Dear Parishioners,
HOW TO MAKE A GOOD CONFESSION
One of the effects of
being sinners is that we are blind to our own sins. Satan wants us to
believe that there is no evil in what we do. If we fall into this trap,
our hearts may become hardened and insensitive to the demands of love.
This is why conversion of heart is so important. In fact, it is so
important that Jesus has made the symbol of His Sacred Heart, the greatest
manifestation of His love for us and of the love we are to have.
"Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: 'If today you hear his voice,
harden not your hearts... Take heed brethren, lest perhaps there be if any of
you with an evil heart of unbelief...'" (Heb. 3).
God is a loving Father
who desires that we see our sins, so that He can give us the grace of
repentance and forgiveness. He wants us to be free. Satan, however,
does not want us to see our sins. When we begin to walk in the will of
the Lord, Satan will try to accuse us with our own sins, so that we will become
disheartened and return to our old ways. We must learn to discern the
difference: God reveals our sins to free us and forgive us; the devil
hides our sins and reveals them only to lead us to despair. We should
vigorously reject these thoughts. God ALWAYS forgives when there is
repentance in our hearts.
The Church teaches that
in order for there to be a true confession three things are necessary:
1. That
you recognize and truly feel sorry for what you have done that has offended God
(and/or another person) and that you desire
not commit it again.
2. That you verbally confess your sins to a priest in an individual, one
to one manner (you must confess any and all mortal sins).
3. That you receive from the priest and complete an act of penance, which
manifests your desire to make up for what you have done wrong and to no longer
do it again.
Confession:
When
you enter the confessional say the following: Bless me, Father, for I have
sinned. It has been (number of days, weeks, months, or years) since my last
confession. Tell all your sins distinctly and finish by saying: For these and
all my sins of my whole life, especially ... I am heartily sorry and I humbly
ask for penance and absolution. Then listen to the priest. After he has given
the penance and while he is giving you absolution, say the Act of Contrition:
Act of
Contrition: Oh my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended You,
and I detest all my sins, because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of
hell, but most of all because they offend You, my God, Who are all good and
deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Your grace, to
confess my sins, to do penance, and to amend my life. Amen.
In Christ
Fr Zenek, SDS
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