About St. Anthony · Browns Valley, Minnesota
St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church is a small, rural Roman Catholic parish in the town of Browns Valley, in far western Minnesota's Traverse County. Founded in 1896 with just 28 families, the parish is part of the Diocese of Saint Cloud and today serves roughly 150 households. It belongs to the MAAA Area Catholic Community together with St. Mary's in Chokio and Ave Maria in Wheaton, and is pastored by Father John Paul Knopik, who serves all three parishes. Worship is centered on a single Sunday Mass in a Gothic brick church that was originally built in 1911, gutted by an Easter Sunday fire in 1934, and rebuilt the same year.
- Established
- 1896
- Patron
- St. Anthony of Padua
- Rector
- Rev. John Paul Knopik
- Diocese
- Diocese of Saint Cloud
Why belong here
St. Anthony of Padua is a tight-knit rural parish where the faithful gather around a single Sunday Mass, weekly Eucharistic Adoration, the Rosary, and a Prayer Line that mobilizes parishioners for those in need of immediate prayer. It is one of three parishes in the MAAA Area Catholic Community, so members share a pastor with St. Mary's in Chokio and Ave Maria in Wheaton and benefit from the wider ACC's life — including rural traditions like Father Knopik's annual blessing of seeds for farming families. For Catholics in Browns Valley and the surrounding Traverse County farmland, St. Anthony offers a deep-rooted, century-old community of faith in which every family is known by name.
Mass times at St. Anthony
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. (Browns Valley)
- Sundays after Mass
- Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m. (at St. Mary's, Chokio)
- Wednesdays at 5:30 p.m. (at Ave Maria, Wheaton)
Adoration times
- Thursdays at 7:00 a.m. (Adoration) followed by Rosary at 8:00 a.m. — "Hour of POWER"
- Tuesdays 7:00 a.m. Adoration / 8:00 a.m. Rosary (at St. Mary's, Chokio)
- Wednesdays 7:00 a.m. Adoration / 8:00 a.m. Rosary (at Ave Maria, Wheaton)
Parish Story & Heritage
St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church has served Browns Valley since 1896, making it one of the long-standing Catholic communities of the Diocese of Saint Cloud. The parish traces its spiritual roots back to the westward migration of the 1600s, when missionaries accompanied settlers to bring the Gospel to the region's Indigenous peoples and newcomers. The parish was officially established on July 4, 1896, with Father Camille Thiebaut as its first pastor and 28 founding families. The first church building — a large Gothic brick structure — was completed in 1911, but was nearly destroyed by an Easter Sunday fire in 1934. The brick walls were saved, and the present church was rebuilt inside them the same year under Father Peter Lauer; the rectory followed in 1969. Today the parish serves about 150 families and remains a small but deeply rooted rural community.
- Founded July 4, 1896 by Father Camille Thiebaut with 28 families
- 1911: First Gothic brick church built
- Easter Sunday 1934: Fire destroys interior; brick walls salvaged
- 1934: Church rebuilt under Fr. Peter Lauer (no stained glass)
- 1969: Rectory added
- Today: ~150 families
Mission Statement
The parish's stated mission is drawn directly from Matthew 28:19–20: "Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age." The parish lives this out by sharing God's love through living the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the rural Browns Valley community.
- Matthew 28:19-20 — Great Commission as guiding text
- Sharing God's love by living the Gospel of Jesus Christ
Sacrament Schedule
The parish gathers weekly for Sunday Mass and offers the Sacrament of Reconciliation regularly. Confession is heard on Thursdays before the weekend, and additional weekday confession times are offered at the sister parishes in the MAAA ACC. Eucharistic Adoration and the Rosary are prayed as part of the ACC-wide "Hour of POWER" rotation, with Browns Valley hosting Thursday mornings.
- Sunday Mass: 11:00 a.m.
- Confessions: Thursdays 5:30 p.m. (new time)
- Confessions also Sundays after Mass
- Browns Valley Health Center Mass: Thursdays 10:00 a.m.
