Father Mark Stelzer is a native of Springfield, Massachusetts and a graduate of that city’s Sacred Heart Elementary and Cathedral High School. Fr. Mark prepared for the priesthood at Saint John’s Seminary in Boston where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and Master’s degrees in Theology and Divinity. He was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Springfield in 1983.
Since ordination to the priesthood Father Mark has served in a several parishes and diocesan ministries while concurrently teaching at the College of Our Lady of the Elms in Chicopee, Massachusetts.
Father Mark holds Licentiate and Doctoral degrees in Theology from The Catholic University of America. He currently serves as Special Assistant to the President for Catholic Identity and Associate Professor of Humanities at the College of Our Lady of the Elms.
In addition to his responsibilities at the College, Father Mark is Pastor of Saint Mary’s Parish in Hampden, Massachusetts, and Vicar for Clergy for the Diocese of Springfield. He also facilitates workshops nationally and internationally in conjunction with Guest House, a treatment center specializing in the care of clergy, seminarians, and religious living with addictive disorders.
Father Mark’s most recent work, Along the Way: The Life, Lessons, and Legacy of Father Hugh F. Crean, was published by Andrews McMeel in 2022.
Father Mark holds memberships in the Catholic Theological Society of America and the National Association of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Counselors.