St. Jerome Parish in Boise, Idaho decided to replace the Gospel reading with the latest episode of The Chosen series.
“This is the best decision we’ve made in years,” the pastor said. “The Gospel message really comes alive now. Much better than those old stuffy books we used to read!”
The Chosen is a crowd-sourced TV series about Jesus from Angel Studios. Seasons 1-3 have been released so far and are highly acclaimed by Catholics, who say it is like an extended meditation of the Gospel stories.
“Thanks to hours of social media a day I no longer have the capacity to create imaginations from text alone,” parishioner Kayla Rudolf said. “To be honest I gave up trying to read the Gospels a long time ago.”
She continued, “The Chosen helps me imagine what Jesus was really like. Mass has never been more fulfilling!”
Many worried Mass would be negatively impacted by the change, but sources say the move has started without difficulty so far. The parish simply rolls out a projector screen and shows a roughly 1-hour episode every Sunday.
“I still do a homily though,” the pastor said. “Otherwise, what am I good for?”
The only problem has been lengthier Mass times after adding in an extended period for the Gospel. Masses were almost 2-hours, which was unacceptable for worshippers’ busy schedules.
“We solved that issue though,” the pastor continued. “To save time, we just cut out the whole Eucharist thing.”
“Now we just give people Communion on their way out at the door! And things are much more streamlined.”
