The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
A day-by-day walk through the transformative beliefs and teachings of the Catholic Church.
Displaying items 1-10 of 41 in total of The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) with the tag "father".
-
Day 29: Knowing the Name of God (2026)
January 29th, 2026 | 15 mins 57 secs
almighty god, ascension, belief, bible, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic belief, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teaching, catholic teachings, catholic wisdom, catholicism, christian belief, creator, explaining faith, father, father mike, father mike schmitz, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, god alone, god revealed, god the father, god’s people, growing in faith, holiness, i am, jesus, mystery, mystery of god, name of god, respect for god, reverence, sacred name, scripture, shared faith, sharing faith, statement of faith, structure of faith, testimony, tradition, witness, yahweh
We can learn a lot about the nature of God from his Divine Name revealed in Scripture. When God said to Moses, “I am who I am,” this was a revelation of a name as well as a refusal of a name. Fr. Mike explains how this mystery reveals truths about God: he is infinitely above all things; we cannot comprehend him, yet he draws close to us. This Divine Name expresses the steadfast, faithful, unchanging love of God for his people, even when we betray and abandon him. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 205-211.
-
Day 28: The Nature of God (2026)
January 28th, 2026 | 15 mins
almighty god, apostles, ascension, belief, bible, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic belief, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teaching, catholic teachings, catholic wisdom, catholicism, christian belief, creator, creed, explaining faith, father, father mike, father mike schmitz, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, gift of faith, god the father, growing in faith, jesus, nicene creed, persecuted christians, scripture, shared faith, sharing faith, statement of faith, structure of faith, testimony, tradition, what we believe, why we believe, witness
In this episode, we discuss the nature of God, “who” God is, beginning with God the Father. Our reading explains how the Creed begins with God the Father because he is the first Divine Person of the most Holy Trinity. God is one Divine Being made up of three persons, and his identity is a deep mystery. Fr. Mike explains that God is a single ‘what’ made up of three ‘who’s.’ Despite this mystery, God is not an anonymous force. He has revealed himself to us by making his name known to us, and he has thus made himself accessible. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 198-204.
-
Day 356: We Dare to Say (2025)
December 22nd, 2025 | 21 mins 39 secs
ascension, bible, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teachings, catholicism, children of god, father, father mike, father mike schmitz, filial boldness, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, god’s children, holy spirit, humility, jesus, prayer, scripture, son, the lord’s prayer, the our father, tradition
When we pray the Our Father, we are invited to pray with “filial boldness” as children of God. Fr. Mike emphasizes that we are God’s adopted sons and daughters, and so because of that, we are able to call him “Abba, Father.” He also emphasizes that because of this adoption we are called to “continual conversion and new life.” Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2777-2785.
-
Day 355: Summary of the Lord’s Prayer (2025)
December 21st, 2025 | 9 mins 19 secs
ascension, bible, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teachings, catholicism, father, father mike, father mike schmitz, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, god, good father, jesus, prayer, scripture, the lord’s prayer, the our father, tradition
The In-Brief, or the “nugget day”, for the article on the Lord’s Prayer, emphasizes that understanding the identity of God is essential when it comes to our relationship with God. God is not a tyrant or dictator. He is our good Father. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2773-2776.
-
Day 334: How Jesus Prayed (2025)
November 30th, 2025 | 19 mins 35 secs
article 2, article two, ascension, bible, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teachings, catholicism, chapter 1, chapter one, christian prayer, father, father mike, father mike schmitz, filial prayer, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, how we pray, jesus, jesus prays, part 4, part four, prayer, prayer in the christian life, revelation of prayer, scripture, section 1, section one, solitude, son, st.luke, tradition, universal call to prayer, word who became flesh and dwells among us
We look at how Jesus prays in this section of the Catechism. It is revealed how Jesus learned to pray, the frequency of his prayers, and where he prayed. Jesus brought his needs to the Father including his last words and final “loud cry”. Through his example of filial prayer, we are able to pray to the Father as sons and daughters. We can ask him for anything as all of our thoughts, desires, troubles, fears, and needs are already with the Lord. “The Father accepts them and, beyond all hope, answers them by raising his Son.” Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2598-2606.
-
Day 66: True God and True Man (2025)
March 7th, 2025 | 24 mins 43 secs
ascension, bible, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teachings, catholicism, consubstantial, divinity, father, father mike, father mike schmitz, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, god, heresy, humanity, incarnation, jesus, person, scripture, son, tradition
We explore the truth that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man; he is one person with two natures, both Divine and human. Fr. Mike explains that we call Mary the Mother of God because, from the very moment of his conception, Jesus was fully God and fully human. Fr. Mike also goes over heresies in the history of the Church that have denied the humanity of Christ, rejected the divinity of Christ, or confused the fact that Jesus is the Son of God by nature. The Church has always responded by affirming that Jesus Christ is truly the Son of God who became a man and our brother without ceasing to be God and Lord. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 464-469.
-
Day 59: Summary of The Fall (2025)
February 28th, 2025 | 14 mins 52 secs
adam, ascension, bible, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teachings, catholicism, concupiscence, devil, envy, eve, father, father mike, father mike schmitz, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, jesus, original sin, scripture, the fall, tradition
We have arrived at the “nugget day” or the In Brief for the sections on The Father and Original Sin. Fr. Mike reiterates the important idea that every human person is good, but every human person is also broken. This brokenness and inclination towards sin is called concupiscence. However, as St. Paul reminds us “Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more” (Romans 5:20). Fr. Mike concludes with the sentiment of hope that we believe that the world has been established and set free by God’s love. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 413-421.
-
Day 52: Male and Female (2025)
February 21st, 2025 | 15 mins 23 secs
ascension, bible, bone of my bones, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teachings, catholicism, complementarity, difference, equality, father, father mike, father mike schmitz, feminine, flesh of my flesh, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, god’s image, helper, helpmate, husband, jesus, made for each other, male and female, masculine, men and women, mother, scripture, sexism, tradition, wife
The Catechism teaches about God’s plan and design for men and women—male and female—and their equality, complementarity, dignity, and destiny. Fr. Mike shows us how men and women can be both complete in themselves and yet made “for each other.” Today's readings are Catechism paragraphs 369-373.
-
Day 38: Summary of the Trinity (2025)
February 7th, 2025 | 14 mins 46 secs
ascension, bible, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teachings, catholicism, divine economy, divine works, father, father mike, father mike schmitz, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, holy spirit, jesus, scripture, son, tradition, trinitarian, trinitarian mission, trinity, unity
We have arrived at the “nugget day” or In Brief section for the paragraphs examining the nature of the Father in the Trinity. Fr. Mike reiterates some of the “nuggets” of wisdom from these past few days. He emphasizes the importance of how Baptism allows us to share in the life of the Holy Trinity. We conclude this section with a reflection on this profound call to share in the glory of the Trinity even though it exists “in the obscurity of faith.” Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 261-267.
-
Day 37: The Divine Economy (2025)
February 6th, 2025 | 14 mins 36 secs
ascension, bible, blessed elizabeth of the holy trinity, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teachings, catholicism, divine economy, father, father mike, father mike schmitz, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, holy spirit, holy trinity, jesus, scripture, son, tradition, trinity
Fr. Mike continues to unpack the Church’s teachings on the Trinity. Today, we move into an examination of the divine economy or how God has revealed and communicated himself on earth. The divine economy is not just the work of the Father, but rather the work of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit together as one. Fr. Mike concludes this episode with a reflection on the impactful words of Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity who asks God to “make our hearts his heaven.” Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 257-260.