Shows / The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
In Ascension’s The Catechism in a Year podcast, Fr. Mike Schmitz guides you through the entire Catechism of the Catholic Church in 365 episodes, providing explanation, insight, and encouragement along the way. Unlike any other Catechism podcast, The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) podcast follows a reading plan inspired by Ascension’s Foundations of Faith approach, a color-coded approach that reveals the structure of the Catechism, making it easier to read and understand. With this…
Episodes
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 211: The One Priesthood of Christ (2024)
The priesthood of the Old Covenant among the people of Israel is fulfilled in the one priesthood of Christ. The Catechism compares the Old Testament…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 210: The Sacrament of Holy Orders (2024)
The Catechism enters Chapter Three on the “Sacraments at the Service of Communion” which include both Holy Orders and Matrimony. As it introduces the sacrament…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 209: Summary of the Anointing of the Sick (2024)
This summary of the Catechism’s teaching about the Anointing of the Sick is concise and rich. This holy anointing brings us hope and courage as we endure…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 208: Completing the Earthly Pilgrimage (2024)
The effects of the Anointing of the Sick are numerous and deeply transformative. In times of great need and temptation, this sacrament brings us strength…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 207: Celebrating the Anointing of the Sick (2024)
The Anointing of the Sick is not just for those on the verge of death but for any faithful suffering from a grave illness. Fr. Mike explains that because of…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 206: Healing the Sick (2024)
By taking up our cross and following Christ, we gain a new way of seeing sickness and frailty. Along with this newness of vision, the Church is given the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 205: Christ the Physician (2024)
Sickness and suffering bring us face-to-face with our fragility and limitations. While they might cause some to lose hope and become bitter, we can also endure…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 204: Summary of Sacrament of Reconciliation (2024)
In today’s nugget day, Fr. Mike reviews the major themes of the sacrament of Reconciliation. Fr. Mike emphasizes the six spiritual effects of this sacrament…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 203: The Purpose of Indulgences (2024)
Fr. Mike expands on the purpose of indulgences and clarifies why the Church has the authority to provide indulgences. We also learn about the role of the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 202: How Confession Heals (2024)
What happens to us when we go to Confession? Fr. Mike explains the powerful ways the Sacrament of Reconciliation spiritually restores and perfects us. We also…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 201: The Confessor’s Role (2024)
If God is the one who forgives our sins, why do we need priests as confessors? The Catechism teaches us today about the role of the priest as the minister of…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 200: The Confession of Sins (2024)
When we confess our sins, we’re not telling God something he doesn’t know; we’re giving God access to something he doesn’t have: permission to heal our wounds…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 199: The Sacrament of Forgiveness (2024)
Together, with Fr. Mike, we continue our examination of the sacrament of Reconciliation. Specifically, we explore the origins and structure of the sacrament…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 198: Reconciliation with God (2024)
We continue our examination of the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. Fr. Mike emphasizes that sin, above all else, is an offense against God and his…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 197: Forms of Penance (2024)
Together, with Fr. Mike, we continue our examination of the sacrament of Reconciliation and Penance. In particular, we explore the different forms of penance…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 196: Conversion of the Baptized (2024)
We continue our examination of the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. Fr. Mike explores that interior conversion, or conversion of the heart, is a…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 195: Penance and Reconciliation (2024)
Together, with Fr. Mike, we begin the chapter on the sacraments of healing, starting with the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. Fr. Mike emphasizes that…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 194: Summary of the Sacrament of the Eucharist (2024)
The Catechism has spent considerable time unpacking Holy Communion—the “sacrament of sacraments”—with us, and now she summarizes the most essential truths that…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 193: Communion Forever in Heaven (2024)
The Catechism wraps up its overview of the Eucharist by reminding us that the sacrament of Holy Communion is a foretaste of what is to come in heaven. Fr. Mike…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 192: Unity in the Eucharist (2024)
The sacrament of Holy Communion unites the faithful together in a most profound, visible way. It also makes disunity in the Church all the more painful and…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 191: The Eucharist Changes Us (2024)
As the popular adage goes, “you are what you eat.” The Catechism tells us that, as food nourishes the body, so Jesus present in Holy Communion nourishes the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 190: Receiving Holy Communion (2024)
The Catechism goes over the prerequisites to receiving Jesus in the Eucharist, as well as how often the faithful can and should receive him. Fr. Mike ensures…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 189: Worship of the Eucharist (2024)
We continue our examination of the sacrament of the Eucharist, specifically how we worship the Eucharist. Fr. Mike examines how we, as Catholics, worship…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 188: Christ’s Presence in the Eucharist (2024)
Together, with Fr. Mike, we explore the reality of Christ’s true presence in the Eucharist. Fr. Mike unpacks what actually happens during the celebration of…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 187: The Church’s Sacrificial Unity (2024)
Together, we continue our exploration of the sacrificial memorial of the sacrament of the Eucharist. Fr. Mike reiterates that the whole Church, both visible…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 186: The Sacrificial Memorial (2024)
We continue our examination of the sacrament of the Eucharist. Fr. Mike emphasizes that every element of Christ’s passion, the whole thing, is one, single…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 185: Thanksgiving, Memorial, Presence (2024)
Together with Fr. Mike, we continue our examination of the sacrament of the Eucharist. Fr. Mike takes us back to the Book of Genesis, the sacrifices of Cain…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 184: The Movement of the Mass (2024)
There is great depth to the movement of the celebration of the Mass. Fr. Mike highlights the role of Christ as the head and high priest and the role of the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 183: The Mass of All Ages (2024)
