Have you ever won an argument against your grandma? Exactly. There’s a quiet wisdom in her you just can’t beat. Mother Teresa was the same, simple words, simple life, yet no one ever “won” a debate with her. Because real holiness isn’t something you argue with. It speaks for itself. This week’s reflection unpacks Jesus’ promise: “I will give you wisdom in speaking that your adversaries will be powerless to refute.” When we grow in holiness and ask Jesus for wisdom, the truth carries its own weight. And yes, still probably a bad idea to argue with your grandma.

Top five most gruesome apostle martyrs. Coming in fifth, St. Thomas, stabbed to death with a spear. Coming in fourth St. James, the Lesser, clubbed to death. Coming in third St. Simon sawed in half. Coming in second, our very own first Pope St. Peter crucified upside down and coming in first St. Bartholomew skinned alive. Today, the feasts of St. John LA and you walk into this basilica and you see statues of the apostles holding the tools of their martyrdom. This is the witness of the saints. Death had no power over the witness of the apostles. Death has no power over Jesus Christ and as Catholic Christians, death has no power over you. Go be witnesses of Jesus. Just don’t get skinned alive.

Have you guys ever heard of the term skinny fat? Yeah, it’s a thing. It’s a person who looks pretty normal on the outside, but on the inside, fat is growing over all of their organs. Even though you may look fine on the outside, it’s a silent killer. This weekend, we’re celebrating All Souls’ Day, where if we don’t take care of our souls, that’s like…

The Nightmare Before Christmas. The one character that people love to hate is the Mayor of Halloween Town. The Mayor is smiling on the outside, but on the inside is absolutely selfish. This is the perfect example of what we see in the gospel with the Pharisee—the Pharisee, smiling on the outside, but absolutely selfish on the inside…