Christmas Homily at Midnight Mass

Good Morning Church,

I didn't have time to post this last night as I was a little tired after Midnight Mass. I wanted to make sure this was available to you on Christmas Morning.

You may find the homily here.

Merry Christmas to one and all.

Merry Christmas

May the Blessings and Peace of the New Born Christ be upon you and remain with you this Holy Season.

You will be remembered in my Christmas Mass this night,

Father Paul Bringleson

Christmas Message 2011

Pope Invites Students to Reflect On Meaning Of Christmas

Benedict XVI is inviting university students to ask themselves "What does Christmas mean to me?"

But the question, as the Pope posed it today at a vespers service with university students of Rome, seeks an answer that is anything but trite.

"Is [Christmas] really important for my life, for the building up of society?," he said. "There are many persons in our time, especially in the halls of the universities, who ask whether we are to expect something or someone; whether we must look for another messiah, another god; if it is worthwhile to entrust ourselves to that Child whom we find in the manger between Mary and Joseph on Christmas night."

The Holy Father went on to say, "We do not need a generic, indefinite god, but the living and true God, who opens the horizon of man's future to the prospect of a firm and sure hope, a hope that is rich with eternity and that permits us to face the present in all its aspects with courage. But we must ask ourselves then: where does my seeking find the true face of this God? Or better still: where does God himself come to show me his face, revealing his mystery, entering into my history?"

The Pontiff proposed that Jesus, who "experienced human time, his growth, his immersion in history" is the "sign of the patience of God."

The Holy Father invited the students to rekindle their hope, "because the Word of God reminds us that the coming of the Lord is near, indeed, the Lord is with us and it is possible to build together with him. In the stable of Bethlehem man's solitude is overcome, our existence is no longer at the mercy of impersonal natural and historical forces, our house can be built upon the rock: we can plan our history, the history of humanity, not as a utopia but in the certainty that the God of Jesus Christ is present and walks with us."

Thought for the Day: On Controling Others

Endurance is nobler than strength, and patience than beauty.
  —John Ruskin

It's hard to keep from trying to control the lives of others, especially in a family. We can learn from the man whose friend drove twenty miles to and from work on the freeway every day. "How can you do it?" he asked. "I've tried, and I can't go a mile in such traffic without screaming at the crazy drivers who cut in, go too slow, change lanes. Nobody listens. I'd lose my mind if I had to do it your way." His friend replied, "Your trouble is trying to drive every car around you. I relax and drive only one car - my own."

We have only our own lives to live, and this is usually enough to keep us busy. If we pay too much attention to how others live, we will neglect ourselves.

What acts of others can I ignore today?

Fourth Sunday of Advent Homily

The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin's name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
"Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you."
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
"Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.

"Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his kingdom there will be no end."
But Mary said to the angel,
"How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?"
And the angel said to her in reply,
"The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God."
Mary said, "Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word."
Then the angel departed from her. (Luke 1.26-38)

This Sunday, the readings invite us to contrast our response to God's call for our lives with that of our Blessed Mother, Mary. The story of the annunciation is a famous one and one in which we are all well aware of.

I have remarked, recently, that we are not only preparing to mark the birth of Jesus in history, at Christmas, but we also preparing to welcome Christ at the end of time.

These weeks of Advent invite us to look at how we mold our lives in the manner in which Jesus lived His life. Look at the example with which he grew up with: His mother's 'yes' to God all those many years ago would shape His life as well.

Mary trusted in the angel's assurance that God would bless her with every grace her life would require if she just trusted in God's will for her. It is astounding. A young women with her whole life ahead of her gave her will and her life over to the care of God and lovingly followed His plan for her. It was her vocation to bring Life into the world in the messiah, her Son, Jesus.

Are we able to imitate that trust amidst our own fears and frailty? Are we able to accept our role in the bringing of the Prince of Peace into the world within our families and within our homes? Are we prepared to help others in recognizing God's call for themselves in this life? Do our actions and decisions contribute to the building up of God's Kingdom here on earth? These are difficult questions which we must ask ourselves.

We are called to trust in God's strength in our lives that we will be able to accomplish God's will for us if we just put aside our own agendas in favor of the One who has called us "out of darkness into his own wonderful light." (Isaiah) 

Let us not be afraid. Let us pray for the grace to imitate Mary's faith and trust in God's promise to her and to our world. We call upon God's Holy Spirit to guide us in the coming days that as Advent comes to a close and we welcome Christ at Christmas we too will also have hearts which are ready to embrace the Prince of Peace when He comes at the end of time.

May God's choicest blessing be upon you and your families as we take the last steps of this Advent Season which will herald for us the new beginnings of Christ's Presence in the world.

