The Sacrament of Reconciliation (commonly called Confession or Penance) is
the method given by Christ to the Church by which individuals are freed from sins
committed after receiving Baptism.
Catholics believe that no priest, however pious or learned, has the power to
forgive sins apart from Christ. However, God can and does accomplish the
forgiveness of sins through the Catholic priesthood in the Sacrament of
Reconciliation.
In the Catholic tradition, after making an examination of conscience that often
involves review of the Ten Commandments and/or the Seven Deadly Sins, the
penitent confesses his/her sins to receive the fullness of God’s grace. The intent
of this sacrament is to provide healing for the soul as well as to restore one’s
relationship to God, lost by sin.
The confidentiality of all statements made by penitents during the course of
confession is absolute. This strict confidentiality is known as the Seal of the
Confessional. Priests may not reveal what they have learned during confession
to anyone, even under the threat of their own death or that of others.
CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC
CHURCH
Reconciliation
1485 "On the evening of that day, the first day of the week," Jesus showed
himself to his apostles. "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’” (Jn 20:19, 22-23).
1486 The forgiveness of sins committed after Baptism is conferred by a
particular sacrament called the sacrament of conversion, confession,
penance, or reconciliation.
1487 The sinner wounds God's honor and love, his own human dignity as
a man called to be a son of God, and the spiritual well-being of the Church,
of which each Christian ought to be a living stone.
1488 To the eyes of faith no evil is graver than sin and nothing has worse
consequences for sinners themselves, for the Church, and for the whole
world.
1489 To return to communion with God after having lost it through sin is a
process born of the grace of God who is rich in mercy and solicitous for the
salvation of men. One must ask for this precious gift for oneself and for
others.
1490 The movement of return to God, called conversion and repentance,
entails sorrow for and abhorrence of sins committed, and the firm purpose
of sinning no more in the future. Conversion touches the past and the
future and is nourished by hope in God's mercy.
1491 The sacrament of Penance is a whole consisting in three actions of
the penitent and the priest's absolution. The penitent's acts are
repentance, confession or disclosure of sins to the priest, and the intention
to make reparation and do works of reparation.
1492 Repentance (also called contrition) must be inspired by motives that
arise from faith. If repentance arises from love of charity for God, it is
called "perfect" contrition; if it is founded on other motives, it is called
"imperfect."
1493 One who desires to obtain reconciliation with God and with the
Church, must confess to a priest all the unconfessed grave sins he
remembers after having carefully examined his conscience. The
confession of venial faults, without being necessary in itself, is
nevertheless strongly recommended by the Church.
1494 The confessor proposes the performance of certain acts of
"satisfaction" or "penance" to be performed by the penitent in order to
repair the harm caused by sin and to re-establish habits befitting a disciple
of Christ.
1495
Only priests who have received the faculty of absolving from the authority
of the Church can forgive sins in the name of Christ.
1496 The spiritual effects of the sacrament of Penance are:
reconciliation with God by which the penitent recovers grace
reconciliation with the Church
remission of the eternal punishment incurred by mortal sins
remission, at least in part, of temporal punishments resulting from
sin
peace and serenity of conscience, and spiritual consolation
an increase of spiritual strength for the Christian battle.
1497 Individual and integral confession of grave sins followed by
absolution remains the only ordinary means of reconciliation with God and
with the Church.
1498 Through indulgences the faithful can obtain the remission of temporal
punishment resulting from sin for themselves and also for the souls in
Purgatory.
Is Confession Biblical?
Some people argue that the sacrament of confession isn’t biblical, yet Jesus
commands all persons to forgive those who trespass against
them personally (Matt. 6:12-15). In marked contrast, beginning on the
evening of that first Easter, Jesus gives the power to forgive sins in general—
or retain them—to only a relative few: his apostles, their successors, and
others whom they designate:
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has 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” (John 20:21-23).
Jesus didn’t limit this sacramental gift to his visible time on earth. Rather, his
ministry of forgiveness continues until the present day
through apostolic succession, because Jesus promises that the gates of hell
will never prevail against the one Catholic Church he founded (Matt. 16:18-
19). So the idea that we can simply repent to Jesus and automatically receive
the forgiveness our Lord gained for us on the cross is, actually, not biblical.
