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

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

priest, speaker, author, and podcaster. The Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministries in the Diocese of Duluth,

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, Schmitz is most notable for his social media presence, which mainly consist of his

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

videos and ''

The Bible in a Year ''The Bible in a Year'' is an American podcast hosted by Fr. Mike Schmitz, a Catholic priest based in Duluth, Minnesota. About The podcast was created and recorded daily throughout 2021. Each of the 365 episodes discussed different aspects of ...

'' podcast, both of which are produced by Catholic publisher

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. Authors published by Ascension include Edward Sri, Fr. Mike Schmitz, and ...

. Schmitz is a public speaker and makes speeches at

events such as the

Fellowship of Catholic University Students The Fellowship of Catholic University Students (FOCUS) is a Catholic outreach program for American college students founded in 1997 by Curtis Martin and Dr. Edward Sri at Benedictine College. Origin and purpose FOCUS exists to evangelize. The mi ...

leadership summit.

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

Oakland Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...

neighborhood of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

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

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

, where his father practiced medicine. Schmitz is of

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

and

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

descent; his paternal grandmother comes from

County Cork County Cork ( ga, Contae Chorcaí) is the largest and the southernmost county of Ireland, named after the city of Cork, the state's second-largest city. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. Its largest market towns are ...

. Schmitz was

baptized Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

on the 1st March 1975 at the Church of the Assumption, Richfield,

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

. 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 systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

. 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 Roman 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 o ...

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

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 stude ...

chaplain at the

University of Minnesota Duluth The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) is a public university in Duluth, Minnesota. It is part of the University of Minnesota system and offers 16 bachelor's degrees in 88 majors, graduate programs in 25 different fields, and a two-year progr ...

Media career

Since 2015, Schmitz has been the host of Ascension Presents, 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 launched a new podcast, ''

'', which consists of 365 daily episodes in which he reads and discusses sections of the Bible and adds his own commentary and prayer, which 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 or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respons ...

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 grc, κατηχέω, "to teach orally") is a summary or exposition of doctrine and serves as a learning introduction to the Sacraments traditionally used in catechesis, or Christian religious teaching of children and adult c ...

, 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''

Lighthouse Catholic Media talks with Fr. Mike Schmitz

The Four Last Things In Christian eschatology, the Four Last Things or four last things of man ( la , quattuor novissima) are Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell, the four last stages of the soul in life and the afterlife. They are often commended as a collective topic ...

: 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