E.

THE SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION

In order to realize that all men have sin and in need of

conversion, and obtain God’s forgiveness and mercy through
the Sacrament of Reconciliation, the students may be able to;

1. Discuss the nature of sin

2. Explain why Jesus instituted the sacrament of reconciliation.

3. Create ways to learn to be Patient in the shortcoming and

weaknesses of others and ways to seek God’s grace to overcome
them.

1. Nature of Sin

But we have Baptism, which reconciles us with God; why then do we

need a special sacrament of Reconciliation?
Baptism does snatch us from the power of sin and death and brings us into the new life
of the children of God, but it does not free us from human weakness and the inclination to
sin. That is why we need a place where we can be reconciled with God again and again.
That place is confession.

What is sin?
SIN is a cooling off from the supernatural community of God’s children, of Christ’s mystical body
– or at least it makes one a disease member, corrupting others and causing pain to the whole
body.
SIN is disobedience to God. It is bad because we disobey God and it is something God
does not like. It is a
1. bad thought
2. bad word
3. bad action or not doing the good

THREE KINDS OF SIN

a.) Original Sin – a sin committed by our first parents in disobedience of God’s will.
b.) Venial Sin – is a light sin that can be resolve through true repentance and true contrition.
We commit a light sin when we are willing to do something bad, but honestly believe it is
NOT VERY BAD.
c.) Mortal Sin – is a grave sin in disobedience of God’s laws and Church laws. It needs true
repentance through the Sacrament of Reconciliation or Confession. We commit a grave sin
when we are sure something is VERY BAD but are willing to do it.

God wants us to be His good children. If we disobey Him, we make Him sad. Sin is
disobedience to God’s Laws. God never likes sin, big or small. It is only the devil who likes sin.

A MORTAL SIN CAN BE COMMITTED WHEN:

a. you have a full knowledge of the sin
b. there is an intention of doing it
c. the act is done

WHAT DOES SIN DO TO US?

MORTAL SIN makes us
a. Lose sanctifying grace – God’s love
b. lose our right to heaven
c. lose all our good works
d. unable to do anything for heaven

VENIAL SIN makes us:

a. makes us love God less
b. makes us less worthy of God’s help
c. weakens us against mortal sin

When man falls into sin, he turns away from God and
gives himself over to evil. Left to himself, he feels confused
and lost. Guilt slowly erodes his peace of mind.
God the Father knows the painful anxiety that every sinner goes through. He calls and
invites. He waits for his return in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, so that he may welcome the
sinner in an embrace of love, lift him up from his weakness, and whisper to him: “I absolve you
from all your sins.” Reconciliation with the Father, restores peace and brings happiness. The
sinner feels at ease with himself, with others, and with God… He is renewed.

2. Definition of the Sacrament of reconciliation

The Sacrament of Reconciliation is the Sacrament that forgives the sins committed after Baptism. Our
sins are forgiven in this sacrament when the priest gives his absolution saying: “I absolve you from your
sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.” In this Sacrament takes
away our sins, the eternal punishment, and at least a part of the temporal punishment. Christ gives us
the following in the Sacrament of Reconciliation:

a. Divine life or increases it.

b. Returns to us the merits lost through mortal sin
c. Strengthens us against temptation and sin.
 d. The Sacrament of reconciliation is necessary for all who have committed mortal
sin after Baptism. The Church obliges us to confess once a year, but advises us to
confess often.

God’s faithful love became real in Jesus Christ, who lived with sinners and gave his life in
atonement for them, who forgave Zacchaeus (see Luke 19:1-10), the paralytic on a mat (Luke
5:17-20), and the penitent woman (Luke 7:36-50). He entrusted the power to forgive to the
Church: “If you forgive men’s sins, they are forgiven them.” (John 20:23) Thus, he instituted
the SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION, to be for all men the sign of God’s forgiving love.

3. Biblical Basis and the Teachings of the Church on the Sacrament of reconciliation

Jesus describes the process of conversion and penance in the Parable of the Prodigal Son
(Luke 15:11-24).