Now that It’s Lent, Why Wait?
The season of Lent is a great time to go to confession—especially if you’ve
been away for five, ten, fifteen, or even fifty years or more. And if by the
very off-chance you get a priest who treats you rudely in the confessional . . .
well, let him absolve you of your sins, through the power Jesus has given
him, and then tell him—and his diocesan bishop—that he needs an attitude
adjustment, not to mention absolution for his own sins, including those he
committed against you in the confessional.
I say this because someone close to me had a bad first confession
experience as a Catholic child.
“What do you mean, you haven’t done anything wrong?!” the gruff priest
told the lad, who couldn’t come up with anything. When I heard the person
make this recollection many years later, I tried to make light of the matter,
saying, “Well, when you go into the confessional, you know you’re supposed
to have at least something to confess.”
But seriously, don’t let a bad experience in the confessional, or the failure of
a Catholic role model, or the sins of a priest, bishop, and/or pope keep you
from receiving Christ’s absolution for your sins. You’re going to confession to
encounter our merciful Lord Jesus, who sustains the mission of his
Church amid the failure of her human leaders:
Only God forgives sins. Since he is the Son of God, Jesus says of himself,
“The Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins” and exercises this
divine power: “Your sins are forgiven.” Further, by virtue of his divine
authority he gives this power to men to exercise in his name (CCC 1441).
If you need reassurance about God’s desire to reconcile with you, remember
those wonderful parables you likely learned as a kid—e.g., the prodigal son
(Luke 15:11-32) and the Good Shepherd (vv. 1-7).
The 5 Steps of Going to Confession
1. Examination of conscience. You need to recognize your sins to confess
them well. An examination of conscience—rooted in the Ten
Commandments and with an awareness of the seven deadly sins (CCC 1866)
—will guide you, especially if you’ve been away from the sacrament a good
while. See our examinations here—one each for adults, teens, and younger
children, as well as one in Spanish.
In addition, we need to distinguish between mortal (i.e., grave or deadly) sins
and venial or lesser sins (see 1 John 5:16-17, James 5:19-20). If we commit
a mortal sin, we need to go to confession before we receive Holy Communion
again. There are three components of a mortal sin: 1) grave matter, 2) full
knowledge, and 3) complete consent (CCC 1857-1859). Some grave sins
have become legally protected over the years,
including abortion, attempting to marry while still married to another person,
and the redefinition of marriage. So don’t be misled. For more, see Joe
Heschmeyer’s article, “Mortal Sin: The Basics,” as well our synopsis on grave
matter.
2. Contrition. You need to repent for your sins to have true sorrow for
having offended God and others by your transgressions. The Church
distinguishes between perfect contrition, which “arises from a love by which
God is loved above all else,” and imperfect contrition, which is born of lesser
reasons, including “the fear of eternal damnation and the other penalties
threatening the sinner” (CCC 1452-1453). To be clear, imperfect contrition in
the confessional is sufficient for the absolution of all of our sins.
3. Commit to not sinning again. Implied in true contrition, lest there be
any doubt, is the resolution not to sin again, particularly regarding mortal
sins, given their deadly nature. This is known as having a firm purpose of
amendment (CCC 1451, 1490-1491). After you confess your sins, you say an
act of contrition. Click here for a good one to guide you.
A key part of repentance, if at all possible, is repenting to the people you
offended, whether before or after your confession. Further, in going forward,
you want to avoid the twin grave sins against the virtue of
hope: despair and presumption (CCC 2091-2092).
4. Confession of sins. You need to confess your sins to an ordained priest,
distinguishing between your venial sins and mortal sins, as the latter need to
be confessed in both kind and number. Deliberately withholding a mortal sin
will nullify your absolution. As the Catechism provides,
when Christ’s faithful strive to confess all the sins that they can remember,
they undoubtedly place all of them before the divine mercy for pardon. But
those who fail to do so and knowingly withhold some, place nothing before
the divine goodness for remission through the mediation of the priest, “for if
the sick person is too ashamed to show his wound to the doctor, the
medicine cannot heal what it does not know” (1456).
