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 Episode 21 - 30 of 34 in total of The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz) with the tag “grace”.
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Day 348: The Battle of Prayer
December 14th, 2023 | 25 mins 41 secs
battle, failure, grace, grit, humility, love, prayer
Prayer is "grace and grit," as Fr. Mike phrases it. In this section, one of Fr. Mike's favorites in the Catechism, we hear that "we pray as we live because we live as we pray." This living and praying is a battle in which we must confront our failures and accept the Holy Spirit's grace and aid. Prayer requires humility, trust, and perseverance on our part. In this struggle, we must battle against distraction, ourselves, dryness, and temptation. Today's readings are Catechism paragraphs 2725-2731.
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Day 266: The Gift of Grace
September 23rd, 2023 | 17 mins 10 secs
conversion, freedom, grace, heaven, love, perfection, salvation
In this summary of the Catechism’s teaching on holiness, justification, and merit, we briefly consider the work of God’s grace and mercy. His grace moves us from sin and toward him, making us his sons and daughters and bringing us into the very life of the Trinity. This gift of grace invites us to respond to his promptings and invitations freely. Finally, God offers “all the graces needed to attain eternal life.” Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2017-2029.
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Day 264: Man’s Merit
September 21st, 2023 | 15 mins 12 secs
charity, christ, good deeds, grace, merit, saint therese, saints
Knowing that our good actions begin and end in Christ, we recognize that man’s merit is due to God. Fr. Mike explains that charity in Christ is the source of all our merits. In this way, merit is pure grace, and we should look to the saints for examples of how to live this truth out. St. Thérèse of Lisieux puts it best when she prays to God: “In the evening of this life, I shall appear before you with empty hands.” Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2006-2011.
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Day 263: Responding to Grace
September 20th, 2023 | 17 mins 34 secs
free will, grace, justification, responding to gods will, sacramental graces, salvation, supernatural grace
God’s free initiative demands man’s free response. We continue our discussion of grace today by examining how grace and our free will interact in our lives. Fr. Mike also explains the purpose of sacramental graces and how the expression of these graces looks different across the Body of Christ. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 2002-2005.
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Day 262: Habitual and Actual Grace
September 19th, 2023 | 19 mins 38 secs
actual grace, deifying grace, grace, habitual grace, participation in god's life, sanctification, supernatural
Without God’s help, we can do nothing. The Catechism delves into grace today, explaining how grace works and helps us achieve our supernatural vocation to eternal life. Fr. Mike unpacks the difference between habitual and actual grace and reminds us that God is always the initiator of all our spiritual efforts. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 1996-2001.
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Day 261: Justification
September 18th, 2023 | 19 mins
grace, holy spirit, justification, justified, righteous, righteousness, salvation, sanctification, sanctify, sin
What does it mean to be justified? The Catechism teaches us today about the grace of the Holy Spirit and its power to justify us. Fr. Mike explains how justification detaches us from sin and purifies our hearts. We learn that justification brings about a marvelous inward transformation that bears witness to God's great mercy. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 1987-1995.
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Day 235: Human Freedom in Salvation
August 23rd, 2023 | 16 mins 57 secs
freedom, grace, human acts, liberation, moral law, morality, morality of human acts, salvation, sin
Together, with Fr. Mike, we examine the reality of our human freedom in the economy of salvation. Fr. Mike emphasizes that the right to freedom does not imply a right to say or do anything. Rather, it is the power to choose the “right.” He also emphasizes that the moral law actually allows us to live with freedom and joy, and that when we violate the moral law, we violate our own freedom. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 1739-1748.
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Day 194: Summary of the Sacrament of the Eucharist
July 13th, 2023 | 15 mins 35 secs
adoration, blood of christ, body of christ, communicant, consecration, eucharist, eucharistic, grace, holy communion, in brief, in-brief, john 6, living bread, mystical body, new covenant, nugget day, reparation, sacrament of sacraments, sacrifice, species of bread and wine, state of grace, thanksgiving, transubstantial, transubstantiation
The Catechism has spent considerable time unpacking Holy Communion—the “sacrament of sacraments”—with us, and now she summarizes the most essential truths that we must internalize and move forward with. Fr. Mike takes this “nugget day” to tell us that God desires to feed us. He has given us his Son so that we might be filled with him and made whole again, in unity with him for all of eternity. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 1406-1419.
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Day 145: Introduction to the Liturgy
May 25th, 2023 | 16 mins 41 secs
community, grace, liturgy, sacraments, worship
Together, with Fr. Mike, we begin the section of the Catechism examining the liturgy. We start with an exploration of the questions of “why” the liturgy and “what” the liturgy is. Fr. Mike explains that it is through the liturgy that we are able to encounter the grace that Jesus Christ has won for us. He emphasizes that it is the liturgy that gives us access to God, himself. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 1066-1075.
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Day 143: Amen
May 23rd, 2023 | 16 mins 8 secs
amen, ascension, belief, bible, catechism, catechism in a year, catechism of the catholic church, catholic, catholic church, catholic doctrine, catholic faith, catholic teachings, catholicism, death, father mike, father mike schmitz, foundations of faith, fr mike, fr mike schmitz, grace, jesus, judgment, scripture, tradition
Congratulations, we have come to the conclusion of Part One of the Catechism! Fr. Mike reviews the last “nugget” section on death and judgment, inviting us to regularly ponder the moment of our own death and judgment before our Lord. We conclude today with an explanation of the meaning of the word “amen” and the significance it has for our belief in God. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 1051-1065.