Friday, September 27, 2013

Confession - Its Fruitful Practice


“And many of them that believed, came confessing and declaring their deeds. And many of them who had followed curious arts, brought together their books, and burnt them before all; and counting the price of them, they found the money to be fifty thousand pieces of silver.” —Acts 19:18-19

“Amen I say to you, whatsoever you shall bind upon earth, shall be bound also in heaven; and whatsoever you shall loose upon earth, shall be loosed also in heaven.” —Matthew 18:18

“He said therefore to them again: Peace be to you. As the Father hath sent me, I also send you. When he had said this, he breathed on them; and he said to them: Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.” —John 20:21-23

CONTENTS
1. The Blessings of Confession . 1
2. The Five Things Necessary for a Good Confession . 4
Examination of Conscience 4
False Consciences and Their Remedies
The Lax Conscience
The Scrupulous Conscience
The Doubtful Conscience
How to Make a Good Examination of Conscience
Contrition . 12
The Qualities of Contrition
Interior Contrition Supernatural Contrition Perfect and Imperfect Contrition Universal Contrition Sovereign Contrition
Relapses into Former Sins.
Purpose of Amendment . . 25
Occasions of Sin - Purpose of Amendment
Must Be Specific.
Confession and Absolution 29
The Confession of Sins
Qualities of a Good Confession
Confession of Venial Sins
Sacrilegious Confessions
General Confession
Frequent Confession
The Absolution of the Priest.
Satisfaction . 46
The Sacramental Penance - Voluntary Penances - Indulgences.
3. How to Make a Good Confession . 52
The Examination of Conscience 52
Beginning Prayer Points for the Examination of Conscience
The Ten Commandments of God - The Six Precepts of the Church - The Seven Capital Sins
Duties of Particular States of Life
Corporal and Spiritual Works of Mercy.
Considerations to Excite Contrition . 67
The Enormity of Sin God’s Benefits to Me The Love of Jesus Christ.
Prayers Before Confession . 69
Act of Contrition and Purpose of Amendment—Prayer before a Crucifix—
Prayer of St. Gertrude—A Short and Efficacious Act of Contrition.
An Easy Method of Going to Confession 73
Prayers After Confession . . 76
Psalm 102—Prayer of Thanksgiving—
Prayer before Performing the Sacramental Penance.

Chapter 1
The Blessings of Confession

“Blessed are they that wash their robes in the Blood of the Lamb.” (Apoc. 22:14).

Catholics truly may be called “blessed” in the means they have of washing the sin-stained robes of their souls in the Precious Blood of the Lamb of God in the Sacrament of Penance! There is no question that Confession—especially frequent Confession—is an inestimable blessing to mankind. Man can hope for no greater blessing on this earth than true peace of soul. The Sacrament of Penance is a perennial fountain of peace. It is a source of untold consolation to human hearts. This Sacrament gives any and every member of the Catholic Church who has transgressed the holy laws of God an easy and simple means to obtain full pardon and to be restored to His friendship. This is its first and principal effect. Its second effect is to wipe out the punishment due to sin: eternal punishment entirely, and temporal punishment in whole or in part, according to the penitent’s dispositions.

It closes the gates of Hell, which open to swallow up in the infernal abyss souls who deliberately turn away from God by mortal sin and who sunder the ties binding them to Him by preferring their own wills to His. A good Confession opens anew the portals of Heaven, which are barred to souls so long as they remain in the state of mortal sin. It clothes souls with the beautiful nuptial garment of Sanctifying Grace, or renders that garment still more beautiful if the soul already possesses it.

It restores past merits, which are lost by even a single mortal sin. It renders the soul capable again of performing acts meritorious of an eternal reward, which is impossible while it is in the state of mortal sin. It confers sacramental graces, that is, powerful supernatural helps to avoid sin in the future, and to persevere in the service of God. It gives a claim to the special graces the soul needs in order to lead a God-pleasing life.

Finally, it checks sinful passions and inclinations to evil. To partake in fullest measure of these blessings of the Sacrament of Penance, it is necessary for the penitent to know how to make a good Confession. The present booklet is an attempt to help souls in this allimportant matter by explaining the five requisites of a good Confession, plus various points which are of vital importance for the fruitful reception of this Sacrament.

Chapter 2
The Five Things Necessary for a Good Confession

As every well-instructed Catholic knows, the five things necessary for a good Confession are: 1) An Examination of Conscience, 2) Contrition (or sorrow) for sin, 3) A Firm Purpose of Amendment, 4) The Confession of one’s sins to a priest, 5) Acceptance of one’s penance (making satisfaction for sin).

I. EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE
“Go, show yourselves to the priests.” (Luke 17:14). This was the command given by Our Lord to the ten lepers He had healed. This is also the command God gives to souls who have contracted the far more loathsome disease of spiritual leprosy - namely, sin. The priest has been appointed by Our Lord as a spiritual physician to heal the diseases of the soul. But to do so, the priest, like any other physician, must know the nature of the disease. In other words, he must know the sins that have been committed. The penitent, therefore, must make known to him the exact state of his soul. To gain this self-knowledge, it is undoubtedly necessary for the penitent to search seriously into his life since the time of his last Confession, reflecting upon his thoughts, words, deeds and omissions. This inward scrutiny of oneself is called the Examination of Conscience. It should be performed with earnestness and care, mindful of the warning of St. Paul: “But if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.” (1 Cor. 11:31).

A. FALSE CONSCIENCES AND THEIR REMEDIES
A diligent examination of conscience should bring clearly to the penitent’s mind his sins of thought, word, deed, desire and omission, according to their kind, their number and their relevant circumstances. In this examination, two faults are to be avoided: 1) Laxity (or remissness) and 2) Scrupulosity.

