. God creates because that is what love does. Love creates and maintains in creation all that it has made. Out of love, God sent His Son to put things in order again between Himself and humankind, when the cosmic time was right. His love is unconditional, universal and all-embracing, and we’re invited to share it.

We do that by means of fellowship through the Holy Spirit, who empowers us to share the love we’ve received from God with people in our lives. We delight in fellowship as we learn together how to make communities alive. We learn to live in peace even if we disagree at times. Our times of fellowship are occasions to pray for each other’s needs, laugh at moments of joy and cry when we are immersed in sadness.

Healthy, loving communities with one another follow naturally from our life-giving relationship with the Holy Trinity. Dcn. Jim Benjamin

05/29/2026

This weekend, in our Second Collection, is directed to the Missionhurst-CICM. This Missionary Institute of religious priests and brothers goes beyond geographical and religious boundaries to share Jesus Christ with all those who do not know him. Our parish priests, Fathers Mel, Ryan, and Frans, C.I.C.M., btw, are Missionhurst!

05/28/2026

Learn more about Pope Leo's first encyclical

https://sjcolumbia.org/magnifica-humanitas/

05/26/2026

Following our Lenten Parish Mission, we offered a seven-week series published in our parish bulletin. These reflections, along with added discussion questions, are now available to you for prayerful consideration. https://sjcolumbia.org/the-new-evangelist/

05/25/2026

Daily Mass is at 10am today at Wlde Lake. Offices are closed

05/24/2026

There was once a woman who lived beside a tall stone wall. Every morning she walked past it, wondering what lay on the other side. Some days she imagined a wild forest. Other days she pictured thorns, snakes, or nothing at all. The uncertainty made her uneasy, so she never tried to climb it.

One spring, a strong wind blew through the village. It rattled the wall so hard that a single stone loosened and fell. Through the small opening, she saw a flash of color—bright green leaves, sunlight, and the corner of a wooden bench.

Her heart pounded. She could have walked away. Instead, she pulled out another stone, then another, until she could squeeze through.

On the other side she found not danger, but a quiet garden—untended, forgotten, and full of potential. She spent the afternoon exploring, planting, and dreaming. By evening, she realized something simple but life-changing: The wall had never been the barrier. Her fear of what might be behind the wall was.

From that day on, whenever she felt hesitation, she asked herself: “Is this a wall… or just a stone I have not moved yet?”

During Lent, we conducted a Parish Mission presented by Tony Melendez. Tony’s message considered Bishop Robert Barron’s Seven Qualities of a New Evangelist. As we moved through Easter Season into Pentecost, you can review all our messages on our website.

In this final note, we will consider that the new evangelist must know and love the new media. Actually, there is not all that much that is NEW in the descriptions of the qualities of a New Evangelist. We almost take it for granted that, of course, one should be:
> In Love with Jesus Christ
> Filled with Ardor
> Aware of the whole story of Isreal
> In dialogue with the culture around us
> Honoring the great tradition of our church, and
> Having a missionary heart.

So, what is new about the New Evangelist? The New-ness is found in the “New Media” available all around us. Do we use new media to celebrate our “blessedness” or bemoan our trails? Does our communication honor our connectedness or highlight our polarization? The “New Evangelist” breaks through the walls of fear to engage in the New Media in sharing the Good News. (By the way, the story of the woman and the tall stone wall was generated by Microsoft Co-Pilot, an AI tool) - D. Scott Miller

05/22/2026