If you haven’t been to confession for a while, it’s good to make an
appointment with a priest to accommodate any extra time you may need,
though that’s not required. And if you encounter any irate penitents in line
after your lengthier confession, smile and say, “Remember what our moms
used to say: ‘Offer it up.’” In addition, don’t fret if you fail to recall a
particular grave sin.
Going forward, remember the reassuring words of Ven. Bruno Lanteri: “If I
should fall even a thousand times a day, a thousand times, with peaceful
repentance, I will say immediately, Nunc coepi [Now I begin, or Begin
again].”
5. Penance. You need to do the assigned penance, whether prayers or other
actions, that your priest confessor gives you (see CCC 1459-1460). Yet strive
to avoid scrupulosity, which if unmanaged will impact not only you, but
also your loved ones.
THE SACRAMENT OF PENANCE (Cann. 959 - 997)
Can. 959 In the sacrament of penance the faithful who confess their sins to a
legitimate minister, are sorry for them, and intend to reform themselves obtain from
God through the absolution imparted by the same minister forgiveness for the sins
they have committed after baptism and, at the same, time are reconciled with the
Church which they have wounded by sinning.
CHAPTER I.
THE CELEBRATION OF THE SACRAMENT
Can. 960 Individual and integral confession and absolution constitute the only
ordinary means by which a member of the faithful conscious of grave sin is
reconciled with God and the Church. Only physical or moral impossibility excuses
from confession of this type; in such a case reconciliation can be obtained by other
means.
Can. 961 §1. Absolution cannot be imparted in a general manner to many penitents
at once without previous individual confession unless:
1/ danger of death is imminent and there is insufficient time for the priest or priests
to hear the confessions of the individual penitents;
2/ there is grave necessity, that is, when in view of the number of penitents, there
are not enough confessors available to hear the confessions of individuals properly
within a suitable period of time in such a way that the penitents are forced to be
deprived for a long while of sacramental grace or holy communion through no fault
of their own. Sufficient necessity is not considered to exist when confessors cannot
be present due only to the large number of penitents such as can occur on some
great feast or pilgrimage.
§2. It belongs to the diocesan bishop to judge whether the conditions required
according to the norm of §1, n. 2 are present. He can determine the cases of such
necessity, attentive to the criteria agreed upon with the other members of the
conference of bishops.
Can. 962 §1. For a member of the Christian faithful validly to receive sacramental
absolution given to many at one time, it is required not only that the person is
properly disposed but also at the same time intends to confess within a suitable
period of time each grave sin which at the present time cannot be so confessed.
§2. Insofar as it can be done even on the occasion of the reception of general
absolution, the Christian faithful are to be instructed about the requirements of the
norm of §1. An exhortation that each person take care to make an act of contrition
is to precede general absolution even in the case of danger of death, if there is
time.
Can. 963 Without prejudice to the obligation mentioned in can. 989, a person whose
grave sins are remitted by general absolution is to approach individual confession
as soon as possible, given the opportunity, before receiving another general
absolution, unless a just cause intervenes.
Can. 964 §1. The proper place to hear sacramental confessions is a church or
oratory.
§2. The conference of bishops is to establish norms regarding the confessional; it is
to take care, however, that there are always confessionals with a fixed grate
between the penitent and the confessor in an open place so that the faithful who
wish to can use them freely.
§3. Confessions are not to be heard outside a confessional without a just cause.
CHAPTER II.
THE MINISTER OF THE SACRAMENT OF PENANCE
Can. 965 A priest alone is the minister of the sacrament of penance.
Can. 966 §1. The valid absolution of sins requires that the minister have, in addition
to the power of orders, the faculty of exercising it for the faithful to whom he
imparts absolution.
§2. A priest can be given this faculty either by the law itself or by a grant made by
the competent authority according to the norm of can. 969.
Can. 967 §1. In addition to the Roman Pontiff, cardinals have the faculty of hearing
the confessions of the Christian faithful everywhere in the world by the law itself.
