Day 234: Freedom and Responsibility (2025)

The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)

Ascension

Catholic Church, Catholic, Catechism, Catholic Teachings, Catholic Doctrine, Foundations Of Faith, Fr Mike, Ascension, Catholic Faith, Father Mike Schmitz, Catechism Of The Catholic Church, Fr Mike Schmitz, Christianity, Scripture, Bible, Catechism In A Year, Catholicism, Spirituality, Religion & Spirituality, Tradition, Father Mike

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🗓️ 22 August 2025

⏱️ 16 minutes

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Summary

The Catechism gives us an overview of what it means for humans to have freedom, as well as some of the ramifications of that freedom. It introduces us to the countercultural notion that true freedom is to choose the good—the “freedom” to choose evil is merely the abuse of freedom. Fr. Mike ensures that we understand imputability and culpability because questions about intention, ignorance, and other social factors will be the hinges upon which swing the doors of sin. Today’s readings are Catechism paragraphs 1730-1738.

This episode has been found to be in conformity with the Catechism by the Institute on the Catechism, under the Subcommittee on the Catechism, USCCB.

For the complete reading plan, visit ascensionpress.com/ciy

Please note: The Catechism of the Catholic Church contains adult themes that may not be suitable for children - parental discretion is advised.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, my name's Father Mike Schmitz, and you're listening to The Catechism in a Year podcast,
0:09.4	where we encounter God's plan of sheer goodness for us, revealed in scripture, and passed down
0:13.4	through the tradition of the Catholic faith. The Catechism in a year is brought to you by
0:16.7	Ascension. In 365 days, we'll read through the Catechism of the Catholic Church, discovering our identity and God's family as we journey together toward a heavenly home. This is day 234. We are reading paragraphs 1730 to 1738. As always, I am using the Ascension edition of the Catechism, which includes a foundations of faith approach, but you can follow along with any recent version of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. You can also download your own catechism in a year reading plan by visiting ascensionpress.com
0:42.1	slash CIY, and you can click follow or subscribe in your podcast app for daily updates and daily
0:46.6	notifications because you made it today, to day 234, day 234. We were reading paragraph 1730, 1738
0:53.5	about man's freedom yesterday. We talked about that were made for beat30, 1738 about man's freedom. Yesterday, we talked about that
0:56.2	were made for beatitude, right? We're made for that fullness of blessing. Today, we recognize that
1:02.0	we've been given freedom. And there's something so powerful about that because freedom comes
1:07.4	with responsibility. Like, what, wah, I know. But we have the capacity to choose good. We have the capacity
1:15.3	to choose evil. And because we have the capacity to do this, we have the responsibility to do this.
1:20.6	Does that make sense? The last couple of days, we went through the entire article. Today we're only
1:24.4	going to do a part of the article. We might call it a particle.
1:29.5	I don't know what I'm saying.
1:35.3	But we're going to talk about the reality that because we're given freedom, we have the responsibility to live like God.
1:37.6	We have the responsibility to use that freedom, to exercise that freedom by doing good,
1:42.3	by choosing the good.
1:47.6	That means we're responsible. I know, I know,
1:53.3	but what a great gift. Tomorrow we'll talk about human freedom in the economy of salvation,
1:57.9	like when it comes to freedom and sin and threats to freedom. But today we're talking about that power we have, the capacity to choose good or evil.
2:02.4	And so because of that, because we need God's help, we need God's grace.
2:06.1	Let us call upon him now in prayer.
	...

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