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As Canadian Catholics marked the National Day of Prayer in Solidarity with Indigenous Peoples on Dec. 12, the local Church looked back on 2025 as a significant moment in reconciliation history.

Vancouver Archbishop Richard Smith, chair of the Canadian bishops’ Committee on Indigenous Issues, described the past 12 months as a watershed moment.

“This has been a defining year where we have seen the seeds of apology begin to bear the fruit of concrete action,” said Archbishop Smith. “From the return of artifacts to the living out of the Sacred Covenant, 2025 has shown us that ‘walking together’ is no longer just a hope; it is becoming our daily reality.”

In the Archdiocese of Vancouver and the Diocese of Kamloops, that journey together was reflected in the recognition of the Sacred Covenant signed on Easter Sunday, 2024. The covenant outlined shared commitments to truth, healing, and moving forward together.

The first anniversary of the historic agreement between the dioceses and Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc (Kamloops) was commemorated this past Easter, April 20, 2025. The milestone occurred just weeks before Archbishop Smith’s installation, during the final days of Archbishop J. Michael Miller’s tenure, and one day before the death of Pope Francis.

The timing of the anniversary was significant, as Kúkpi7 (Chief) Rosanne Casimir described the late Pontiff as pivotal to the process. “We honour his journey to be welcomed by the Creator,” Casimir said in a statement released shortly after the anniversary. She noted that the Pope’s 2022 apology and visit were catalysts for the local agreement, acknowledging that while his words were symbolic, they had “profound emotional and spiritual impact for many.”

In a commemorative letter marking the one-year point, Archbishop Miller, Bishop Joseph Nguyen, and Casimir described the covenant not just as a document, but as a “living foundation” for their work.

The signatories highlighted progress in four specific areas over the last year:

Historical: A Joint Research Agreement is now in place. Teams from the First Nation and the Church are collaborating to review documentation from government and Church sources. The stated goal is to provide clarity regarding students of the former Kamloops Indian Residential School (KIRS), including documenting causes of death and burial locations.

Scientific: The dioceses are providing technical and scientific expertise to help answer questions raised by previous ground-penetrating radar (GPR) surveys.

Commemorative: Joint efforts continue to honour children who died at residential schools, with the aim to “never forget the children lost and the void created by their deaths.”

Restorative: The parties are sharing ideas to help the community heal and thrive as Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc plans for the future.

Even great saints have gone through periods of doubt, but they persevered in prayer and love.

The word “doubt” has two definitions. The first one, as its etymology (dubius or double) suggests, is hesitation. For example, a person facing a fork in a road or a dilemma, unsure whether to turn left or right, to say “yes” or “no.”  

But the word can also designate the questioning of something we believed to be true until recently.

“Faith is certain,” recalls the Catechism of the Catholic Church. “It is more certain than human knowledge, because it is founded on the very Word of God, who cannot lie” (§ 157). When on the day of his baptism an initiate proclaims his faith in God, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, his “I believe” expresses a certainty. More often than not this certainty comes after a period of doubt. He then believes, and his faith is destined to grow. If he perseveres in his faith, he will soon discover more reasons to believe than he could previously imagine. If he takes time to pray, the Lord will reveal more of His presence to him. And he won’t worry, if at times the Lord has not instantly answered his prayers. 

But there may come a time when faced with trials and tribulations that he questions certain aspects of the Gospel message. These doubts (in the second sense of the word), can be assuaged and do not necessarily imply any skepticism on his part. 

“Ten thousand difficulties do not make one doubt”

Some saints had to go through these periods of spiritual darkness. At times, they felt that God had abandoned them, or worse, that they couldn’t love Him. They had to pray to overcome their despair. What gave them solace is the certainty that in accepting to take part in the agony of Christ they could participate in saving the world.  

