Tag: Reconciliation
A sacrament for healing shame
It is always surprising to me that people turn out in such great numbers for Ash Wednesday Mass. The symbol of ashes on the forehead is an ancient symbol of repentance. It is an acknowledgment that I have sinned and I need God’s mercy. Perhaps so many people come on Ash Wednesday because deep down they recognize a basic human need — the need to be freed from shame.
Why the church law forbids violating the seal of confession
The seal of confession is so important and sacred that a priest would be automatically excommunicated under canon law for directly revealing the contents of a confession.
Repentant sinners need merciful confessors, not inquisitors, pope says
Priests must give hope to men and women seeking forgiveness, encouraging them in their struggle away from the slippery slope of sin, Pope Francis said.
Pastors: Confession offers path to healing and grace
“Our sins only cause fear, confusion, division and harm,” said Father Mark Moriarty, pastor of St. Agnes in St. Paul. “God doesn’t want us to stay in that kind of terrible and harmful state. He is waiting and planning and nudging and encouraging us to receive his mercy.”
Confessors should seek to bring penitents closer to Jesus, pope says
A good confessor is a good listener, Pope Francis said.
Renouncing, not just confessing, our sins
Q. I’m not sure what to do. I’ve been praying and I’ve been to confession (repeatedly), but I seem to commit the same sins. Even worse, I know that Jesus promised that we would receive a closeness to God when we call out for him, but I haven’t experienced that.
Second local ’24 Hours for the Lord’ an invitation to God’s mercy
As the sky lightened outside the Cathedral of St. Paul, a handful of people sat in a pew, waiting to receive the sacrament of reconciliation. A few others prayed near the front of the church, adoring the Eucharist in the monstrance on the altar. Adoration accompanying the round-the-clock confessions was new to the event this year.
Don’t treat confessional like a dry cleaners, pope says
The confessional is a place where one can go to humbly seek forgiveness; it is not a dry cleaners where one goes to remove the occasional stain, Pope Francis said.
Forgiveness with a smile
The heat in the gym was oppressive. The boiler in the building had just been fired up for the winter, but the ventilation wasn’t working properly, turning the gym into a sauna. I was hot, sweaty and annoyed. So I propped open a door.
Accepting Christ’s gift of forgiveness
I went to the sacrament of reconciliation for the first time at age 33 and, as a convert to Catholicism, I was surprised by a palpable sense of relief and gratitude for God’s forgiveness.
Receive forgiveness in confession, learn to forgive others, pope says
God’s mercy is poured out upon the repentant so that they can change and grow, sharing mercy with others and helping build families, neighborhoods and societies where people learn to forgive, Pope Francis said.
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