Greetings from Snow Lake

Good day, Church

Posting from Our Lady of the Snows Parish in Snow Lake, MB. I'm here for the Fourth Sunday of Advent and just traveled in from Flin Flon, MB on a snow packed highway. Yes, there is a lot of snow in Snow Lake.

Will do my best to get some posts up and running as there is a lot happening in the days ahead.

I had the privilege of speaking at an ecumenical men's prayer breakfast group this morning in Flin Flon. It was very refreshing to gather together with some like minded Christian men to share our faith and to strengthen our commitment as disciples of Jesus Christ. This group meets monthly and I am grateful to have been invited to join them. I will do my level best to promote this group with our parish in the hopes of getting a few men from our parish to join in this fellowship. We have numerous organizations of women who gather to pray within the parish but it was refreshing to gather with the intent of sharing our male spirituality. My thanks to those who welcomed me this weekend.

I'm off to supper with a family here in the parish and am looking forward to getting a good night's sleep this evening.

A blessed evening to one and all.

Third Sunday of Advent Homily

Rejoice, Church!

This is "Gaudete" Sunday. We rejoice this week for the coming of Our Lord in history and the coming of Our Lord's Kingdom is at hand.

Isaiah's words, at the beginning of today's First Reading, invites us all to remember who we are and to whom we belong. I have included my homily for this Sunday for your reflection. At the invitation of a close friend, I will attempt to post my Sunday homilies in audio format for those who would like to listen to them.

The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me
because the LORD has anointed me;
he has sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor,
to heal the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives
and release to the prisoners,
to announce a year of favor from the LORD
and a day of vindication by our God.

I rejoice heartily in the LORD,
in my God is the joy of my soul;
for he has clothed me with a robe of salvation
and wrapped me in a mantle of justice,
like a bridegroom adorned with a diadem,
like a bride bedecked with her jewels.
As the earth brings forth its plants,
and a garden makes its growth spring up,
so will the Lord GOD make justice and praise
spring up before all the nations. (Is 6 1.1-2a, 10-11)

This Sunday's homily can be found here.

My blessings on your weekend.

Advent Retreat Online

The following are the two parts of the Advent Retreat which I offered here at St. Ann's Parish, Flin Flon, MB. I have found a way to host them online and they will open in a separate media player.

I hope you find them helpful as we journey together during the Advent Season together:

Advent Retreat Part I 

Advent Retreat Part II

On Preparing For Christmas: Second Sunday of Advent Reflection by Pope Benedict

Dear brothers and sisters!

This Sunday marks the second stage of Advent. This period of the liturgical year highlights two figures who had a pre-eminent role in the preparation of Jesus Christ’s entering into history: the Virgin Mary and St. John the Baptist. Today’s text from the Gospel of Mark focuses precisely on the latter. In fact it describes the personality and mission of the Precursor of Christ (cf. Mark 1:2-8). Beginning with externals, John is presented as a very ascetic figure: he is clothed in camel skins, he eats locusts and wild honey and he lives in the wilderness of Judea (cf. Mark 1:6). Jesus himself, once contrasted him with those “who live in the palaces of kings” and “wear soft garments” (Matthew 11:8). John the Baptist’s style should recall all Christians to choose a sober lifestyle, especially in preparation for the feast of Christmas in which the Lord -- as St. Paul says -- “although he was rich, became poor for your sake, that you might become rich through his poverty” (2 Corinthians 8:9).

In regard to John’s mission, it was an extraordinary call to conversion: his baptism “is connected to an ardent call to a new way of thinking and acting, but above all with the proclamation of God’s judgment” (“Jesus of Nazareth,” Ignatius Press, 2008, p. 14) and of the imminent appearance of the Messiah, defined as “he who is greater than me” and who “will baptize in the Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:7, 8). John’s message thus goes further and deeper than a sober way of life: it calls us to interior change, beginning with the acknowledgement and confession of our sin. As we prepare ourselves for Christmas, it is important that we look within ourselves and we sincerely reflect on our life. We must let ourselves be illumined by the ray of light that comes from Bethlehem, the light of him who is “the greater one” and made himself small, the “strongest one” and made himself weak.

All four of the evangelists describe the preaching of John the Baptist making reference to a passage of the prophet Isaiah: “A voice cries out: in the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord. Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God” (Isaiah 40:3). Mark also inserts a citation from another prophet, Malachi, which says: “Behold, I send my messenger before you: he will prepare your way” (Mark 1:2; cf. Malachi 3:1). These references to the scriptures of the Old Testament “speak of a saving intervention of God, who emerges from his hiddenness to judge and save; it is for this God that the door is to be opened and the way made ready” (“Jesus of Nazareth,” p. 15).

To the maternal intercession of Mary, the Virgin of expectation, let us entrust our path toward the Lord, while we continue our Advent itinerary of making our heart and our life ready for the coming of Emmanuel, God-with-us.

Dear brothers and sisters!

