Penance and the Gift of Forgiveness

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It's probably unknown to most of the readers of Stella Borealis, but up until recently some of the parishes in the archdiocese were offering General Confessions and Absolution to their congregations. In the case of Mortal Sins, the General Confession is only applicable in case of Plane Crash, Nuclear Attack, the Black Plague or other situations where imminent death is very possible. Even so, if death does not occur, the penitent is required to confess those Mortal Sins privately to a priest.

General Confessions might still be offered in some parishes. [Archbishops generally don't write on items that are not problems].

Archbishop Nienstedt, in preparation for the penitential church seasons of Advent and Lent has some thoughts on the Sacrament of Confession (Reconciliation after V2) and its ability to forgive sins today.

Within the first verses of St. Mark’s Gospel, Jesus appears in Galilee, proclaiming God’s Good News:

“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?

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!”

God love you!

Re-catechesis: I would recommend that priests up the ante with the penances that they ladle out to individual penitents. If, after procrastination and doubts and can0n law debates with myself over whether the offense met the three fold requirement of the statutes* and all I get is a "Hail Mary" for a penance, I wonder if my Mortal Sins are really that serious? Maybe I might omit them next time, out of consideration for those standing in line behind me.

*The Three-Fold Requirement Statute for Mortal Sins:

• Mortal sin is a sin of grave matter**
  
• Mortal sin is committed with full knowledge of the sinner
• Mortal sin is committed with deliberate consent of the sinner

**What the H-E-doubletoothpicks is "grave matter?" Talk about a weasel clause for easy use in simplifying confessions!

**The canon lawyers of Vatican II, probably having a conflict of interest because of the condition of their own souls, omitted the Baltimore Catechism's much more clear definition.

• It must be a serious sin.
• You must know it is a serious sin.
• You must want to do it.

Seven year olds used to know what a serious sin was. It's time that pastors and bishops start preaching to us about what a serious sin is.

The Three Forms of "Reconciliation"

• Rite for the Reconciliation of Individual Penitents. [Regular, private Confession]
• Rite for Reconciliation of Several Penitents with Individual Confession and Absolution. [Examination of Conscience and Meditation of the Congregation as a group followed by a short private Confession. Requires many priests].
• Rite for Reconciliation with General Confession and Absolution. [Only in the case of an emergency].