From the Crypt | Saints vs. Horror Villains

One servant is handed a fortune. He grabs a shovel.In this Mass Prep, we look at the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14–30) with St. John Chrysostom. What does fear make us bury? And what might it look like to use what God has given us for somebody who needs it?From a hole in the ground to an invitation: “Come, share your master’s joy.”

Put down the Christmas lights, Catholic. We’re still praying for the dead.In this episode of St. Anthony’s Tongue, we read three strange and beautiful Christian texts about death and the Harrowing of Hell. St. John of Damascus weeps beside the grave. St. Ephrem the Syrian gives Death a voice and lets us hear it panic. And in an ancient Holy Saturday homily, Christ takes Adam by the hand and tells him to rise.Why did the Church Fathers teach through poetry? And what do these hymns and homilies give us to pray with when we’re standing at a grave of our own?💀Resources:💀Grab a Copy of The Margins/Little Office Here: https://www.stanthonystongue.com/margins/ (Little Office drops ~11/13/26)Buy My Book, A Catechism of the Strange, here: https://www.amazon.com/Catechism-Strange-Stigmata-Relics-Miracles/dp/0829460683 Join my Patreon here: http://www.patreon.com/anthonystongue  ✏️Poems Mentioned:✏️St. John of Damascus — Funeral Hymn, Tone VIII (“I Weep and I Wail”)https://www.sermonindex.net/fathers/orthodox-service-book-hapgood-part-2/St. Ephrem the Syrian — Nisibene Hymn 36https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3702e.htmAnonymous — The Lord’s Descent into Hell (Ancient Homily for Holy Saturday)https://www.vatican.va/spirit/documents/spirit_20010414_omelia-sabato-santo_en.html

You can be tired and still be in love with God.In this Mass Prep, we reflect on the ten virgins in Matthew 25:1–13 through bridal mysticism, St. Augustine, and St. John Chrysostom. What keeps our faith burning when nobody is watching? And how do we keep loving in a world that teaches us to grow cold?Keep a little fire in the dark. The Bridegroom is coming.

💀Resources:💀Grab a Copy of The Margins Here: https://www.stanthonystongue.com/margins/ Buy My Book, A Catechism of the Strange (audiobook now available! ): https://www.amazon.com/Catechism-Strange-Stigmata-Relics-Miracles/dp/0829460683 Join my Patreon here: http://www.patreon.com/anthonystongue  What does it mean to be wounded by God’s love?The mystics speak of a love that pierces the heart, awakens longing, and leaves us aching for the One we have begun to know. A glimpse of God can make us want more of him—and change how we love everyone else.In this episode of Mysticism, Word by Word, we explore the “wound of love” through Scripture, St. John of the Cross, St. Teresa of Ávila, and St. Francis de Sales. We consider the difference between being hurt and being wounded by love, how longing can deepen our prayer, and why love must become action.What happens when the love we receive begins to become the love we give?

The Kingdom of Heaven is full of losers. At least, that's what this Sunday's Gospel seems to suggest.In Matthew 5:1–12, Jesus delivers the Beatitudes, turning the world's understanding of success completely upside down. He calls the poor, the mourning, the meek, the merciful, and the persecuted blessed.And perhaps most remarkably, Jesus himself becomes all of these things.As we celebrate All Saints' Day, we're reminded that holiness isn't about becoming impressive, but becoming more like Christ. And the saints remind us that the promises Jesus made on that mountain are real.The Kingdom of Heaven is full of losers. But there are no losers in heaven.Join me for this week's Mass Prep as we reflect on the Gospel for the Solemnity of All Saints.

💀Resources:💀Grab a Copy of The Margins Here: https://www.stanthonystongue.com/margins/ Buy My Book, A Catechism of the Strange, here: https://www.amazon.com/Catechism-Strange-Stigmata-Relics-Miracles/dp/0829460683 Join my Patreon here: http://www.patreon.com/anthonystongue  Did you know that one of Catholicism's most fascinating writers was also obsessed with ghosts?Msgr. Robert Hugh Benson, best known for Lord of the World, spent years investigating hauntings and even slept in a supposedly haunted room for an entire year!In this episode, we explore Benson's strange theory of residual hauntings, his connection between ghosts and Catholic relics, and what it all might reveal about the spiritual significance of the material world.Can a house remember the dead?

Bringing this back from the crypt. I hope you enjoy!💀Resources:💀Grab a Copy of The Margins Here: https://www.stanthonystongue.com/margins/ Buy My Book, A Catechism of the Strange, here: https://www.amazon.com/Catechism-Strange-Stigmata-Relics-Miracles/dp/0829460683 Join my Patreon here: http://www.patreon.com/anthonystongue What happens when holiness meets horror?In this special Halloween episode, we draw horror villains from a pumpkin bowl, Freddy Krueger, Michael Myers, Leatherface, even Pennywise, and match them with Catholic saints who could spiritually defeat them.It’s part theology, part comedy, and completely Catholic horror fun.Discover how St. Thérèse disarms rage with humility, why St. Francis might call Leatherface “brother,” and what the Eucharist says to a vampire’s hunger.

What does God actually want from us?In this week's Mass Prep, we explore Matthew 22:34–40, where Jesus reveals the greatest commandment: to love God with our whole heart and to love our neighbor as ourselves.But there's something far more intimate here than simply being a good person or following religious rules.God is not an accountant keeping track of our spiritual achievements. He is a lover who desires our hearts.Through bridal theology, the mystics, and the mystery of divine love, we explore how loving God transforms us, teaches us to love like Him, and changes how we encounter the people around us.Because God doesn't simply want our love. He wants to teach us how to love.

💀Resources:💀Grab a Copy of The Margins Here: https://www.stanthonystongue.com/margins/ Buy My Book, A Catechism of the Strange, here: https://www.amazon.com/Catechism-Strange-Stigmata-Relics-Miracles/dp/0829460683 Join my Patreon here: http://www.patreon.com/anthonystongue  What if the human soul is less like a beautiful castle and more like a haunted carnival?In this Halloween episode of St. Anthony's Tongue, we journey through the Carnival of Shadows, exploring the strange illusions of the spiritual life: distorted reflections of ourselves, our desperate need for control, the endless cycles of our mistakes, the ache of loneliness, and the terrifying experience of God's apparent absence.Drawing on Scripture and the great Catholic mystics, including St. Augustine, St. Catherine of Siena, Julian of Norwich, and St. John of the Cross, we'll discover that God doesn't always destroy the things that haunt us. Sometimes, through grace, He teaches us to see them differently.The carnival is still open. But we're not wandering through it alone.

💀Resources:💀Grab Issue VII of The Margins: A Catholic's Guide to Ghosts https://www.stanthonystongue.com/margins/ Buy My Book, A Catechism of the Strange, here: https://www.amazon.com/Catechism-Strange-Stigmata-Relics-Miracles/dp/0829460683 Join my Patreon here: http://www.patreon.com/anthonystongue It's Halloween! Let's bring an older episode back from they crypt. Here we discuss Catholicism, vampires and how the tales of one bleed into the other.