It is Christ Jesus through the priest who forgives your sins. As the penitent must make
restitution or satisfaction for his sins, the priest gives a penance to the forgiven one,
usually prayer, fasting, or almsgiving (1 Peter 4:8).

As one is to be in the state of grace before receiving Holy Communion, the child
makes his first Confession before his first Communion, generally at the age of reason.
Here are three Scriptural references on Penance (See also Matthew 16:18-19, Luke
24:46-47, Acts 2:38):
Mark 2:1-10 "When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, Child, your sins are
forgiven..." "But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth,"
- he said to the paralytic, "I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home."

John 20:21-23 "Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father who sent me, even
so I send you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the
Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven. If you retain the sins of any, they are
retained."

II Corinthians 5:18 "And all this is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ
and given us the ministry of reconciliation."

Rom. 3:23-24 = Everyone has sinned and is far away from God’s saving presence. But by the
Gift of God’s grace all are put to right with Him through Jesus who sets them free.
Mt. 18:18 = I tell you solemnly, whatever you bind on earth shall be considered bound in
heaven, whatever you loose on earth shall be considered loosed in heaven.
Mk. 1:15 The time has come he said and the kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent and
believe the Good news.
Vat. II (A.G.) Art. 2 #2: The conversion, to be sure, must be regarded as a beginning, yet it is
sufficient that a man realizes that he has been snatched away from sin and led into the majesty
of the love of God, who has called him to enter into a personal relationship with him in Christ.
For by the working of divine grace, the new converts set out on a spiritual journey. Already
sharing faith in the mystery of Christ’s death and resurrection, he journeys from the old man to
the new one, perfected in Christ.
God’s response of mercy and compassion to our need for forgiveness and healing opens to a
renewed life. This is affected in a concrete way through the Sacrament of
Reconciliation/Penance.
The Dogmatic Constitution on the Church (Lumen Gentium), 11 describes the Sacrament thus:
Those who approach the sacrament of Penance obtain pardon from God’s mercy for offenses
committed against him, and are, at the same time, reconciled with the Church which they have
wounded by their sins and which by charity and example and prayer, Labors for their
conversion. (CCC, 1422, CFC, 1385).

4. STEPS IN CONFESIONS
What prepares a person for repentance?

1. Examination of Conscience (detailed procedure at bottom of page)

2. Contrition
3. The actual confessing of your sins to God through His priests
4. The assigning of penance
5. Act of Contrition
6. Absolution
7. Carrying out your penance

Examination of Conscience
Before we get to the church, we mentally review our sins and determine what needs to be
confessed. There are various methods of doing this, but one good way is to consider your
Duties to God, Church, family, society and to yourself to see where you've failed to honor them

CONTRITION
This is the most important act of the penitent. Contrition is the “heartfelt sorrow and
aversion for the sin committed along with the intention of sinning no more” (CCC 1451). This, a
person is able to do because God’s love and mercy mover him to do so. This is called metanoia
– which means a complete change of heart. By this, a person is able to consider, judge, and
arrange his life according to the will of God made known by Jesus Christ. It is this heartfelt
contrition that makes penance genuine.
To have our sins forgiven, contrition is most necessary. It is necessary because even in
Confession no sin can be forgiven without contrition. We have contrition when we are sorry for
having offended God and resolved to avoid sin. We have perfect contrition when we are sorry
for our sins because we love God, the Supreme Good, whom we have offended.
We would have imperfect contrition when we are sorry for our sins because we fear God
and His punishments. To receive the sacrament of Reconciliation worthily, imperfect contrition
is sufficient.
 CONTRITION always include a firm resolution to amend our lives and the willingness to
make reparation where necessary. The resolution to amend our lives is the intention to avoid
sin and the near occasions of sin.

Confession
CONFESSION is telling our sins to a priest to have them forgiven. We must confess all
mortal sins not yet confessed with their number and the necessary circumstances. It is very
good to confess also our venial sins because it makes us grow in divine life and gives us special
grace to practice virtue and resist temptation.
When without fault we forgot to confess a mortal sin, we must tell it in our confession.
If we willfully omit to tell a mortal sin, none of our sins are forgiven and we add a mortal sin of
sacrilege. After a bad confession, we tell the priest that we made a bad confession, confess the
mortal sins we committed and also all other mortal sins committed since our last good
confession.