In the last months of her life, St. Therese of Lisieux was assailed by terrible doubts about the existence of Heaven. But she firmly held on to her faith supported by the words of Christ: “No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us” (John. 4:12). Cardinal John Henry Newman used to say: “Ten thousand difficulties do not make one doubt.”

When someone talks about “being on mission,” what’s the first thing you think about?

For a lot of people, missions might be limited to the trips people take with their churches to go and build a well or orphanage in another country. And while that’s a great way to serve God’s Kingdom, for many it’s not a reality.

And it’s not the only way to be on mission.

Maybe your life doesn’t have room for a missions trip. Maybe the idea of adding yet another thing to your weekly calendar seems like too much to ask. Maybe you and your spouse are barely finding time to connect as a couple, never mind turning your marriage into a mission field. However, having a mission-minded marriage doesn’t need to be as daunting as it seems.

But a bigger question – before addressing the how – would be the why. Why should mission be a central focus in your marriage?

Why is mission in marriage important?

Gary Thomas, in his book Sacred Marriage, writes, “When marriage becomes our primary pursuit, our delight in the relationship will be crippled by fear, possessiveness, and self-centredness. We were made to admire, respect, and love someone who has a purpose bigger than ourselves, a purpose centred on God’s untiring work of calling His people home to His heart of love.”

“Without this involvement in and commitment to service,” he continues, “marriage gets lonely very fast. A selfish marriage is a hollow marriage. We were made to serve God, and no human affection can appease that hunger for very long.”

But, again, having a marriage centred on mission doesn’t mean moving across the globe – it means being open to understanding the call God has placed on you, on your spouse and on your marriage.

How to live out mission every day

“If we are going to learn how to live out our mission in our marriage relationship,” Thomas writes, “we must learn to be more selfless, and we have to become more connected with each other. We have to remember that our spouse is called, just as we are, and we have to be interested enough in their call to know what it is that moves them and gives them energy.”

In A Lifelong Love, Thomas explains how mission looks different for different couples: “Though every Christian marriage should ultimately aspire to seek God’s kingdom as the primary mission, each couple will have a different expression of that mission.”

How can you and your spouse turn your marriage into a mission-minded marriage? Three couples share how God has led them to reach outside of their marriage and serve those around them.

John the Baptist proclaimed Advent as a time to be approached with honesty about human sin and weakness to make room for a grace willing to come from outside, bringing a real joy that the material world cannot give us.

Today many former church attenders are seeking their Advent graces elsewhere. Without the migrants, our parishes would show a distressing picture of faith in Christ’s annual outreach to suffering humanity. Traditionally many Christians had experiences of Christ entering their souls at Christmas. All the churches once encouraged a more serious and unflinching look at the need for self-emptying to rebuild joy and peace in families.

My present age, I think, is sufficient reason for me to explore once more the divine adventure offered in this Advent. After all, there is nowhere else to go.

Mother Church is entirely set up for the sinner, which creates much misunderstanding for the smug. And the smug are not just those who say they have no sin. The smug are also those who say they don’t have as much sin as others, or that their own sins, compared to others, are not nearly as serious or deadly.

Who will you be on Christmas Day?

Father Harry Clarke
Diocese of Nelson

I very much enjoy Father Anthony Ho’s articles. They are practical and inspire us, drawing on his wisdom and the wisdom of the saints.

What I miss often, also in sermons, is more details. Why do we practising Catholics often have a hard time recognizing our sins? We need more examples.

He quotes St. Francis de Sales: “Are you inclined to avarice? Give alms more frequently.” This seems obvious. But how exactly do you make acts of humility?

I do recall one possibility: do not protest when accused falsely. But even this behaviour does not seem advisable always.

Would it be more humble not to interrupt people when they talk? Is cleaning garbage around your building an act of humility?

I also thank people who collect bottles for doing a valuable service to the environment. But is this humble on my part? I do not think so. I think it is reasonable.

It would be so helpful to have many examples.

Thank you for all you do.

