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The Masculine Mysticism of the Nativity: St. Joseph and the Strength of Tenderness
What does the Nativity reveal about masculinity?In this video, we reflect on St. Joseph and the quiet, contemplative masculinity revealed at the birth of Christ. Against modern ideas of power, dominance, and performance, the Nativity offers something radically different. Strength expressed through tenderness. Authority shown through obedience. Holiness revealed through proximity to a vulnerable God.St. Joseph never speaks in Scripture, yet he stands at the very center of the mystery of the Incarnation. He guards the Child. He listens in the night. He acts without spectacle. In doing so, he shows us a masculinity shaped not by control, but by intimacy with God.This reflection explores the masculine mysticism of Advent and the Nativity, the fear of tenderness in modern Catholic masculinity, and the deeper strength found in silence, vigilance, and mutual gaze with God. We also consider Joseph as an image of the bridal posture of the soul, showing how availability to God can take shape in a man’s life.
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The God Who Offends: Mass Prep for the Mystic Heart (December 14, 2025)
In this week’s Gospel reflection we sit with John the Baptist in the darkness of uncertainty and listen to Jesus’ strange response: look again. Instead of offering clarity, Christ invites us to see Him in the quiet places where healing and mercy are already breaking in.And we explore the line that holds the whole passage together: Blessed is the one who is not offended by me.Advent asks whether we can love a God who arrives differently than we expect.
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3 Mystics Who Saw the Nativity: What Their Visions Reveal About the Incarnation
In this Advent reflection we explore three Christian mystics who claimed to witness the Nativity through visionary experience. Saints across the centuries have described seeing Christ born in light, poverty, and humility, not as historical reportage but as a spiritual unveiling of the Incarnation.This video looks at the Nativity visions of St. Bridget of Sweden, Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich, and St. Francis of Assisi. Their accounts differ in imagery and detail, yet converge on the same mystery of divine nearness. These visions matter not because they correct the Gospel narratives, but because they reveal how the Incarnation is received by the soul.Why do mystical visions of Bethlehem vary? What do light, straw, silence, and tenderness teach us about God taking on flesh? And why does the Church continue to preserve and discern these visions centuries later?Advent is the season when heaven leans close. Through these mystics we are invited not only to remember the birth of Christ, but to contemplate what it means for God to choose proximity over power and humility over spectacle.For patrons, this reflection continues with additional mystics and longer readings from their writings, offering a deeper look into interior Nativity visions and the ongoing birth of Christ in the heart.Three more mystics can be found on patreon: http://www.patreon.com/anthonystongue
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Why God Wanted a Body: Incarnational Mysticism, Advent, and the God Who Drew Near
Why did God choose a body?He could have remained distant. He could have spoken only from heaven. He could have arrived in power and fire. Instead, the infinite God became an infant.In this Advent episode, I explore incarnational mysticism and the heart of the Christian claim that God chose to enter human life fully. God did not come to change His mind about humanity. He came so that we might change our minds about God. The Incarnation reveals a God who draws near, who becomes knowable, touchable, and present within the ordinary realities of human life.This reflection looks at why Christ came as a poor child, why love always moves toward proximity, why mysticism happens in the body rather than outside of it, and why God chose hiddenness, smallness, and vulnerability as the way to reveal Himself. We also reflect on the womb as the first temple of the Incarnation and why Advent is a season of attention rather than spiritual performance.If God feels distant this Advent, this episode offers a different possibility. God may not be absent. God may simply be coming quietly, gently, and close.
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5 Mystical Ways to Deepen Your Advent (Without Burning Out)
Advent shouldn't be a time to "do more stuff" but rather, to go more deeply into the things we're already doing. Here are 5 ways to increase your prayerfulness this advent, in the lineage of the Catholic mystics. These are designed not to overwhelm you, but invigorate you!🔥Additional St. Anthony's Tongue Resources:Enter the Stable: Advent with the Mystics:A 90 Minute Online Retreat, here on YouTube!https://youtu.be/exFRYGPGNHs?si=1Hl3xMUtx0iAuLLzAdvent Devotional Guide (also available on ALL Patreon tiers): Weekly reflections, prayers and more! https://www.stanthonystongue.com/products/p/pdf-advent-devotional-guidePatreon: Over 400 pieces of bonus videos, articles, and for Advent - near daily content reflections and more! www.patreon.com/anthonystongue The Violence of Marian Joy - A reflection on the joyful mysteries, including the nativityhttps://youtu.be/POGPjUCux4c?si=sPtsvk5azRbbwRPq ----🔥 Lectio Divina ResourceLectio Divina Video Episode: https://youtu.be/ibLtCzBlXZs?si=KiSMFADQwCjCs7cF-----🔥 Liturgy of the Hours/Chant Resources: Chanting the Hours Resource: Sing the Hourshttps://www.youtube.com/c/SingtheHours Psalm Tones: Chants and RantsThis is Sing the Hours' "vlog" channel. He has about 70 of the psalms sung, but it has most of the major psalm tones listed. I highly recommend using this playlist as a basis when learning a tone.https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLTznj9fyCSlDWxCmrBpOfEkXwIeWIe3I0 The Mundelein Psalter (This is available on Amazon as well) https://ltp.org/products/details/HMPSAL/mundelein-psalterThe Universalis App (Highly Recommend!!) https://apps.apple.com/us/app/universalis/id284942719The Little Office of the Blessed Virgin Mary (You can find many versions, but this one is highly recommended) https://www.baronius.com/little-office-of-the-blessed-virgin-mary.html
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