- Hour of POWER (Adoration 7 a.m., Rosary 8 a.m.): Thursdays in Browns Valley; Tuesdays in Chokio; Wednesdays in Wheaton
Sacraments
Information about the seven sacraments at St. Anthony is kept simple and direct on the parish website: those interested in receiving Baptism, getting married in the church, or coming to Confession are asked to contact the pastor. Marriages require a minimum six-month notice.
- Marriage: Contact the pastor a minimum of six months before the planned wedding
- Baptism: Contact the pastor for preparation
- Confession: Sundays after Mass and Thursdays at 5:30 p.m.
Parish Life & Devotions
Beyond the Sunday Mass, St. Anthony keeps a steady devotional rhythm rooted in the rural community's life and seasons. During Lent the parish prays the Stations of the Cross on Wednesday evenings, and the weekly Adoration/Rosary Hour of POWER anchors prayer life across the three ACC parishes. The St. Anthony Prayer Line is a signature ministry: a phone chain of parishioners who are contacted when someone is in need of immediate prayer.
- Stations of the Cross — Wednesday evenings at 6:00 p.m. during Lent
- St. Anthony Prayer Line — phone chain for immediate prayer requests
- Annual Blessing of Seeds — rural tradition for farm families organized by Fr. John Paul Knopik
Bulletins, Documents & Events
The parish maintains an online Bulletins|Docs|Events page with the current weekly bulletin (linked through the parish site), the calendar of upcoming events, and the regular sacramental schedule across Browns Valley, Chokio and Wheaton. It is the best source for any week-to-week changes in Mass times or special observances.
- Weekly bulletin posted under Bulletins tab
- Upcoming events and calendar of ACC gatherings
- Schedule of confessions, Adoration and weekday Masses across all three parishes
MAAA Area Catholic Community
St. Anthony is one of four parishes in the MAAA Area Catholic Community, a rural ACC that stretches across the western Minnesota prairie. The other parishes are St. Mary's in Chokio, Ave Maria in Wheaton, and Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Morris (the latter served by Father Todd Schneider). Browns Valley to Morris is about 47 miles, Wheaton to Browns Valley about 24, and Wheaton to Chokio about 30 — so parishioners often travel significant distances, and the ACC council describes itself as 'four rural parishes on the prairie with the purpose of strengthening and supporting the Gospel of Jesus Christ.' Fr. John Paul Knopik pastors the three non-Assumption parishes together.
- MAAA ACC parishes: St. Anthony (Browns Valley), St. Mary's (Chokio), Ave Maria (Wheaton), Assumption (Morris)
- Father John Paul Knopik serves St. Anthony, St. Mary's and Ave Maria
- Father Todd Schneider serves Assumption Parish and the Catholic School in Morris
- ACC-wide traditions include the annual Blessing of Seeds
Visiting & Contact
St. Anthony's parish office is on the church grounds at 112 2nd Street South in Browns Valley. The parish office phone (320-695-2621) is the main point of contact; the pastor can also be reached at the parish rectory number and via email.
- Address: 112 2nd Street South, Browns Valley, MN 56219
- Parish Office Phone: 320-695-2621
- Parish Email: [email protected]
- Pastor Email: [email protected]
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Camille Thiebaut1896-1917
First pastor; oversaw founding of the parish and construction of the 1911 Gothic brick church.
- Fr. Fred Hinnenkamp1917-1921
- Fr. John B. Wilkes1921-1925
- Fr. Charles Mayer1925-1932
- Fr. Joseph A. Kilian1932-1934
Pastor during the Easter Sunday 1934 fire that destroyed the church interior.
- Fr. Peter Lauer1934-1940
Led the rebuilding of the church in 1934 using the salvaged brick walls.
- Fr. Paul Kunkel1940-1949
- Fr. John Bettendorf1949-1965
- Fr. Vincent Santo1965-1976
- Fr. Ralph Keller1976-1978
- Fr. Robert Ekman1978-1988
- Fr. Alan Wielinski1988
Brief tenure.
- Fr. John Caskey1988-1992
- Fr. Kevin Fussy1992-1994
- Fr. Arlie Sowada1994-
Listed on the 1996 centennial commemoration as the then-current pastor.
- Fr. John Paul Knopik2021-present
Appointed June 29, 2021 by Bishop Donald J. Kettler; also pastors St. Mary, Chokio and Ave Maria, Wheaton.