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.
Reel Homilies with Father Tim Anastos is free to watch, but it’s not free to produce! Generous donors make it possible for us to continue creating this content. If you enjoy Reel Homilies, please consider making a monthly tax-deductible gift. Spirit Juice Entertainment Group (SJEG) is the non-profit arm of Spirit Juice Studios. It is a 501(c)3 organization that relies on your support to continue creating original, authentically Catholic content that reaches thousands of people each week through our website and social media channels.
Start a new monthly donation and receive an array of Reel Homilies and Spirit Juice swag in gratitude for your generosity. For more information, please visit our Reel Homilies Support page.
To qualify, you must donate a minimum of $10 per month. All gifts in between will be rounded down to the nearest package amount. Please allow 6-8 weeks for your package to be shipped. Questions? Contact us at [email protected]. Your donation is tax-deductible within the United States, and we will provide a tax receipt for your records.
-
Hungry for Jesus
Okay, so let’s talk about sushi. It is a common experience that when people eat sushi, they feel more hungry afterward. There are so many factors to this. White rice is quickly digestible. There is very little protein within sushi. The salty soy sauce that we consume also makes us really, really thirsty and really, really hungry. All these factors combined do not satisfy us. In the gospel for this Sunday, Jesus…
-
Obedient To Jesus
By location, being in two places at once. You know who could do that? Kill me. Padre Pio, reading other People’s Souls. You know who could do that? Who? Padre Pio. Loving Jesus with his whole heart. Who could that be? Yeah, you guessed it. Padre Pio. Pope Benedict the 16th set about Padre Pio. There were significant and epic things he would do, but what made him a saint wasn’t any of those things….
-
Face to Face with Jesus
What happens when you come face to face with the God of the universe? You don’t want to leave.
At a recent retreat, students encountered Jesus in a powerful way and many of them said the same thing: “I don’t want to go. I just want to stay.” In His presence, everything else fades.
In this Sunday’s Gospel, Peter, James, and John experience that same reality at the Transfiguration. Overwhelmed by glory, they want to pitch tents and remain there with Him.
This Lent, keep it simple: make space to sit in the presence of Jesus. Stay. Listen. Let Him meet you there.