1. The Lax Conscience
A lax conscience is a false conscience. It is erroneous because it is easy-going and too broad-minded. It passes over grievous sins as of small consequence. Christ reproached the “blind” Pharisees for this fault, saying that they were “Blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel.” (Matt. 23:24). The lax conscience needs the fear of God, which Scripture tells us “is the beginning of wisdom.” (Ps. 110:10). The soul gives no thought to God’s omnipotence and retributive justice. It presumptuously and willfully deceives itself. Finally, it comes to regard grave matters as of slight importance. In this way, it places itself in very grave danger of being eternally lost.

As everyone should and must live according to a correct conscience, it is imperative to do away with all wrong attitudes, in order that this God-given mentor may be a safe guide in one’s spiritual life. A person who has a lax conscience must endeavor to remedy it by meditating frequently on the enormity of sin and the shortness of life, on the Passion of Our Lord, and on the horrible and unending punishments of Hell. He should pray to the Holy Spirit for the gift of true discernment regarding sin, for a holy and proper fear of God, for a true horror of sin, for sincere sorrow for his sins and for an abiding compunction of heart.

2. The Scrupulous Conscience
The scrupulous conscience is narrow-minded and timid. It is always in a state of confusion and perturbation. It is obscured, as it were, by a fog and is unable to discern between right and wrong, between sin and temptation. It persists in seeing grave moral evil where none exists. Sometimes scrupulosity is permitted as a visitation or trial from God, who in His inscrutable counsels allows it for the soul’s good and for His own greater glory. But God is the God of peace and love and does not will that souls should be disturbed for a long time by such a trial. Hence, when scrupulosity comes from God, it usually ceases after a time— if the soul is humble and obedient.

Scruples may also be a temptation from the devil. In most cases, however, they proceed from purely natural causes. Certain conditions of mind and body—nervousness, impaired health, melancholy—may produce scruples. This disease of the conscience may reach a degree where the soul is no longer able to pass a calm and reasonable judgment on certain moral matters, or even on any question of right or wrong. A scrupulous person does not have the light to see things in their true aspect. Often he lacks humility and submissiveness to his spiritual guide and tends to self-sufficiency and selfwill. If so, he faces the danger of falling into the first error, laxity, and eventually his continued state of anxiety may affect his mind.

A scrupulous person needs to cultivate a loving, childlike confidence in God and must obey his confessor unquestioningly. Spiritual guides agree that unconditional obedience to the confessor is the most necessary element in defeating scrupulosity, and it is oftentimes the only means of deliverance. Meditation on God’s attributes of Goodness, Mercy and Love will help the soul afflicted with scruples to attain confidence and trust in God. Such a person should avoid idleness and all external circumstances which are apt to produce or increase his scruples. Instead of minutely examining again and again every small failing—which he tends to exaggerate—the scrupulous soul must regard its scruples as a little child reposing in the arms of its loving father would regard a dog barking fiercely on the ground below, for just as the dog cannot harm the child in the least so long as it remains in its father’s arms, so neither can scruples harm the soul so long as it honestly seeks to please God and relies on His love. By acts of love and trust in God, and by complete obedience to the confessor—which must be emphasized again—the soul usually can attain in time the peace of a true conscience.

3. The Doubtful Conscience
Oftentimes persons find themselves in a state of uncertainty as to whether or not an act they intend to perform is a sin. It is a moral principle that one is not permitted to act when in a state of real doubt. St. Paul says, “For all that is not of faith is sin.” (Rom. 14:23). If one is uncertain whether a particular act is sinful or not, it is sinful to perform such an act. The reason is that such a person thereby shows that he is just as ready to do wrong as to do right. Some degree of moral certainty—that is to say, such as would be considered sufficient by an ordinarily prudent person—is necessary.

As an example, let us take a doubt which might arise regarding the fast and abstinence on the vigil of a feast. (*This example is based on pre-1960 Church laws of fast and abstinence. —Publisher, 2000) The person knows that the vigils of certain great feasts are days of fast and abstinence from meat, but the question arises in his mind whether or not the day before the Feast of the Ascension is such a day. If he ate meat on that day, assuming that the day was not a day of fast and abstinence, but he had taken no pains to find out for certain, he would sin thereby, even though fast and abstinence were not actually prescribed by the Church. His duty is to make sure, if he can, whether or not it is a day of fast and abstinence, and to act accordingly. This he could ordinarily do by inquiry or by referring to a Catholic calendar, though circumstances might arise where it would be impossible at the time to resolve the doubt. In this latter case, he should refrain from eating meat.

B. HOW TO MAKE A GOOD EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE
One who goes to Confession frequently need not spend too much time in examining his conscience, wearying his mind to no purpose and giving scrupulosity a chance to gain a foothold. The examination should be calm, but earnest. The first step is earnest prayer to the Holy Spirit to ask for light and grace to know and detest one’s sins. The examination should bring to mind the time of the last good Confession and whether or not the penance was performed. It should cover one’s sins of thought, word, deed, desire and omission:

1) Against the Commandments of God,
2) Against the Precepts, or Laws, of the Church,
3) With regard to the Seven Capital Sins,
4) Regarding neglect of the duties of one’s state of life, and
5) Concerning the Spiritual and Corporal Works of Mercy omitted.

Those who examine their conscience every night and go frequently to Confession will readily remember any mortal sins that may have been committed. But for such as go to Confession rarely and are addicted to sinful habits, or have made a number of unworthy Confessions, more than a passing glance at their consciences is needed. Such persons ought to begin their self-examination a few days before going to Confession, remembering that this Confession may perhaps decide the fate of their soul for eternity. It would be very useful for them to follow a form of examination such as is given in this booklet on pages 52 to 67.