Celebrating the sacrament of the Eucharist has been part of the Tradition of the Catholic Church for 2,000 years. Fr. Mike unpacks the citation from St. Justin…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 182: The Signs of Bread and Wine (2024)
Fr. Mike breaks down the various ways the Eucharist fulfills the sacrifices of bread and wine of the Old Covenant and explains why the Eucharist is central to…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 181: The Sacrament of the Eucharist (2024)
The sacrament of the Eucharist has many different names, and "each name evokes certain aspects of it." Fr. Mike explains the meaning behind this sacrament's…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 180: The Source and Summit (2024)
The Eucharist is “the source and summit of the Christian life.” Today, we begin our journey into the mystery of the Eucharist. Fr. Mike emphasizes that the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 179: Summary of Confirmation (2024)
Together, with Fr. Mike, we have arrived at the conclusion and nugget day for the section on the sacrament of Confirmation. Fr. Mike reiterates the idea that…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 178: Who Receives Confirmation (2024)
We continue our examination of the sacrament of Confirmation, specifically both who should receive Confirmation and who can act as the minister of the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 177: The Celebration of Confirmation (2024)
We continue our examination of the sacrament of Confirmation, specifically the celebration and effects of the sacrament of Confirmation. Fr. Mike explores the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 176: Traditions and Signs of Confirmation (2024)
Together, with Fr. Mike, we continue our examination of the sacrament of Confirmation, specifically the two Traditions and different signs of Confirmation. Fr…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 175: Introduction to Confirmation (2024)
We begin our examination of the sacrament of Confirmation. Fr. Mike emphasizes that the reception of Confirmation is necessary for the completion and…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 174: Summary of the Sacrament of Baptism (2024)
In this summary of the Church’s teachings on Baptism, the Catechism relays the heart of the sacrament. If you needed to quickly explain Baptism to someone on…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 173: Brothers and Sisters in Baptism (2024)
The Catechism shows us how Baptism unites the Church as a “People of God of the New Covenant” and goes so far as to say that “Baptism constitutes the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 172: What Does Baptism Do? (2024)
Baptism has profound effects upon the baptized: “purification from sins and new birth in the Holy Spirit.” The Catechism shows us that the graces of Baptism…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 171: The Necessity of Baptism (2024)
“Baptism is the sacrament of faith.” The Catechism explains to us who can baptize as well as why we need Baptism for eternal life. It also explains to us what…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 170: Who Can Be Baptized? (2024)
Put simply, “[e]very person not yet baptized and only such a person is able to be baptized.” The Catechism explains to us the purpose of Baptism for both…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 169: The Mystagogy of Baptism (2024)
Together with Fr. Mike, we continue our examination of the sacrament of Baptism, specifically the mystagogy of the rite of Baptism. The Catechism explains each…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 168: The Celebration of Baptism (2024)
We continue our examination of the Sacrament of Baptism, specifically how we celebrate the sacrament and the different elements that must always be present in…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 167: The Baptism of Christ (2024)
Together, with Fr. Mike, we continue our examination of the sacrament of Baptism. Fr. Mike emphasizes that each and every one of the Old Covenant…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 166: Introduction to Baptism (2024)
Together, we begin the chapter on the sacraments of initiation, specifically the section on the sacrament of Baptism. Fr. Mike unpacks the different names that…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 165: Summary of Liturgical Diversity (2024)
Together, with Fr. Mike, we arrive at the conclusion and “nugget day” for the section on liturgy and culture. Fr. Mike reiterates the importance of the fact…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 164: Liturgical Diversity and Unity (2024)
Did you know there is more than one liturgical rite in the Catholic Church? Fr. Mike reviews the different liturgical Traditions that are part of the Catholic…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 163: Summary of the Liturgy (2024)
In today’s “nugget day”, we review the main takeaways from our readings on the liturgy. Fr. Mike invites us to remember that every time we participate in the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 162: Where the Liturgy Is Celebrated (2024)
Where is the liturgy celebrated? The Catechism offers us overarching principles as well as specific details about the spaces in which the liturgy is…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 161: The Liturgy of the Hours (2024)
The Liturgy of the Hours is known as the “public prayer of the Church.” Fr. Mike explains how praying the Liturgy of the Hours sanctifies time and gives God…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 160: The Liturgical Year (2024)
Fr. Mike reviews the major solemnities and feast days that make up the liturgical year and explains why they are important to celebrate. We learn that the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 159: When the Liturgy Is Celebrated (2024)
Together, with Fr. Mike, we examine the question of when the liturgy is celebrated. The Catechism states that there is a word that marks Christian prayer, and…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 158: Holy Images in the Liturgy (2024)
We continue our examination of the different elements of the liturgy, specifically holy images in the liturgy. Fr. Mike highlights that because the Word was…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 157: God’s Word and Sacred Music (2024)
Fr. Mike examines the words, actions, music, and singing involved in how we celebrate the Liturgy. He discusses how, at many Masses, there are signs that…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 156: How the Liturgy Is Celebrated (2024)
We continue to examine the celebration of the liturgy and sacraments. In the context of how the liturgy is celebrated, Fr. Mike explains that we are both body…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 155: Who Celebrates the Liturgy (2024)
Together, with Fr. Mike, we examine “who celebrates the liturgy.” Fr. Mike emphasizes that when we celebrate the sacraments, the whole Christ, not just the…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 154: Sacraments of Eternal Life (2024)
We’ve seen how the sacraments re-present what Christ worked for us in his Passion and death, but the Catechism also explains to us how the sacraments prefigure…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 153: Sacraments Save (2024)
Jesus uses his sacraments to save his people. The Catechism proclaims that the sacraments are “efficacious”, the sacraments are “wrought…by the power of God”…
- The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Day 152: Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi (2024)
The Catechism makes clear to us that evangelization and the sacraments go hand in hand. An ancient saying is highlighted, linking the two: lex orandi, lex…