In the upcoming days in Geneva and in other cities the 50th anniversary of the institution of the International Organization for Migration, the 60th anniversary of the convention on the status of refugees and the 50th anniversary of the convention on the reduction of cases of statelessness will be marked. I entrust to the Lord those who must -- and often are forced -- to leave their own country or are deprived of citizenship. While I encourage solidarity with them, I pray for all those who expend themselves to protect and assist these brothers in these emergency situations, even exposing themselves to great toil and danger.

I greet all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors present at today’s Angelus. Today we mark the second Sunday of Advent by a Gospel passage where John the Baptist calls us to conversion. May we heed his call to repentance and ask the Lord to forgive us our sins, so that Emmanuel, God-with-us, may find us ready when he comes. Upon each of you and your loved ones at home, I invoke God’s abundant blessings.

A wish everyone a good Sunday. Have a good Sunday and a good week! Thank you!

Thought for the Day: On Looking Back

Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards.
-- Soren Kierkegaard

One of Mark Twain's most interesting writings states we should live life backwards from the age of eighty to the time we were just a gleam in someone's eye. How much more we'd learn, he felt, if we already knew how to live before we had to.

We may fantasize sometimes about going back, with the lessons of life we have learned, to our families, our high schools, or our dating years. It may please us to think of how "together" we would be with such tools, knowing what we know now.

But we can't live backwards. Every year we move along in age, experience, maturity, and wisdom. Sometimes we only see such growth on birthdays, when we look back to a year ago at who we were then and who we are now. As our years advance, so do we. Sometimes we need to take a brief look backward in order to see this.

Today I'll remember that to see my growth all I have to do is look at where I was a year ago. I have advanced in age, but I've also advanced in wisdom and maturity.

A Must Read!

Let me introduce Bishop Howard J. Hubbard of the Diocese of Albany New York.

I recently ran across a pastoral letter that Bishop Hubbard wrote to the faithful of his diocese in which he tackles some key points of interest facing the Roman Catholic Church in his diocese but it is also easily applicable to the faithful in North America.

I found the letter challenging and encouraging as well as invitational for my life as a pastor. It addresses issues surrounding the manner in which the church needs to respond to this generation of Catholics.

I encourage you to reflect on it. You can find it in it`s entirety here.

Bits & Bites

Well friends...it is upon us. The great season of Advent has arrived.

I was traveling these last days - some delays in travel made me appreciate once again, how much I value life in my own home.

Some would beg to differ with me that priests do not 'have' homes of their own but I like to think that where I live becomes a home by virtue of the relationships one makes when we give our lives over to the communities in which we serve.

Regardless of wherever it is you sit - I am indeed happy to be HOME!

This past weekend, The First Sunday of Advent, signaled a new beginning for the universal Church. We have adopted a new and revised manner in which we, as Church, pray at mass.

The Third Edition of the Roman Missal launched throughout the globe this past weekend and we are still getting our minds around that.

Unfortunately, the Missals for our Archdiocese did not arrive on time for this past weekend but they have begun to be shipped out this week. I managed to pick our parish`s Missal in The Pas on Wednesday.

The following begs to be said. This is a turning point for our faith in the english speaking world. This change will demand much of our people and comes at a time when the Church is crying out for a change. I do not believe, however, that this is the change so many North Americans were looking for.

I find it often difficult to balance the teachings of our Church with the lived experience of the people in which I serve. This change in the liturgy comes at a time when our efforts could be better spent examining the manner in which we engage people of this generation. A return to poetic prose in the liturgy may deepen the bonds of intimacy between Christ and some of our faithful but I believe it will speak very little to ordinary people who are simply looking for a comfortable place to pray and a language that is understandable for their children.

In truth, I stumbled a great deal in celebrating mass these last few days. The language of the mass does not lend itself to easy comprehension. I barely understood what I was praying. I cannot believe that our parishioners will have an easy time with this.

Yet, here we are.

I am tempted to ask what would our churches look like if we had funneled as much energy and resources into solid evangelization as we did into the reform of the Missal. If we took the time to clearly look into foundational ways in which we welcome separated and divorced catholics into the faith; restorative justice issues surrounding abuse and victimization; emphasizing dignity for gay and lesbian christians; integrating younger people into our liturgies and church life...all to name but a few.

I feel compelled to support these changes that are ours but I also feel discouraged that we have once again let go of an opportunity for real change. Something that the institutional church will have to address at some point in our lived future.

There....my rant is over. I guess I might be looking at a new job if the bishop see`s this. At the end of the day we are left with an invitation and I will make the most of what this season in our Church`s history has to offer.  It will be a time for teaching and revisiting the manner and language we use to pray and ultimately I believe that we will all grow closer to Christ if we choose too.

Be assured of my prayer for all of us. Yesterday, today and tomorrow.

Good night one and all.