II. CONTRITION
A sincere examination of conscience brings a person face to face with the many maladies and deplorable weaknesses of his soul. He has found out the number, kind and gravity of his sins, and this must fill him with confusion and make him exclaim with the publican: “O God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” (Luke 18:13). Hence, he will pass from self-examination to contrition. Contrition is the key to God’s mercy and pardon. It is the most essential condition for a worthy reception of the Sacrament of Penance. Sin is a great evil. Even though at times it may affect the body, its chief effect is on the soul, for it separates the soul from God, either entirely (in the case of mortal sin), or partially (in the case of venial sin), by loosening the ties of our friendship with God.

To get back into God’s favor by Confession, the sinner must sincerely repent of his wrongdoing. He must be truly sorry from a supernatural motive and detest his sins with his whole heart, firmly resolving not to commit them again. Without this sorrow or contrition, there can be no pardon for sin. The priest has no power to absolve a sinner who does not have true contrition. If he attempted to do so, the absolution would be worthless. God Himself will not, and cannot, forgive anyone who is not sorry for his sins and fully determined not to offend Him again.

Contrition is defined by the Council of Trent as a sorrow of the soul and a detestation of the sins committed, with the firm determination not to sin again. (Sess. XIV, Cap. 4). Note that contrition is a sorrow of the soul—not of the body. It does not consist in words, or in tears, or in an emotion, or in striking one’s breast, or in mere outward signs.

A. THE QUALITIES OF CONTRITION
True Contrition has four qualities. It must be 1) Interior, 2) Supernatural, 3) Universal and 4) Sovereign.

1. Interior Contrition
Contrition is interior when it comes from the heart. Hence it is often called a “heartfelt” sorrow. It is not necessary to make violent efforts to excite this heartfelt sorrow, for such efforts often produce anxiety and result only in external show. Nor does being heartily sorry for sins mean that one should be troubled about them. Repentance and contrition are an effect of love of God; anxiety is an effect of self-love. True contrition is calm and humble. Sometimes it is a sensible sorrow, that is, a sorrow that makes itself felt; but this is not at all essential. Contrition is essentially an act of the will. A person has sufficient contrition when his sins displease him to such a degree that he is resolved not to commit them again, should the occasion present itself anew. St. Francis de Sales says that the ability to wish is a great power with God, and one has contrition by the simple fact that one wishes to have it.

Therefore, if the will is displeased above all things at having committed sin, and if one can say with the Psalmist: “I have hated and abhorred iniquity” (Ps. 118:163), the contrition is good and sufficient.

2. Supernatural Contrition
True contrition is supernatural. It is an actual grace of the Holy Spirit, and it is aroused by supernatural motives. The principal supernatural motives are:
1) The infinite goodness of God.
2) The suffering and death of Christ.
3) The loathsomeness of sin.
4) The everlasting reward lost by sin.
5) The everlasting punishment to which sin makes one liable.

Perfect Contrition
Perfect contrition is sorrow which proceeds from a pure or perfect love of God, who is infinitely good and perfect in Himself and deserving of all our love. It is sorrow for sin because sin displeases God. Our Lord said: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole mind.” (Matt. 22:37). These words contain the essence of perfect contrition, for as the Council of Trent declares, “Perfect contrition is that which is conceived out of a motive of charity, namely, the love of God as He is in Himself, or on account of His goodness.”

Effects of Perfect Contrition
Perfect contrition immediately cleanses the soul from all guilt of sin and reconciles it to God, even apart from the Sacrament of Penance. Perfect contrition always includes at least an implicit desire and intention to receive the Sacrament of Penance, and the obligation to confess all mortal sins still remains, even after one has made an act or acts of perfect contrition. One should note well that if one has committed a mortal sin, perfect contrition alone without the Sacrament of Penance is not sufficient before receiving Holy Communion. The person must first go to Sacramental Confession; otherwise, he commits a mortal sin of sacrilege.

Perfect contrition is necessary as a means of salvation for dying sinners (in the state of mortal sin) who have not received and cannot receive the Sacrament of Baptism (*Salvation under these circumstances presumes the gift of faith and Baptism of Desire. —Publisher, 2000) and for dying sinners who, though baptized, cannot receive the Sacrament of Penance. Perfect contrition is the last and only key to Heaven for sinners at the hour of death (be they Catholic or non-Catholic) who cannot have recourse to the keys of mercy entrusted by God to His priests in the Sacraments of Penance and Extreme Unction.

Perfect contrition, however, is not necessary for the valid reception of the Sacrament of Penance. Here, imperfect contrition (also sometimes called attrition) suffices. One ought, nevertheless, to strive to have perfect contrition, for the greater one’s sorrow for sin, the more pleasing it is to God and the more temporal punishment is remitted at the reception of the Sacrament; the greater also is the penitent’s merit, the measure of which determines his degree of heavenly glory.

Theologians unanimously agree that merits which have been lost through mortal sin revive at the reception of the Sacrament of Penance. It is not certain, however, whether all the merits one possessed before sinning are restored, or whether these merits are increased or diminished. Saint Thomas is of the opinion that the merits are restored in proportion to the disposition of the penitent, so that “sometimes the penitent rises in greater grace than he had before, sometimes in a lesser grace.” Obviously, then, the more perfect one’s contrition, the greater will be the measure of merit restored.