Marianne Werner
Vancouver

Your voice matters! Join the conversation by submitting a Letter to the Editor here.

To understand the psyche of a city government that not only refuses to declare December as Christian Heritage Month but won’t even say why, we needn’t look any further than the official celebrations and observances  it does approve of. 

In Vancouver’s case, the list is long: Sikh Heritage Month, Black History Month, Pride Week, Italian Heritage Month, and on and on. Each one includes a small testimonial about why the observance matters and how the city is richer because of it.

At the bottom of the list of is one that likely reassures city staff they’ve already “done” Christmas: it’s a statutory holiday, and employees get the day off. But unlike all the other observances on the list, the description of Christmas is strangely sterile. Where the other entries speak warmly about the community being honoured, Christmas is written like a Wikipedia entry, except Wikipedia would offer more substance on what is one of the most significant holidays in the world.

I ran the city’s list past an AI model without giving it any direction and asked whether it noticed anything different about the Christmas entry.

It saw it immediately. “It jumps off the page,” it said. Every other observance explains what the day is about, who celebrates it, why it matters, and the traditions or values behind it. Then we get to Christmas. There’s no mention of Christ, Christian Canadians, or even the cultural heritage of the holiday. It frames Christmas almost as an obligation the city observes only because everyone else does.

The AI summed it up with more courage than most city departments: “Every other entry has a heart. The Christmas one reads like it was written by a nervous anthropology student trying not to get cancelled.”

Which brings me back to the question: what goes on in the mind of a bureaucracy or political culture that will acknowledge the date of a holiday but not the meaning behind it? Are the values Christmas represents really that unimportant to a city like Vancouver which, although less Christian than other parts of Canada, still has a civic history shaped by Christian-based health care, education, social services, charity, and institutions?

I accidentally stumbled on some explanation when thinking about the psychology of Christmas songs. Listening to a familiar Christmas tune on the radio and feeling that spark of joy they bring got me wondering what it is about these songs that resonates in us. Is there something unique about Christmas music that keeps drawing us back year after year? Is it just nostalgia, or is something deeper going on?

So back to AI again: is there something distinctive about the appeal of Christmas songs beyond sentiment? 

Vancouver’s public health-care provider has confirmed that it is operating a secret euthanasia clinic on the ground floor of an office building, directly across the lobby from a dialysis clinic.

In response to a B.C. Catholic freedom-of-information application, the Vancouver Coastal Health authority confirmed on Dec. 9 what its public-affairs office had refused to verify for more than two months—that an office-type area called Horizon Space is, indeed, an area where patients are euthanized.

The B.C. Catholic reported in its Dec. 7 edition that it had received tips earlier this year that a Medical Assistance in Dying facility was operating in the five-floor building, located at 520 West 6th Avenue.

Our on-site investigation revealed that an area bearing a sign reading “Horizon Space” is located across the building’s ground-floor lobby from a dialysis clinic operated under contract by Providence Health Care, Vancouver’s Catholic health-care provider.

Vancouver Coastal made no public announcement of Horizon Space’s opening, and no record of its existence can be found on any Vancouver Coastal website. In fact, there is not even a listing for Horizon Space in the building’s lobby directory.

The authority’s public-affairs office responded to requests for information about Horizon Space with a vague email explaining it has no designated locations for patients requesting MAiD.

“Patients will have their requests addressed, assessments performed and, if eligible, receive an assisted death in the care location consistent with their care needs and wishes,” Vancouver Coastal stated in an Oct. 16 email.

In response, the B.C. Catholic filed an FOI application on Oct. 22, requesting “reports, records, memoranda, emails, contracts and any other pertinent records regarding the planning, construction, and operation of Horizon Space.” The newspaper paid a standard $10 fee upon filing.

However, the authority’s FOI office responded five days later with a notice that supplying all the requested material would cost an estimated $570—and it could be even more.

