Episode #39 - Confession - Receiving God's Mercy

Hello everyone, and welcome back to the Matthew Schreiner Podcast. Today, we are going to be talking about Confession, again, as we head onto Holy Week, and draw ever closer to Easter. Now, yesterday, at my high school, we had Confessions for all the students. And then on this Friday or Saturday, our Cathedral is having their confessions. A lot of other parishes, including my parish, have already held such events. Most parishes hold large Penance services during the Advent and Lenten seasons. Very few parishes offer confessions daily or before Sunday masses. The parish I attend, only hold confessions on Saturdays and during Adoration. I also attend and FSSP parish, and on the complete opposite side of the spectrum, they offer confession before every mass, including daily masses.

Why is confession so important? Why is it especially important during penitential seasons like Advent and Lent? Well for the very reason of penance. During Lent especially, we offer our own Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving. We do these things not merely for the show, or because we are told too, rather we should do these things to draw ourselves closer to the Lord. And part of drawing closer to the Lord is removing that which keeps us away from him. That is sin. As our associate pastor likes to point out, and rightly so, sin, what keeps us from God, is much more than murder, or robbing a bank. There are other sins, than these things, which yes, are bad, I think we understand that, that do completely cut us off from God. These are called "mortal sins", and they completely cut us off from God. This idea is not foreign to the Gospel, as Jesus himself talks about that following him, involves dying to sin, which is itself a type of slavery, which binds us to it.

To be Catholic, is to live a penitential life. That is the reason why we begin every mass with the Penitential Rite, the Confiteor, asking God for forgiveness for the wrongs we have done. 

Father Casey Cole, posted a video, I believe Yesterday, about the fact that we do not have to go to confession before every time we receive the Eucharist. Which is correct. The Eucharist itself remits venial sins, however, if we do commit a mortal sin, we should go to confession, before we receive the Eucharist. 

The church says that we should go to confession, at least once every year. In my Daily Roman Missal, it says that Pope John Paul II, recommended going to Confession monthly. However, we should go as often as needed if we find ourselves in mortal sin.

Confession, helps us to draw ourselves closer to the Lord. It helps us to understand where we have failed, and we have sinned. But more than that it is not a time just to draw on the bad, but a chance to return to the Lord, to do better. And if and when we do fail, it gives us an opportunity to come back.

This is why Catholics place such a great emphasis on Confession. It is our chance to grow closer to the Lord, to receive tangibly his forgiveness. Many people have described almost a feel of a weight being lifted off their back after going to Confession. 

Lent is a great time for us to dwell on our relationship with God, and to grow in it. That is why we have special practices of Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving. This time is a time to remember our Lord's passion, by which he won for us, salvation. It is also a time for us to grow closer to the Lord before we celebrate his Resurrection, and the fullness of his Paschal Mystery.

So in this time of Lent, I invite you to go to Confession, to receive God's Mercy in your life. There is still time before Easter! There is still time. And if you have already gone to Confession this Lent, that's a wonderful thing! Confession is one of the greatest gifts we have as Catholic, to be able to tangibly receive God's love and mercy, in this words, "I absolve you of your sins".