In the case of a person who has committed no mortal sins, perfect contrition (even outside of Confession) increases and more greatly secures the state of grace, remits the venial sins of which he repents, cancels temporal punishment due to sin, and strengthens and increases in the soul a true and steadfast love of God. How to Make Acts of Perfect Contrition Perfect contrition is a grace, a great grace, springing from the love and mercy of God. It must be earnestly sought for, not only when preparing for Confession, but habitually. “O my God, give me the grace of true repentance, a perfect contrition for my sins,” should be one of our most frequent prayers.

To dispose his soul for perfect contrition, one ought to place himself either in reality or in imagination before a Crucifix and look on the Wounds of Jesus, reflecting seriously for a short time on Who it is that suffers there, on the dreadful torments He endures, on the shame and sorrow that overwhelm this innocent Victim of sin, and on the infinite love with which this merciful Redeemer atoned for these sins. Then, with heart and lips, he may repeat slowly and fervently an act of contrition, such as that given on page 69.

Imperfect Contrition
Although, as stated above, it is better and more profitable to the soul to have perfect contrition in receiving the Sacrament of Penance, the second kind of supernatural contrition, which we call imperfect contrition, is sufficient for a good Confession. Imperfect contrition, also called attrition, is defined as that supernatural sorrow and hatred for sin which arises from reflection on the heinousness of sin, from dread of the loss of Heaven, or from fear of Hell and its torments. Hence, the motive of imperfect contrition is the fear of God and His judgments. Though imperfect contrition springs from a supernatural motive, it is lower than the motive of perfect contrition. Nevertheless, imperfect contrition proceeds from the grace of God and from motives springing from faith. It is therefore pleasing to God.

Imperfect contrition is more easily excited in the soul than perfect contrition because it is accessible to all who have even the least degree of faith. Even the greatest sinners can make an act of contrition arising from the fear of God or the dread of Hell. With such contrition, the pardon of sins may be obtained within the Sacrament of Penance.

3. Universal Contrition
The third requisite for contrition is that it be universal; that is, it must extend to all mortal sins without exception or reserve. Contrition is not genuine unless every mortal sin be detested. It is impossible for some mortal sins to be forgiven and others to remain unforgiven. All are pardoned, or none is pardoned. It is impossible for light and darkness to be in one and the same place. Hence, Sanctifying Grace and mortal sin cannot dwell together. If there be grace in the soul, there can be no mortal sin; and if there be mortal sin, there can be no grace, for mortal sin expels all grace. If Sanctifying Grace abides in the soul, the soul has a claim to Heaven. If the soul is in the state of mortal sin, it is headed for Hell. The sinner must therefore necessarily be sincerely sorry for all mortal sins if he wishes to be reconciled with God, for it is impossible to have a claim on both Heaven and Hell simultaneously; it is impossible to be a friend and an enemy of God at one and the same time.

In his epistle, St. James the Apostle states the principle thus: “Whosoever shall keep the whole law, but offend in one point, is become guilty of all.” (James 2:10). One single mortal sin retains the soul in the devil’s power. And since no mortal sin is forgiven without sorrow, contrition must extend to all mortal sins. This, of course, does not mean one must make a special act of contrition for each individual mortal sin. It is sufficient that the act of contrition embrace all the mortal sins committed. In the case of venial sins, however, contrition need not be universal, though of course it is desirable that it should be.

Venial sin does not make the soul an enemy of God, but only lessens its degree of friendship. This fact, however, should not make one minimize the grievousness of venial sin. A person may make a good Confession if he is truly sorry for some venial sins, even though he still has an attachment to others. But only those will be forgiven for which he is sorry. A Confession is valid and good, therefore, if sorrow exists for the principal venial sins, when there are no mortal sins to confess. But if there are both mortal sins and venial sins, the Confession is good even though one has sorrow only for the mortal sins. If the penitent has only venial sins to confess and is sorry for none of them, the Confession is invalid, that is to say, the sins are not forgiven—though the Confession is not necessarily sacrilegious, for absolution was given on the presumption of the penitent’s having sorrow, whereas he did not.

4. Sovereign Contrition
Finally, contrition must be supreme or sovereign, which means that contrition for sin should be the greatest of all sorrows. It should exceed the sorrow caused by the loss of all earthly goods or friends, because sin is the greatest of all evils, bringing not a temporal, but an eternal loss to the soul. Yet as mentioned earlier, this sorrow does not have to be felt with the emotions. From these considerations, it is clear that in preparing for Confession special attention should be given to the act of contrition, which should always be made before entering the confessional to insure that one has true sorrow for his sins, because sorrow for one’s sins is the principal requisite for receiving God’s forgiveness. In the confessional, the act of contrition should then be renewed, rather than made for the first time. Otherwise the penitent would run the risk of possibly not having true sorrow for sin, or of having only a vague sense of sorrow and not a firm purpose of amendment.

Relapses into Former Sins
It is not to be concluded that a person was lacking in true contrition if he again falls into the same faults after Confession, for sin tends to become habitual and is often deeply ingrained in a person’s behavior. Contrition is an act of a moment, and it is quite possible that bad habits and a certain affection for sin may cause a relapse, even though at the time of Confession one was firmly resolved not to commit sin again. Relapses into mortal sin that spring from a perverse will, however, must not be tolerated. They must be attacked in their root until they are conquered. They can be entirely overcome through persistence in receiving the Sacraments of Confession and Communion worthily and through persistent and fervent prayer—especially prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and especially through her holy Rosary for this intention.
This combination is guaranteed to work if the penitent is genuinely sincere and is absolutely persistent in these devotions. In the case of impurity, it may be necessary for the penitent to go to Confession and Communion daily in order to overcome this sin. Our divine Lord Himself gave us the cue for success in overcoming sin when He said, “The Kingdom of Heaven suffereth violence and the violent bear it away.” (Matt. 11:12). In other words, one has to resort to every extremity to overcome certain types of mortal sin, in an effort to save his soul. And it is proper to do so! One’s confessor should readily understand and will even applaud such a valiant, determined effort.