Mindful of the expense, the B.C. Catholic narrowed its request on Oct. 30 to one asking for “a single record, memo, email, report, or document that explains what Horizon Space is used for.”

And that’s exactly what we received—a single, four-page document designed to be distributed to incoming patients, explaining what Horizon Space is, how to find it, and where to park and enter the building (details of which were redacted in the copy given to the B.C. Catholic).

“This guide will provide you and your loved ones with important information about the VCH Horizon Space,” the document reads.

A hint about how long the clandestine facility has operated can be found in text at the top right corner of the document’s first page, which reads, “Vancouver Coastal Health, Assisted Dying Program, October 2024.”

In this episode, we begin our Advent journey in Eden, a place of freedom, communion, and life without shame. Eden is not only a moment in history, but also an interior garden within each of our hearts. We talk about the deep ache we all feel for union, rest, and peace, and how this longing reveals our original design for communion with God. We also reflect on the shame that often accompanies this desire for communion with others, especially when our desires are left unmet, and how bringing these places of poverty to Jesus opens us up to real, lived communion with Him.

Show Notes

One Thing We Love This Week:

• Sister Miriam’s one thing – Sacred Anchor Artisans (Catholic Etsy!) founded by Tim and Molly Olsen

• Michelle’s one thing –  The Inspired Living and this Chrism Candle

• Michelle’s other one thing – Fr. Innocent Montgomery, CFR

• Heather’s one thing – The Renew Conference in Toronto

• Heather’s other one thing – Her Advent Worship Playlist

“God does not ask us to be successful, He asks us to be faithful.” – St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta 

Fr. Mike Schmitz reflects on this quote along with the way St. Mother Teresa lived her life. So often we measure our lives by worldly success, however God wants your faithfulness, not your success. 

Let us always say, “God let me honor you with my effort.”

Do you trust God’s timing? 

Fr. Mike Schmitz reminds us that God is never late (and never early). We can trust whole heartedly that His timing is always perfect!

Michael Bublé called meeting Pope Leo XIV on Friday “one of the greatest moments of my life,” adding that as he prepares to headline the Vatican’s annual Christmas concert for the poor, he hopes his example will encourage more people to speak openly about their faith.

The Grammy-winning singer, who grew up in Burnaby, B.C., and first sang publicly in local talent shows and hockey arenas, said faith “changes everything in my life, every single interaction.” Bublé has often spoken of his close-knit Canadian family, his grandparents’ influence, and the Catholic upbringing that shaped his early years.

“When you say that you have strong faith, this is shocking to people, which is sometimes hard for me to understand,” Bublé said in response to a question from CNA at a Vatican press conference on Dec. 5.

“And with the platform I have, my hope is that … there’s a young person who might listen to me today who might be afraid to share their faith or to be open about it, and they look at me and they say, ‘Wow, look at Bublé. He’s not afraid to share it,’ and maybe it will give them the strength to do the same.”

Bublé met Pope Leo XIV on Friday along with other artists participating in the Vatican’s sixth annual “Concert with the Poor” on Saturday, Dec. 6.

“I am overwhelmed,” he said. “This morning, I had the opportunity to meet the Holy Father. For me, this was something that I knew was going to be one of the greatest moments of my life.”

This year marks the first time a Pope will attend the concert, which is free and offered to 3,000 people in need served by volunteer organizations around Rome. They will receive a hot takeaway dinner and other necessities after the event.

“We know that times are difficult for many people, and there’s a lot of darkness,” Bublé said. “I feel like when you have faith, you have your own pilot light. And the lights can go out everywhere, everywhere, but if you have that faith and you have that light inside you, you can find your way.”

I asked Michael Bublé about how his faith at a Vatican press conference today and this was his response: pic.twitter.com/WF80pnhNzf

— Courtney Mares (@catholicourtney) December 5, 2025

The singer told EWTN News after the press conference that it was especially meaningful to introduce the pontiff to his mother, who was his childhood catechism teacher.