Fr. Michael Thomas Schmitz (born December 14, 1974) is an American

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

priest, speaker, author, and podcaster. He serves as director of youth and young adult ministry in the Diocese of Duluth and

Newman Center Newman Centers, Newman Houses, Newman Clubs, or Newman Communities are Catholic campus ministry centers at secular universities. The movement was inspired by the writings of Cardinal John Henry Newman encouraging societies for Catholic studen ...

chaplain at the

University of Minnesota Duluth The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) is a public university in Duluth, Minnesota, United States. It is part of the University of Minnesota System. UMD offers 17 bachelor's degrees in 87 majors, graduate programs in 24 different fields, a tw ...

. Schmitz is most notable for his social media presence, including

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videos and '' The Bible in a Year'' podcast produced by

Ascension Press Ascension (previously known as Ascension Press) is a publisher of Catholic books and digital media. The company, founded in 1998, is based in West Chester, Pennsylvania. Ascension's YouTube channel is called Ascension Presents, one of the larges ...

Early life and education

Schmitz is the fourth of six children, born to Peter Schmitz, an orthopedic surgeon, and Gudrun "Goodie" Schmitz (née Amundsen). Schmitz was born in the Oak Park neighborhood of

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, where his father attended medical school. The family then relocated to

Brainerd, Minnesota Brainerd ( ) is a city and the county seat of Crow Wing County, Minnesota, United States. Its population was 14,395 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Brainerd straddles the Mississippi River several miles upstream from its confluen ...

, where his father practiced medicine. Schmitz is of Irish and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

descent; his paternal grandmother comes from

County Cork County Cork () is the largest and the southernmost Counties of Ireland, county of Republic of Ireland, Ireland, named after the city of Cork (city), Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster ...

. Schmitz was

baptized Baptism (from ) is a Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by sprinkling or pouring water on the head, or by immersing in water either partially or completely, traditionally three ...

on March 1, 1975 at the Church of the Assumption, Richfield, Minnesota (south of

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

). He attended St. Francis of the Lakes Catholic School for elementary school, Brainerd High School, and St. John's University, where he majored in

Theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

. Despite being brought up in a

family, Schmitz was largely indifferent to religion until the age of 15. After spending time as a missionary in South America, Schmitz attended

Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity The Saint Paul Seminary (SPS) is a Catholic major seminary in St. Paul, Minnesota. A part of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, SPS prepares men to enter the priesthood and permanent diaconate, and educates lay men and women on Ca ...

and was ordained in 2003 for the Diocese of Duluth. Schmitz is currently the director of youth and young adult ministry for the diocese as well as the

chaplain at the

Media career

Since 2015, Schmitz has been the host of

Ascension Presents Ascension (previously known as Ascension Press) is a publisher of Catholic books and digital media. The company, founded in 1998, is based in West Chester, Pennsylvania. Ascension's YouTube channel is called Ascension Presents, one of the larges ...

, a YouTube series produced by

offering Catholic perspectives on cultural and societal issues. Beginning in 2017, these talks have also been offered as podcasts. On January 1, 2021, Schmitz and

Ascension Ascension or ascending may refer to: Religion * "Ascension", the belief in some religions that some individuals have ascended into Heaven without dying first. The Catholic concept of the Assumption of Mary leaves open the question of her deat ...

launched a new podcast, '' The Bible in a Year'', which consists of 365 daily episodes reading the entire bible (including the

Deuterocanonical books The deuterocanonical books, meaning 'of, pertaining to, or constituting a second canon', collectively known as the Deuterocanon (DC), are certain books and passages considered to be canonical books of the Old Testament by the Catholic Chur ...

). In each episode he reads and discusses sections of the Bible, also adding his own commentary and prayer. The podcast achieved success. Schmitz was the keynote speaker at the 2022

March for Life March for Life may refer to: * March for Life (Washington, D.C.), an annual anti-abortion gathering held in Washington, D.C. * March for Life (Paris), an annual demonstration held in Paris protesting abortion * March for Life (Prague), an annual ...

rally, an annual

pro-life Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in response to the lega ...

event in Washington, DC. On June 29, 2022, Schmitz and Ascension announced they would be launching another podcast, ''The Catechism in a Year'', which premiered on January 1, 2023. The format is similar to ''The Bible in a Year'', consisting of 365 daily episodes where Schmitz reads and discusses sections of the

Catechism A catechism (; from , "to teach orally") is a summary or exposition of Catholic theology, doctrine and serves as a learning introduction to the Sacraments traditionally used in catechesis, or Christian religious teaching of children and adult co ...

, adding in his own prayer and commentary.

Books

* ''Made for Love: Same-Sex Attraction and the Catholic Church'' (2018) * ''How to Make Great Decisions'' (2019) * ''A World Undone'' (November 20, 2020) * ''Pocket Guide to the Sacrament of Reconciliation'' (2021) * '' Bible in a Year Companion, Volumes 1-3'' (2021) * ''Catechism in a Year Companion, Volumes 1-3'' (2023)

Lighthouse Catholic Media talks with Fr. Mike Schmitz

The Four Last Things In Christian eschatology, the Four Last Things () are Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell, the four last stages of the soul in life and the afterlife. They are often commended as a topic for pious meditation; Saint Philip Neri wrote, "Beginners in ...

: Death, Judgement, Heaven, Hell * Beyond Belief: Following Christ Today * Changed Forever: The Sacrament of Baptism * Could God Love Someone Like Me? * From Love, By Love, For Love * Jesus Is... * Living Life By Design, Not Default * Love - Sacrifice - Trust: He Showed Us the Way * We Must Go Out: The Sacrament of Confirmation

Early life and education

Media career

Books

Lighthouse Catholic Media talks with Fr. Mike Schmitz

See also

References

External links