After mortal sins, one must work at eradicating purposeful venial sins. But relapses into venial sin which proceed from inadvertence, from surprise, from the infirmity and frailty of human nature, can never be entirely overcome except by some special privilege from God. (Council of Trent, Sess. VI, can. 23). St. Francis de Sales says that if we rid ourselves of such faults a quarter of an hour before death, we shall do well.

III. PURPOSE OF AMENDMENT
The third requisite for a good Confession is a firm purpose of amendment. This is intimately connected with sincere contrition, being its second element. A firm purpose of amendment is a resolution to avoid, by the grace of God, not only sin, but also the dangerous occasions of sin. The purpose of amendment should be firm, universal, efficacious and durable. It is firm when the penitent is disposed to avoid sin at any cost. Like contrition, a firm purpose of amendment is universal when it extends to all mortal sins; it is efficacious when the penitent earnestly endeavors to correct his evil habits and shuns all proximate or near occasions of sin; it is durable when it is lasting and is not a mere passing sentiment.

A. OCCASIONS OF SIN
An occasion of sin is any person, place or thing which ordinarily puts a person in danger of committing sin. Holy Scripture warns us: “He that loveth danger shall perish in it.” (Ecclus. 3:27). The occasion leads one into sin, or pressures one into committing sin. Therefore, in order to avoid sin, the occasion must be shunned. There are four kinds of occasions of sin: 1) near occasions, in which one generally falls; 2) remote occasions, in which one sometimes falls; 3) voluntary occasions, which one can avoid if one wills to do so; and 4) involuntary occasions, which one cannot avoid.

A person who is unwilling to avoid a near or a voluntary occasion of sin is not fittingly prepared to receive absolution and forgiveness of his sins. If the priest is aware of his imperfect dispositions, he will refuse absolution. Persons who are occasions of sin are those in whose company one usually falls into sin. Places are those locations where one usually falls into sin, such as taverns, theaters of ill repute, public beaches, dance halls, and all immoral resorts of any kind, whether one actually commits sin in them or not. Things that are occasions of sin are bad books, indecent pictures, immoral or lewd movies and videos, and suggestive songs, jokes, and the like. Our Saviour says of occasions of sin: “If thy hand or thy foot scandalize thee, cut it off and cast if from thee. It is better for thee to go into [eternal] life maimed or lame, than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into everlasting fire.” (Matt. 18:8).

B. PURPOSE OF AMENDMENT MUST BE SPECIFIC
Though a firm purpose to lead a better life in the future is sufficient for a worthy Confession, a more specific resolution will be more fruitful. The more a person resolves to do battle against his besetting faults in a positive way, the more likely he is to succeed. His resolution will be more effective. Instead of saying, “I am going to avoid sin in the future and practice virtue,” one ought to resolve to stay away from this or that particular place or thing which led him into sin. Then he must also make definite, positive efforts to overcome his habitual sins, and even impose upon himself a small penance to be performed when he finds he has failed in a particular matter. Another effective means is to resolve to perform the contrary act of virtue a certain number of times a day, in order to establish oneself in the habit and to lessen the possibility of offending in that point again.

Prayer—especially the prayer of the Holy Rosary—ought always to accompany our efforts to overcome our faults, for all depends on God’s grace, and grace is obtained by prayer. God Himself tells us, “Without Me, you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). Even though a person may have misgivings about a relapse because of his weakness, or even if he does actually fall, it is not an indication that his purpose of amendment was not sincere. Like contrition, this depends, as we said, on his good will. A firm purpose of amendment is neither a simple wish nor a positive knowledge, but an earnest determination to do one’s best to avoid sin in the future. Firm confidence in God’s help when difficulties arise will be of immense value in successfully overcoming temptations.

IV. CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION

A. THE CONFESSION OF SINS
Confession is the fourth condition required of the penitent for the forgiveness of his sins. The word “confession” comes from the Latin word confessio, which means an acknowledgment, a manifestation. Sacramental Confession, therefore, is the manifestation or acknowledgment of one’s sins to a priest, who is duly authorized by the bishop of the diocese for the purpose of granting forgiveness in Confession. The Sacrament of Penance is a Sacrament of mercy. It should be approached with confidence and peace of heart. It has two component parts: 1) the Confession proper, that is, the penitent’s telling of his sins; and 2) the Absolution or pardon imparted by the priest...

Sunday, September 22, 2013

Archbishop Fulton Sheen Responds to Pope Francis

Traditionalist Catholics often regrettably find themselves at odds with post-conciliar advocates aka so-called "Neo-Cons" on a number of issues.
However, one thing they can agree on was the sanctity of a one Venerable Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen.

If you flip on EWTN radio (Everything Wrong, Traditional Never), they even air commercials promoting the Archbishop, and they quote him often (where it is convenient...milk and honey quotes).

I found this piece by Archbishop Sheen today...and it immediately struck me as what could be just postmarked and mailed to the Holy Father today as a direct response to his recent interview which has sparked chants of praise for a more "tolerant, accepting and broad-minded Church."

The rest of what is below will not be any of my own writing.
Instead, what is in black will be the original writings of Bishop Sheen.

Anything in red will be, regrettably, the writings of our post-conciliar popes.
Quotes bolded in green will be further support to Bishop Sheen's original text written by other pre-conciliar popes.