We can overcome fear and shame in Confession by thinking that the priest takes place
of Christ, that he may not reveal any sin told to him in Confession, and that we will have to tell
our sins anyway later if we want to die a happy death.

We must make reparations to our neighbor when we have done him material or
spiritual harm in his person, and his reputation.

It must candidly be admitted that the sacrament of reconciliation, or “confession” as it

was formerly known, has dropped radically in frequency of use, in the past decade or more.

Can I make a confession even if I have not committed any serious sins?

Confession is a great gift of healing that brings about closer union with the Lord, even if, strictly
speaking, you do not have to go to confession.

WHAT DO WE DO IF WITHOUT FAULT WE FORGET TO CONFESS OUR MORTAL SIN?

If without fault, we forget to confess a mortal sin, we may
receive Holy Communion, because the sin is forgiven; but we
must tell the sin if it comes to our mind again.
A person who has knowingly kept back a mortal sin in
confession must confess that he has made a bad confession, tell
the sin he has kept back, and mention the sacraments he has
received since that time.
The spirit of Penance is necessary foundation of true
spiritual rehabilitation, and the Sacrament is built upon it.
Christ’s redeeming sacrifice can obtain for us the forgiveness of
any and all sins through the means He has established, that is,
through Baptism and Penance -–but without true sorrow on our part, there will be no remission
of sins.

Christ instituted the Sacrament of reconciliation on the day of His Resurrection when he
said to His apostles: “Receive the Holy Spirit: whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven
them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.”

ACT OF PENANCE (satisfaction)

Genuine conversion must lead to act of penance or satisfaction for the sins committed.
These acts express turning away from our old way of acting and making amends for harm done
by our sins. The penance assigned by the priest should be suited to the situation and spiritual
needs of the penitent, so that he can be helped to restore whatever disorder or harm was
caused by his sins. These acts of penance, then should not be regarded as burdens but as
opportunities to repair the harm caused by our sins. The acts give us a chance to be more
generous, just and charitable and, therefore, can bring us back to the path of following the way
of the Lord.
Act of Contrition
Now you will make an Act of Contrition to express your sorrow at having offended God and
resolving to sin no more. The traditional way of doing this is to recite aloud the prayer called
"Act of Contrition":
O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee and I detest all my sins because of Thy
just punishments, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, who art all good and
deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to sin no more and avoid
the near occasions of sin. Amen.

ABSOLUTION
The sacrament of penance is completed with the sign and words of absolution recited
by the priest. These words are the prayer of the Church to God for the sinner. They express
the Father’s loving forgiveness. They are clear assurance that God has forgiven us. With this
done, the Father has received a repentant son who came back to him; Christ has placed the lost
sheep on his shoulders and brought him back to the sheepfold, and the Holy Spirit has
sanctified or has dwelt more fully within the repentant sinner. The work of reconciliation is
finally expressed in a renewed and more fervent way in the sharing of the Lord’s table where
the Church expresses her joy for the return of her lost son/daughter (cf. Rite of penance, 5).

Are there sins that are so serious that not even the average priest can forgive them?

There are sins in which a man turns completely away from God and at the same time, because of the
seriousness of the deed, incurs →EXCOMMUNICATION. When a sin results in “excommunication” ,
absolution can be granted only by the →BISHOP or a →PRIEST delegated by him, and, in a few cases,
only by the →POPE. In danger of death, any priest can absolve from every sin and excommunication.
A Catholic who commits murder, for example, or cooperates in an abortion automatically excludes
himself from sacramental communion; the Church simply acknowledges this fact. The purpose of
“excommunication” is to correct the sinner and to lead him back to the right path.
EXCOMMUNICATION (from Latin ex = out of and communicatio = participation, communion): the
exclusion of a Catholic Christian from the sacraments.

Carrying out your Penance

As soon as possible, carry out the penance you were given. Do all you can to avoid near
occasions of sin, to bear patiently the temporal effects of the sins you've committed, to make
restitution to anyone you've harmed. You may add penances of your own devising to the one(s)
the priest gave you.