Within the first verses of St. Mark’s Gospel, Jesus appears in Galilee, proclaiming God’s Good News:
That They May All
Be One
Archbishop John C. Nienstedt
“This is the time of fulfillment. The reign of God is at hand! Reform your lives and believe in the Gospel!” (Mark 1:15).
From the very beginning of his public ministry, then, Jesus calls all men and women to conversion from sin. But, one might ask, what is sin? Why are we called to conversion? What kind of reform is being asked of us?
Archbishop Nienstedt's Calendar
» Friday, Aug. 20 to Friday, Sept. 3: Spanish course offered by the International Institute for Culture in Puebla, Mexico.
» Tuesday, Sept. 7: 8:30 a.m., St. Paul, Archbishop’s Residence: Scheduling meeting with staff.
9:30 a.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Archbishop’s Council meeting.
noon, St. Paul, Chancery: Presbyteral Council meeting.
» Wednesday, Sept. 8: 5 p.m., St. Paul, St. Mary’s Chapel at St. Paul Seminary: Opening Mass for academic year with faculty’s Profession of Faith and Oath of Fidelity and banquet.
» Thursday, Sept. 9: 9 a.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Report on schools.
11 a.m., St. Paul, Chancery: Meeting in preparation for Presbyteral Council meeting.
6 p.m., St. Paul, Archbishop’s Residence: Dinner for 2010 new investees to the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.
Understanding sin
The Catechism of the Catholic Church indicates the answer:
“To try to understand what sin is, one must first recognize the
profound relationship of man to God, for only in this relationship is
the evil of sin unmasked in its true identity as humanity’s rejection
of God and opposition to him. . . .
“Without the knowledge Revelation gives of God we cannot recognize sin
clearly and are tempted to explain it as merely a developmental flaw, a
psychological weakness, a mistake, or the necessary consequence of an
inadequate social structure, etc. Only in the knowledge of God’s plan
for man can we grasp that sin is an abuse of the freedom that God gives
to created persons so that they are capable of loving him and loving
one another” (CCC. 386-387).
Who has sinned? St. John gives us the answer in his first letter:
“If we say, ‘We are free of the guilt of sin,’ we deceive ourselves; the truth is not to be found in us” (1 John 1:8).
Therefore, to be truthful, we must all admit that we have sinned. Sin
affects both our relationship with God and with our neighbor. But the
truly good news is that Jesus came to save us from sin and that he has
entrusted the power to absolve sin to his apostles. That power of
forgiveness is offered to us in the sacrament of penance, otherwise
known as reconciliation.
The ordinary, and therefore most appropriate, way of celebrating this
sacrament calls for a verbal confession of our sins to a priest. Why?
Allow me to give three reasons for this.
Jesus as model
The first reason is that, during his earthly ministry, Jesus himself
always forgave sins in a one-on-one encounter with the penitent. While
other miracles in the Gospels may have involved groups of persons, the
gift of forgiveness is always given to an individual, who hears Jesus
speak the words, “Go, your sins have been forgiven.”
Second, as human beings, one of the most difficult things we ever have
to say is, “I’m sorry.” Yet, once we have said it, we are freed to
accept our guilt and then to begin the process of reconciliation. We
can inevitably find all kinds of self-justifying reasons for what we
have done or failed to do. Yet, once we have spoken out loud the
reality of our guilt, it is often only then that we accept
responsibility for what we have done, and only then can we begin to
reform our ways.
Finally, the actions that we call “sins” very often betray an attitude
or an inner disposition that ultimately led us to commit a particular
sin.
Over the next weeks, I plan to share with you some thoughts as to how we can move forward with a total re-catechesis for the sacrament of penance
Having taught a penance practicum to seminarians for 13 years, I have
learned that there is an art on the part of the confessor in hearing a
confession. The priest has to listen closely to what is being said
“between the lines.” It is one thing to know that one has been
uncharitable, hurtful or unfaithful, but that doesn’t necessarily lead
one to know why he or she committed the particular act, i.e., what
prompted this action in the mind or heart.
Only by getting “behind” the objective sinful act, can one begin to
change one’s life with a firm purpose of amendment. The assistance of a
confessor can be invaluable in this process.
Pastoral concerns
Historically, the Second Vatican Council, contrary to what some may
think, never envisioned the use of Form III with General Absolution as
the ordinary way to experience the sacrament of penance. The church
has never approved its use, even though it has been widely practiced in
some places.
In response to a question regarding this very point, Archbishop Harry
Flynn wrote clearly in his pastoral letter of Feb. 20, 1996, that
general absolution is not acceptable as a normal practice. This is also
the position of the last two popes, a synod of bishops as well as the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ general assembly. It is now
codified into law.
But my concern here is much more a pastoral one than a legal one.
A regular use of general absolution is bound to have a negative effect
on the spiritual well-being of the penitent because general absolution
involves a depersonalized experience of the sacramental grace of
forgiveness.
Without the one-on-one encounter and an explicit confession of guilt,
penitents also risk developing a superficial understanding of their
willing participation in the personal evil that is sin.
I am pleased to be receiving requests these days from pastors who are
planning penance services using Forms I or II during the upcoming
Advent season. I encourage all pastors in the archdiocese to do the
same. To be clear: The use of general absolution is simply not allowed.
I appeal to all of our priests to be obedient to the promises they made
on their ordination day and offer our Catholic people the sacrament as
it is meant to be celebrated. I likewise appeal to our faithful laity
not to participate in celebrations prohibited by church norms.
It is my sincere hope that the clergy, religious and laity in this
local church may reflect in practice the unity that Jesus himself
desired as we join in a common celebration of the sacrament of penance.
A ‘re-catechesis’
Over the next weeks, I plan to share with you some thoughts as to how
we can move forward in this archdiocese with a total re-catechesis for
the sacrament of penance so that it may be the powerful help in our
growth toward holiness that it is meant to be.
Until then, let us pray again and again for the grace of that
conversion from sin that Jesus announced so long ago: “This is the time
of fulfillment. The reign of God is at hand! Reform your lives and
believe in the Gospel!”
Sign up for our eNewsletter and get