Without further ado...


THE CURSE OF BROADMINDEDNESS 

 Bishop Fulton J. Sheen 
 Taken from the book “Moods and Truths” 
 Published in 1932 

  
  "The Catholic Church intolerant." That simple thought, like a yellow-fever sign, is supposed to be the one solid reason which should frighten away any one who might be contemplating knocking at the portals of the Church for entrance, or for a crumb of the Bread of Life. When proof for this statement is asked, it is retorted that the Church is intolerant because of its self-complacency and smug satisfaction as the unique interpreter of the thoughts of Christ.

Pope Francis: “If the Christian is a restorationist, a legalist, if he wants everything clear and safe, then he will find nothing. Tradition and memory of the past must help us to have the courage to open up new areas to God. Those who today always look for disciplinarian solutions, those who long for an exaggerated doctrinal ‘security,’ those who stubbornly try to recover a past that no longer exists­—they have a static and inward-directed view of things. In this way, faith becomes an ideology among other ideologies.

“The church’s pastoral ministry cannot be obsessed with the transmission of a disjointed multitude of doctrines to be imposed insistently. Proclamation in a missionary style focuses on the essentials, on the necessary things…The church sometimes has locked itself up in small things, in small-minded rules. The most important thing is the first proclamation: Jesus Christ has saved you.”

Its narrow-mindedness is supposed to be revealed in its unwillingness to cooperate effectively with other Christian bodies that are working for the union of churches.

Pope John Paul II: Redemptoris Missio, 1990 #17
“The Church's task is described as though it had to proceed in two directions: on the one hand promoting such "values of the kingdom" as peace, justice, freedom, brotherhood, etc., while on the other hand fostering dialogue between…religions, so that through a mutual enrichment they might help the world to be renewed and to journey ever closer toward the kingdom.”

Within the last ten years, two great world conferences on religion have been held, in which every great religion except the Catholic participated. The Catholic Church was invited to attend and discuss the two important subjects of doctrine and ministry, but she refused the invitation. 
Pope Francis: “If one has the answers to all the questions, that is the proof that God is not with him. …  The great leaders of the people of God, like Moses, have always left room for doubt. You must leave room for the Lord, not for our certainties. We must be humble… Human self-understanding changes with time, and so also human consciousness deepens…We grow in the understanding of truth.”

Pope Pius XII, On the Ecumenical Movement, 1949, #II
“What is worse, [they assert] that in matters of dogma even the Catholic Church has not yet attained the fullness of Christ, but can still be perfected from outside.”

Pius IX, First Vatican Council, Session 3, Chapter 4, #3
If anyone says that it is possible that at some time, given the advancement of knowledge, a sense may be assigned to the dogmas propounded by the Church which is different from that which the Church has understood and understands: let him be anathema.

That is not all. Even in our own country she has refused to lend a helping hand in the federating of those churches which decided it was better to throw dogmatic differences into the background, in order to serve better the religious needs of America. The other churches would give her a royal welcome, but she will not come. She will not cooperate! She will not conform! And she will not conform because she is too narrow-minded and intolerant! Christ would not have acted that way! 

Pope John Paul II: Redemptoris Missio, 1990 #1&2
“The missionary thrust…is the inspiration behind ecumenism: "that they may all be one...so that the world may believe that you have sent me" (Jn 17:21)...communion between the churches has led to a lively exchange of spiritual benefits and gifts...churches are more willing to meet with the members of other Christian churches and other religions, and to enter into dialogue and cooperation with them...missionary activity is a matter for all Christians.”

Pope Pius XI, Mortalium Animos, 1928 #2
“They seem to have founded on that belief a hope that the nations, although they differ among themselves in certain religious matters, will without much difficulty come to agree as brethren in professing certain doctrines, which form as it were a common basis of the spiritual life. For which reason conventions, meetings and addresses are frequently arranged by these persons, at which a large number of listeners are present, and at which all without distinction are invited to join in the discussion, both infidels of every kind, and Christians, even those who have unhappily fallen away from Christ or who with obstinacy and pertinacity deny His divine nature and mission.”

Such is, practically every one will admit, a fair statement of the attitude the modern world bears to the Church. The charge of intolerance is not new. It was once directed against Our Blessed Lord Himself. 

“Woe to you when men shall bless you: for according to these things did their fathers to the false prophets.” – Luke 6:26

Immediately after His betrayal, Our Blessed Lord was summoned before a religious body for the first Church Conference of Christian times, held not in the city of Lausanne or Stockholm, but in the city of Jerusalem. The meeting was presided over by one Annas, the primate and head of one of the most aggressive families of the patriarchate, a man wise with the deluding wisdom of three score and ten years, in a country in which age and wisdom were synonymous. Five of his sons in succession wore the sacred ephod of blue and purple and scarlet, the symbols of family power. As head of his own house, Annas had charge of family revenues, and from non-biblical sources we learn that part of the family fortune was invested in trades connected with the Temple. The stalls for the sale of bird and beast and material for sacrifice were known as the booths of the sons of Annas. One expects a high tone when a priest goes into business; but Annas was a Sadducee, and since he did not believe in a future life, he made the most of life while he had it. There was always one incident he remembered about his Temple business, and that was the day Our Lord flung his tables down its front steps as if they were lumber, and with cords banished the money-handlers from the Temple like rubbish before the wind. 