Bishops likewise have this faculty and use it licitly everywhere unless the diocesan
bishop has denied it in a particular case.
§2. Those who possess the faculty of hearing confessions habitually whether by
virtue of office or by virtue of the grant of an ordinary of the place of incardination
or of the place in which they have a domicile can exercise that faculty everywhere
unless the local ordinary has denied it in a particular case, without prejudice to the
prescripts of can. 974, §§2 and 3.
§3. Those who are provided with the faculty of hearing confessions by reason of
office or grant of a competent superior according to the norm of cann. 968, §2 and
969, §2 possess the same faculty everywhere by the law itself as regards members
and others living day and night in the house of the institute or society; they also use
the faculty licitly unless some major superior has denied it in a particular case as
regards his own subjects.
Can. 968 §1. In virtue of office, a local ordinary, canon penitentiary, a pastor, and
those who take the place of a pastor possess the faculty of hearing confessions,
each within his jurisdiction.
§2. In virtue of their office, superiors of religious institutes or societies of apostolic
life that are clerical and of pontifical right, who have executive power of governance
according to the norm of their constitutions, possess the faculty of hearing the
confessions of their subjects and of others living day and night in the house, without
prejudice to the prescript of can. 630, §4.
Can. 969 §1. The local ordinary alone is competent to confer upon any presbyters
whatsoever the faculty to hear the confessions of any of the faithful. Presbyters who
are members of religious institutes, however, are not to use the faculty without at
least the presumed permission of their superior.
§2. The superior of a religious institute or society of apostolic life mentioned in can.
968, §2 is competent to confer upon any presbyters whatsoever the faculty to hear
the confessions of their subjects and of others living day and night in the house.
Can. 970 The faculty to hear confessions is not to be granted except to presbyters
who are found to be suitable through an examination or whose suitability is
otherwise evident.
Can. 971 The local ordinary is not to grant the faculty of hearing confessions
habitually to a presbyter, even one having a domicile or quasi-domicile in his
jurisdiction, unless he has first heard the ordinary of the same presbyter insofar as
possible.
Can. 972 The competent authority mentioned in can. 969 can grant the faculty to
hear confessions for either an indefinite or a definite period of time.
Can. 973 The faculty to hear confessions habitually is to be granted in writing.
Can. 974 §1. The local ordinary and the competent superior are not to revoke the
faculty to hear confessions habitually except for a grave cause.
§2. When the faculty to hear confessions has been revoked by the local ordinary
who granted it as mentioned in can. 967, §2, a presbyter loses the faculty
everywhere. If some other local ordinary has revoked the faculty, the presbyter
loses it only in the territory of the one who revokes it.
§3. Any local ordinary who has revoked the faculty of some presbyter to hear
confessions is to inform the proper ordinary of incardination of the presbyter or, if
he is a member of a religious institute, his competent superior.
§4. If the proper major superior of a presbyter has revoked the faculty to hear
confessions, the presbyter loses the faulty to hear the confessions of members of
the institute everywhere. If some other competent superior has revoked the faculty,
however, the presbyter loses it only with regard to the subjects in the jurisdiction of
that superior.
Can. 975 Besides by revocation, the faculty mentioned in can. 967, §2 ceases by
loss of office, excardination, or loss of domicile.
Can. 976 Even though a priest lacks the faculty to hear confessions, he absolves
validly and licitly any penitents whatsoever in danger of death from any censures
and sins, even if an approved priest is present.
Can. 977 The absolution of an accomplice in a sin against the sixth commandment
of the Decalogue is invalid except in danger of death.
Can. 978 §1. In hearing confessions the priest is to remember that he is equally a
judge and a physician and has been established by God as a minister of divine
justice and mercy, so that he has regard for the divine honor and the salvation of
souls.
§2. In administering the sacrament, the confessor as a minister of the Church is to
adhere faithfully to the doctrine of the magisterium and the norms issued by
competent authority.
Can. 979 In posing questions, the priest is to proceed with prudence and discretion,
attentive to the condition and age of the penitent, and is to refrain from asking the
name of an accomplice.
