The Fr. Mike Schmitz Catholic Podcast

Latest Episodes:

How to Love Your Difficult Parents May 06, 2021

Show notes

The Ten Commandments tell us to “honor thy mother and father”, but what does that really look like? Especially for adult children?

Parents are not perfect, and sometimes they make mistakes that leave us and others wounded. So when God tells us to honor them, what does he mean by that? There’s a certain respect that all are owed simply by their personhood, and then there’s a respect that someone deserves because of their role or position. But what if our parents are dishonorable people? Does this commandment change once we’re adults out of their direct care?

Today, Father Mike explains how we can love difficult parents.

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When Your S.O. Has a Different Vocation Than You Apr 29, 2021

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“You are not an extra in someone else’s vocation story.”

We all know breakups are tough, and most of the time they are occasions of intense sadness and hurt, but what happens when your significant other breaks up with you for the religious life? Do you feel angry that they didn’t realize their vocation sooner, guilty for wanting to be with them, or just sad that you’re not who they’re meant to be with? Reactions to this kind of heartbreak are unpredictable, but the important thing to remember is that you have a vocation of your own, and it’s not any less important than the person entering religious life.

Today, Father Mike shares his story of leaving a relationship to enter the seminary.

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How to Question Your Faith Well Apr 22, 2021

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The Catholic Church loves questions, but are we asking them for the right reasons?

One of our Doctors of the Church, St. Thomas Aquinas, is known for asking the hardest questions we have for our faith. His summa is a book full of them, and some of the greatest saints are the ones that asked the hardest questions. Having questions is not an obstacle, but your intentions can make or break your faith.

Today, Father Mike explains how we can question our faith well.

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The Key to a Happy Death Apr 15, 2021

Show notes

The key to a happy death is not a long and fulfilled life—it’s a life of gratitude for the time given. Here’s why:

We often forget that this life isn’t owed to us. Every breath we take is a gift from God, who is holding us in existence at this very moment. Once we start to think that this life is owed to us, that in some way we deserve it, we will become ungrateful for the time that is given, even if we’ve lived a long and happy life.

Today, Father Mike explains how to fill your life with gratitude, and how that will prepare you for a happy death.

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When You Have to Go It Alone Apr 08, 2021

Show notes

The Wednesday of Holy Week is known to many as “Spy Wednesday”, but it’s also known as the “Day of Aloneness.” The backstory behind this moniker can have a profound impact on the way we live our lives.

There are two people in the Holy Week narrative that experience profound loneliness: Jesus and Judas. There’s an honorable form of aloneness that we feel when we’re doing something we ought to be doing (walking a road that no one else can), but there’s also a sadder form of loneliness that exists when we are doing something we shouldn’t be doing.

Today, Father Mike explains the difference between the aloneness Jesus felt during Holy Week, and what Judas felt.

Ascension is proud to partner with authentically Catholic institutions and organizations committed to spreading the Gospel. Learn more about the sponsor of this video, Ave Maria University: https://tinyurl.com/yhbzmjsy

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Pray Like Jesus Prayed This Holy Week Apr 01, 2021

Show notes

During Holy Week, as we contemplate the last hours of Jesus’ life, we get an intimate look at how Jesus prays to his Father.

Starting with our Lord’s prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, we hear Jesus talking to God the Father about the upcoming moments of his life. He continues to pray through his Passion all the way until his last breath—a model that we as sons and daughters of God can follow as well. But what does Jesus show us about what it means to truly pray “Abba, Father”?

Ascension is proud to partner with authentically Catholic institutions and organizations committed to spreading the Gospel. Learn more about the sponsor of this episode, Ave Maria University.

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Turn Your “No, But” into a “Yes, And” Mar 25, 2021

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When was the last time you said “yes” to God?

In improv, there’s a practice where participants are encouraged to never respond with “no, but” and to instead offer a “yes, and...” This allows for not only growth in the scene but in the actors as well. Similarly, God is always offering us different “scenes” to get us to sainthood. How are we responding? Turning our “no, but” into a “yes, and” opens our life to Christ’s will, and is the quickest path to sanctification.

Today, Fr. Mike explains how we can practice a better relationship with God by just saying “yes, and...”

Ascension is proud to partner with authentically Catholic institutions and organizations committed to spreading the Gospel. Learn more about the sponsor of this episode, Ave Maria University.

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Blaming vs. Taking Responsibility Mar 18, 2021

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“Blame keeps us stuck...Taking responsibility gives us the opportunity to move forward.”

In our difficult, fallen world, we are bound to face struggle. Sometimes our natural response to that struggle is to blame other things or people for why it’s happening—even to blame ourselves. While this makes us feel temporarily better because we are justifying our hardship, it also negates the truth of why we experience struggle—and the graces that can come from it.

Today, Fr. Mike explains why it’s always better to take responsibility instead of playing the blame game.

Ascension is proud to partner with authentically Catholic institutions and organizations committed to spreading the Gospel. Learn more about the sponsor of this episode, Ave Maria University.

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Why Did God Take On Our Humanity? Mar 11, 2021

Show notes

Every Christmas we celebrate the fact that Jesus took on our humanity and became one of us. But have we ever asked the question why? Why the Incarnation?

You’re definitely not the first to ask this question, and it’s a valid question. Why would God, an all infinite, perfect, and perfectly whole being come to earth to live as a human, and even die a horrible death on the cross? There is nothing he lacks, nothing he doesn’t know, and nothing he needs from us. So, why did he become man? Fr. Mike aims to answer this question today.

Ascension is proud to partner with authentically Catholic institutions and organizations committed to spreading the Gospel. Learn more about the sponsor of this episode, Ave Maria University.

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Does God Need Us to Worship Him? Mar 04, 2021

Show notes

God is an infinite, perfect, communion of persons, responsible for the intentional creation of everything around us - which begs the question, if God is perfect, why does he need us to worship him? Well, he actually doesn’t. God doesn’t need us to worship him because there is nothing he lacks. Which leads to another question: why do we worship God if he doesn’t need us to? Fr. Mike answers this today, drawing from the earliest books of the Bible.

Ascension is proud to partner with authentically Catholic institutions and organizations committed to spreading the Gospel. Learn more about the sponsor of this episode, Ave Maria University.

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