That incident flashed before his mind now, when he saw standing before him the Woodworker of Nazareth. The eyes of Jesus and Annas met, and the first world conference on religion opened. Annas, ironically feigning surprise at the sight of the prisoner whom multitudes followed the week before, opened the meeting by asking Jesus to make plain two important religious matters, the two that were discussed later on in Lausanne and Geneva and Stockholm, namely, the question of His doctrine and the question of His ministry. Our Lord was asked by a religious man, a religious leader, and a religious authority, representative of the Common faith of a nation, to enter into discussion, to sit down to a conference on the all-important questions of religion-ministry and discipline-and He refused! And the world's first Church Conference was a failure. 

Pope Pius XI, Mortalium Animos, 1928 #2
“One who supports those who hold these theories and attempt to realize them, is altogether abandoning the divinely revealed religion.”

He refused in words which left no doubt in the mind of Annas that the doctrine which He preached was the one which He would now uphold in religious conference, namely, His Divinity. With words, cut like the facets of a diamond, and sentences, as uncompromising as a two-edged sword, He answered Annas : "I have spoken openly to the world . . . and in secret spoke I nothing. Why asketh thou Me? Ask them that have heard Me, what I spoke unto them: behold, these know the things which I said." 

In so many words Jesus said to Annas: "You imply by your questioning that I am not Divine; that I am just the same as the other rabbis going up and down the country-side; that I am another one of Israel's prophets, and at the most, only a man. I know that you would welcome Me to your heart if I would say that I am only human. But no! I have spoken openly to the world. I have declared My Divinity; I say unto you, I have exercised the right of Divinity, for I have forgiven sins; I have left my Body and Blood for posterity, and rather than deny its reality I have lost those who followed Me, who were scandalized at My words. It was only last night that I told Philip that the Father and I are One, and that I will ask My Father to send the Spirit of Truth to the Church I have founded on Peter, which will endure to the end of time. Ask those who have heard Me; they will tell you what things I have said. I have no other doctrine than that which I declared when I drove your dove-hucksters out of the Temple, and declared it to be My Father's House; that which I have preached; that which angels declared at My birth; that which I revealed on Thabor; that which I now declare before you, namely, My Divinity. And if your first principle is that I am not Divine, but am just human like yourself, then there is nothing in common between us. So, why asketh thou Me to discuss doctrine and ministry with you?" 

And some brute standing near by, feeling himself the humiliation of the high priest at such an uncompromising response, struck Our Blessed Lord across the face with a mailed fist, drawing out of Him two things: blood, and a soft answer: "If I have spoken evil bear witness of the evil: but if well, why smitest thou Me?" And that soldier in the court-room of Annas has gone down in history as the representative of that great group that bears a hatred against Divinity, the group that never clothes that hatred in any intellectual language, but rather in violence alone. 

All that happened in the life of Christ happens in the life of the Church. And here in the courtroom of Annas I find the reason for the Catholic Church's refusal to take part in movements for federation such as those inspired by present world conferences on religion. Happy the Church is that there should be a desire for the union of Christendom, but she cannot take part in any such conference
.
Pope Pius XI, Mortalium Animos, 1928 #2
“Certainly such attempts can nowise be approved by Catholics, founded as they are on that false opinion which considers all religions to be more or less good and praiseworthy.”

In so many words the Church says to those who invited her: "Why askest thou me about my doctrine and my ministry? Ask them that have heard me. I have spoken openly through the centuries, declaring myself the Spouse of Christ, founded on the Rock of Peter. Centuries before prophets of modern religions arose, I spoke my Divinity at Nicea and Constantinople; I spoke it in the cathedrals of the Middle Ages; I speak it today in every pulpit and church throughout the world. I know that you will welcome me to your conferences if I say I am not Divine; I know Ritualists throughout the world feel the need of my ceremonials, and would grasp my hand if I would but relinquish my claim to be Divine; I know a recent writer has argued that the great organization of the Church could be the framework for the union of all Christendom, if I would give up my claim to be the Truth; I know the church doors of the world would rejoice to see me pass in ; I know your welcome would be sincere; I know you desire the union of all Christendom-but I cannot. ‘Why do you ask me?’ if your first principle is that I am not Divine, but just a human organization like your own, that I am a human institution like all other human institutions founded by erring men and erring women. If your first principle is that I am human, but not divine, then there is no common ground for conference. I must refuse." 

Call this intolerance, yes! That is just what it is-the intolerance of Divinity. It is the claim to uniqueness that brought the blow of the soldier against Christ, and it is the claim to uniqueness that brings the blow of the world's disapproval against the Church. It is well to remember that there was one thing in the life of Christ that brought His death, and that was the intolerance of His claim to be Divine. He was tolerant about where He slept and what He ate; He was tolerant about shortcomings of His fish-smelling apostles; He was tolerant of those who nailed Him to the Cross, but He was absolutely intolerant about His claim to be Divine. There was not much tolerance about His statement that those who I receive not in Him shall be condemned. There was not much tolerance about His statement that any one who would prefer his own father or mother to Him was not worthy of being His disciple. There was not much tolerance of the world's opinion in giving His blessing to those whom the world would hate and revile. Tolerance to His Mind was not always good, nor was intolerance always evil. 

There is no other subject on which the average mind is so much confused as the subject of tolerance and intolerance. Tolerance is always supposed to be desirable because it is taken to be synonymous with broadmindedness. Intolerance is always supposed to be undesirable, because it is taken to be synonymous with narrow-mindedness. This is not true, for tolerance and intolerance apply to two totally different things. Tolerance applies only to persons, but never to principles. Intolerance applies only to principles, but never to persons. We must be tolerant to persons because they are human; we must be intolerant about principles because they are divine. We must be tolerant to the erring, because ignorance may have led them astray; but we must be intolerant to the error, because Truth is not our making, but God's. And hence the Church in her history, due reparation made, has always welcomed the heretic back into the treasury of her souls, but never his heresy into the treasury of her wisdom. 

