Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Today, we honour St Brigid of Sweden, one of the great co-patronesses of Europe, a woman of profound holiness, bold vision, and deep mystical union with Christ. In a time of political turmoil, spiritual confusion, and ecclesial division—not unlike our own—God raised up Brigid as a prophetic voice calling Europe back to its Christian soul.

Our Gospel today, “I am the true vine”, offers the key to understanding both Brigid’s life and the hope of our continent.

Jesus tells us: “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.”

This is not a gentle metaphor—it is a spiritual law. Cut off from Christ, Europe withers. This is not just a religious opinion—it is a reality we are seeing before our eyes: a continent once rooted in the Gospel now suffering from spiritual amnesia. Peace without Christ becomes fragile. Prosperity without virtue turns to pride. Freedom without truth collapses into confusion.

St Brigid lived in the 14th century—a time of plague, war, and corruption. The papacy was in exile. The clergy were divided. The faithful were disoriented. And what was Brigid’s solution? Not politics. Not ideology. Not revolution. Her solution was union with Christ. A return to the vine. Holiness. Repentance. Prayer. The Passion of Jesus.

Brigid’s fruitfulness came not from ambition but from abiding. She was a wife and mother of eight children, including St Catherine of Sweden. After her husband’s death, she devoted herself entirely to Christ, receiving profound mystical revelations—especially of the suffering Christ crucified.

Out of this deep prayer flowed bold action: she founded the Bridgettine Order; she travelled to Rome as a pilgrim and prophetess; she wrote letters to kings and popes calling for reform and renewal. Her heart burned with a love for the Church and for Christ crucified.

She had no worldly power—only holiness. And yet God used her to shape history.

The Church recognises her not only as a saint, but as a Patroness of Europe—a model of what Europe is called to be: a continent rooted in Christ, alive with grace, and bearing the fruits of faith, culture, and compassion.

Jesus also says, “Every branch that bears fruit, He prunes so that it may bear more.” Brigid’s life was not easy. She endured bereavement, rejection, opposition—even misunderstanding within the Church. But she accepted the Father’s pruning. It purified her love. It deepened her union. It magnified her fruitfulness.

This is a word for us today. The Church in Europe is being pruned. Empty churches. Fewer vocations. Scandals and division. But perhaps this is not death—it is pruning. Perhaps the Father is calling us to deeper humility, deeper holiness, deeper dependence on the Vine.

Let us not despair. Let us stay rooted.

How do we honour St Brigid today? Not only by reading about her life, but by imitating her way: by remaining in Christ.

In your home, your parish, your heart—remain in Him. Daily prayer. Faithful confession. Reverent Mass. Love of Scripture. Compassion for the poor. Courage to speak the truth. These are the ways we cling to the Vine in a world that would prefer to uproot us.

St Brigid shows us that a single life, joined to Christ, can transform a continent.

Let us ask her prayers for Europe. That Christ may once again be the soul of our civilisation. That His life may flow through us. That we too may bear fruit that will last.