As we begin this New Year, I know many of us are looking for ways we can grow—either new habits to form and/or breaking old ones that need to change. When it comes to our spiritual growth, there are more excellent and accessible resources than ever to help us grow in our faith.
I want to especially highlight the Catechism in a Year podcast that was just released through Ascension Press.
In 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 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 podcast, you’ll finally understand what it means to be Catholic and how the beliefs of the Catholic Faith come together. Listen and…
· Read the ENTIRE Catechism of the Catholic Church in 365 days
· Understand the essentials of the Catholic Faith and why they matter
· Understand how Church teaching is rooted in Sacred Scripture
· Absorb over 2,000 years of Sacred Tradition
· Encounter God’s plan of sheer goodness for your life
· Each 15-20 minute episode includes:
· A guided prayer to help you enter into each episode
· A reading from the Catechism of the Catholic Church
· An explanation from Fr. Mike Schmitz about the reading
The Catechism is a great reference for helping us understand both what we believe as Christians and why we believe what we believe. The Catechism is filled with references back to the Bible and the history of the Church as it grew. Too often it is easy for us to stop growing and learning. This is a very accessible way to learn and grow. It can be as easy as using the built-in time we have most days in morning or evening commutes to listen to a 20 minute podcast. In all of this remember—God is never outdone in generosity. Any time given to Him will always come back tenfold.
God Bless
Fr. Todd
REST IN PEACE, POPE BENEDICT XVI
The Catholic world was saddened on the morning of New Year’s Eve to learn of the passing of Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI at age 95. Born Joseph Ratzinger in Bavaria in Southern Germany in 1927, he was ordained a priest at the same time as his brother George in 1951. He spent more than 70 years as a priest, and 45 of those were spent as a Bishop, then a Cardinal and eight years as the 265th successor of St. Peter.