Can. 980 If the confessor has no doubt about the disposition of the penitent, and
the penitent seeks absolution, absolution is to be neither refused nor deferred.
Can. 981 The confessor is to impose salutary and suitable penances in accord with
the quality and number of sins, taking into account the condition of the penitent.
The penitent is obliged to fulfill these personally.
Can. 982 Whoever confesses to have denounced falsely an innocent confessor to
ecclesiastical authority concerning the crime of solicitation to sin against the sixth
commandment of the Decalogue is not to be absolved unless the person has first
formally retracted the false denunciation and is prepared to repair damages if there
are any.
Can. 983 §1. The sacramental seal is inviolable; therefore it is absolutely forbidden
for a confessor to betray in any way a penitent in words or in any manner and for
any reason.
§2. The interpreter, if there is one, and all others who in any way have knowledge of
sins from confession are also obliged to observe secrecy.
Can. 984 §1. A confessor is prohibited completely from using knowledge acquired
from confession to the detriment of the penitent even when any danger of
revelation is excluded.
§2. A person who has been placed in authority cannot use in any manner for
external governance the knowledge about sins which he has received in confession
at any time.
Can. 985 The director of novices and his associate and the rector of a seminary or
other institute of education are not to hear the sacramental confessions of their
students residing in the same house unless the students freely request it in
particular cases.
Can. 986 §1. All to whom the care of souls has been entrusted in virtue of some
function are obliged to make provision so that the confessions of the faithful
entrusted to them are heard when they reasonably seek to be heard and that they
have the opportunity to approach individual confession on days and at times
established for their convenience.
§2. In urgent necessity, any confessor is obliged to hear the confessions of the
Christian faithful, and in danger of death, any priest is so obliged.
CHAPTER III.
THE PENITENT
Can. 987 To receive the salvific remedy of the sacrament of penance, a member of
the Christian faithful must be disposed in such a way that, rejecting sins committed
and having a purpose of amendment, the person is turned back to God.
Can. 988 §1. A member of the Christian faithful is obliged to confess in kind and
number all grave sins committed after baptism and not yet remitted directly
through the keys of the Church nor acknowledged in individual confession, of which
the person has knowledge after diligent examination of conscience.
§2. It is recommended to the Christian faithful that they also confess venial sins.
Can. 989 After having reached the age of discretion, each member of the faithful is
ob-liged to confess faithfully his or her grave sins at least once a year.
Can. 990 No one is prohibited from confessing through an interpreter as long as
abuses and scandals are avoided and without prejudice to the prescript of can. 983,
§2.
Can. 991 Every member of the Christian faithful is free to confess sins to a
legitimately approved confessor of his or her choice, even to one of another rite.
CHAPTER IV.
INDULGENCES
Can. 992 An indulgence is the remission before God of temporal punishment for sins
whose guilt is already forgiven, which a properly disposed member of the Christian
faithful gains under certain and defined conditions by the assistance of the Church
which as minister of redemption dispenses and applies authoritatively the treasury
of the satisfactions of Christ and the saints.
Can. 993 An indulgence is partial or plenary insofar as it partially or totally frees
from the temporal punishment due to sins.
Can. 994 Any member of the faithful can gain partial or plenary indulgences for
oneself or apply them to the dead by way of suffrage.
Can. 995 §1. In addition to the supreme authority of the Church, only those to whom
this power is acknowledged in the law or granted by the Roman Pontiff can bestow
indulgences.
§2. No authority below the Roman Pontiff can entrust the power of granting
indulgences to others unless the Apostolic See has given this expressly to the
person.
Can. 996 §1. To be capable of gaining indulgences, a person must be baptized, not
excommunicated, and in the state of grace at least at the end of the prescribed
works.
§2. To gain indulgences, however, a capable subject must have at least the general
intention of acquiring them and must fulfill the enjoined works in the established
time and the proper method, according to the tenor of the grant.
Can. 997 As regards the granting and use of indulgences, the other prescripts
contained in the special laws of the Church must also be observed.