Podcast Summary: The Catechism in a Year (with Fr. Mike Schmitz)
Episode: Day 337: Blessing, Adoration, and Petition (2025)
Date: December 3, 2025
Host: Fr. Mike Schmitz (Ascension)
Overview:
In this episode, Fr. Mike Schmitz explores the forms of prayer in the life of the Church, as outlined in paragraphs 2623–2633 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Focusing on blessing, adoration, and petition, he unpacks their meanings, the scriptural and spiritual foundations, and their practical implications for Catholics today. Fr. Mike emphasizes the movement of the human heart in prayer, the primacy of God's initiative, and the confidence believers can have in bringing every need to God, even the simplest or most seemingly trivial.
Main Segments and Themes:
1. Prayer in the Age of the Church
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Transition from Old Covenant and Jesus’s teaching to the Church era
- The Holy Spirit, poured out at Pentecost, forms the Church’s prayer life
- Early Christians devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread (Eucharist), and prayers
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Foundation of Christian prayer: Based on apostolic faith, charity, and the nourishment of the Eucharist
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Role of Scripture: The Psalms as the Church’s inherited prayers, now fulfilled in Christ
- Quote [04:05]:
"The Spirit who teaches the Church... was also to form her in the life of prayer."
- Quote [04:05]:
2. Blessing – God’s Initiative and Our Response
- Blessing as the “basic movement” of Christian prayer (Catechism 2626)
- An encounter and dialogue between God’s gift and our acceptance
- We bless God in response to His prior blessing
- Structure of Blessing:
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Our prayer ascends to the Father through Christ in the Holy Spirit
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The grace of the Holy Spirit descends through Christ from the Father to us
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Quote [12:00]:
"Blessing expresses the basic movement of Christian prayer. It is an encounter between God and man." – Fr. Mike (quoting CCC 2626)
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Fr. Mike’s insight [13:20]:
"Every time we pray, it's always a response. God initiates and we get to respond. So in blessing, it's the same thing. God blesses us and then... we can do in return is bless the one who is the source of every blessing."
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3. Adoration – First Attitude of Man
- Adoration defined:
- Acknowledging we are creatures before our Creator
- Paying homage and expressing humility before God’s greatness
- Includes both expressive praise and respectful silence
- Liturgical practice:
- Adoration in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament (Eucharist) – both visibly (monstrance) and hidden (tabernacle)
- Key example:
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St. Thomas the Apostle’s words to the risen Jesus: “My Lord and my God.”
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Quote [16:10]:
"Adoration is the first attitude of man acknowledging that he is a creature before his Creator."
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Fr. Mike on Eucharistic Adoration [17:05]:
"One of the first movements of that kind of adoration is acknowledging, Lord, you are God, I'm not... That kind of adoration is what we do when we come before the Lord in the Eucharist: 'My Lord and my God.'"
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4. Petition – Turning Back to the Father
- Vocabulary and breadth of petition:
- Includes “ask, beseech, plead, invoke, entreat, cry out, even struggle in prayer” (CCC 2629)
- Most spontaneous form, arising from our awareness of God as Father
- Petition as a turning back to the Lord—a renewal of relationship
- Distinction from Old Testament lamentation:
- The New Testament contains almost no prayers of lament
- Christian petition is characterized by hope, not just longing or desperation
- Even in suffering or waiting, Christian prayer is buoyed by hope
- St. Paul’s teaching:
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The Holy Spirit intercedes “with sighs too deep for words” (Romans 8:26)
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Quote [19:44]:
"We're sinners who as Christians know that we have turned away from our Father. Our petition is already turning back to Him." – Fr. Mike (quoting CCC 2629)
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Memorable insight [21:00]:
"I never noticed before... the New Testament contains scarcely any prayers of lamentation so frequent in the Old Testament... Because this lament is this cry of desperation out to God that doesn’t have the same aspect of Christian hope..."
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5. Order of Petitions – Forgiveness, the Kingdom, and Every Need
- First petition: Asking for forgiveness
- Inspired by the tax collector’s prayer: “God, be merciful to me, a sinner.”
- Essential before other requests, both in liturgy and personal prayer
- Quote [24:00]:
"The first thing we ask for is forgiveness. First things first."
- Hierarchy of petition:
- Ask forgiveness (mercy)
- Seek the Kingdom of God
- Request what’s necessary to welcome and cooperate with the Kingdom
- Inclusivity of needs:
- Every need, desire, or worry can be brought to God
- Prayer honors God as Father when we trust Him with everything, not just “spiritual” or important matters
6. Confidence in God’s Loving Attention
- Personal story: Praying for Tacos [27:40]:**
- Fr. Mike shares an anecdote of NET missionaries confidently asking God for something as simple as tacos—and receiving them
- The point: Don’t edit yourself in prayer. No request is too small or too silly for a loving Father
- Encouragement for listeners:
- Bring every need, hope, or desire before God
- “Do not edit your prayer. It is a gift of the Holy Spirit to simply bring before our Father whatever is in your heart.”
- Quote [30:15]:
"Are you editing your prayer?... Do not edit your prayer is a great gift. I think it's a great gift of the Holy Spirit to not edit yourself in prayer, but to simply bring before our Father whatever it is that is in your heart." – Fr. Mike
Key Quotes & Memorable Moments
- [12:00] “Blessing expresses the basic movement of Christian prayer. It is an encounter between God and man.” – Fr. Mike / Catechism
- [16:10] “Adoration is the first attitude of man acknowledging that he is a creature before his Creator.”
- [24:00] “The first thing we ask for is forgiveness. First things first.”
- [27:40] (Story) “Jesus, we just, we really want tacos and just please, Jesus, give us some tacos today. … They were so confident in God's love for them that they weren't going to edit themselves when it came to what they prayed for.”
- [30:15] “Do not edit your prayer… Bring before the Father whatever is in your heart.”
Timestamps for Key Segments
- 00:05 – Introduction, context of prayer in the Church
- 04:05 – How the Spirit forms the Church’s prayer
- 12:00 – Meaning and movement of blessing
- 16:10 – Adoration: recognizing God as Creator
- 17:05 – Eucharistic adoration explained
- 19:44 – Petition: nature and hope in Christian prayer
- 21:00 – Distinction between lamentation and Christian hope
- 24:00 – Asking forgiveness as first petition
- 27:40 – Story: prayer for tacos, confidence in God’s care
- 30:15 – Encouragement: “Don’t edit your prayer”
Conclusion
Fr. Mike closes by urging listeners to trust God wholly in prayer—bringing every hope, need, or even the silliest request before Him. This posture flows from knowing God’s saving love, where every need can become the object of petition, for Christ is glorified by what we ask in His name.