The Church, like Our Blessed Lord, advocates charity to all persons who disagree with her by word or by violence. Even those who in the strictest sense of the term are bigots, are to be treated with the utmost kindness. They really do not hate the Church, they hate only what they mistakenly believe to be the Church. If I believed all the lies that are told about the Church, if I gave credence to all the foul stories told about her priesthood and Papacy, if I had been brought up on falsehoods about her teachings and her sacraments, I would probably hate the Church a thousand times more than they do. 

Keeping the distinction well in mind between persons and principles, cast a hurried glance over the general religious conditions of our country. America, it is commonly said, is suffering from intolerance. While there is much want of charity to our fellow-citizens, I believe it is truer to say that America is not suffering so much from intolerance as it is suffering from a false kind of tolerance: tolerance of right and wrong; truth and error; virtue and vice; Christ and chaos. The man, in our country, who can make up his mind and hold to certain truths with all the fervor of his soul, is called narrow-minded, whereas the man who cannot make up his mind is called broadminded. And now this false broad¬mindedness or tolerance of truth and error has carried many minds so far that they say one religion is just as good as another, or that because one contradicts another, therefore, there is no such thing as religion. This is just like concluding that because, in the days of Columbus, some said the world was round and others said it was flat, therefore, there is no world at all. 

Pius VIII, Traditi Humilitati, 1829, #4
“The various religions do not often agree among themselves. If one is true, the other must be false; there can be no society of darkness with light…the Catholic faith is uniquely true, as the apostle proclaims: one Lord, one faith, one baptism.”

Pope St. Pius X, Notre Charge Apostolique, 1910
“Catholic doctrine tells us that the primary duty of charity does not lie in the toleration of false ideas.”

Pope Pius IX, Qui Pluribus, 1846, #15
“Also perverse is that shocking theory that it makes no difference to which religion one belongs, a theory greatly at variance even with reason… They pretend that men can gain eternal salvation by the practice of any religion, as if there could ever be any sharing between justice and iniquity, any collaboration between light and darkness, or any agreement between Christ and Belial.”

Pope Pius XI, Mortalium Animos, 1928 #2 (REPEAT)
“Certainly such attempts can nowise be approved by Catholics, founded as they are on that false opinion which considers all religions to be more or less good and praiseworthy.”

Such indifference to the oneness of truth is at the root of all the assumptions so current in present-day thinking that religion is an open question, like the tariff, whereas science is a closed question, like the multiplication table. It is behind that queer kind of broadmindedness which teaches that any one may tell us about God, though it would never admit that any one but a scientist should tell us about an atom. It has inspired the idea that we should be broad enough to publish our sins to any psychoanalyst living in a glass house, but never so narrow as to tell them to a priest in a confessional box. It has created the general impression that any individual opinion about religion is right, and it has disposed modern minds to accept its religion dished up in the form of articles entitled: "My Idea of Religion," written by any nondescript from a Hollywood movie star to the chief cook of the Ritz-Carlton. 

This kind of broadmindedness which sacrifices principles to whims, dissolves entities into environment, and reduces truth to opinion, is an unmistakable sign of the decay of the logical faculty. 

Certainly it should be reasonably expected that religion should have its authoritative spokesmen, just as well as science. If you had wounded the palm of your hand, you would not call in a florist; if you broke the spring of your watch, you would not ask an artesian-well expert repair it; if your child had swallowed a nickel, you would not call in a collector of internal revenue; if you wished to determine idle authenticity of an alleged Rembrandt, you would not summon a house painter. If you insist that only a plumber should mend the leaks in your pipes, and not an organ tuner, if you demand a doctor shall take care of your body, and not a musician, then why, in heaven's name, should not we demand that a man who tells about God and religion at least say his prayers? 

The remedy for this broadmindedness is intolerance, not intolerance of persons, for of them we must be tolerant regardless of views they may hold, but intolerance of principles. A bridge builder must be intolerant about the foundations of his bridge; the gardener must be intolerant about weeds in his gardens; the property owner must be intolerant about his claims to property; the soldier must be intolerant about his country, as against that of the enemy, and he who is broadminded on the battlefield is a coward and a traitor. The doctor must be intolerant about disease in his patients, and the professor must be intolerant about error in his pupils. So, too, the Church, founded on the Intolerance of Divinity, must be equally intolerant about the truths commissioned to her.

Pope Francis: “The church sometimes has locked itself up in small things, in small-minded rules. The most important thing is the first proclamation: Jesus Christ has saved you.”

There are to be no one-fisted battles, no half-drawn swords, no divided loves, no equalizing Christ and Buddha in a broad sweep of sophomoric tolerance or broad-mindedness, for as Our Blessed Lord has put it: "He that is not with Me is against Me." 



Pope John Paul II, Redemptoris Missio, 1990 #3
“Peoples everywhere, open the doors to Christ! His Gospel in no way detracts from man's freedom, from the respect that is owed to every culture and to whatever is good in each religion.”

Pope John Paul II, Redemptor Hominis, 1979, #12
“Thanks to this unity we can together come close to the magnificent heritage of the human spirit that has been manifested in all religions.”

Pope John Paul II, Redemptoris Missio, 1990 #29
“The Church's relationship with other religions is dictated by a twofold respect: "Respect for man in his quest for answers to the deepest questions of his life, and respect for the action of the Spirit in man." Excluding any mistaken interpretation, the interreligious meeting held in Assisi was meant to confirm my conviction that "every authentic prayer is prompted by the Holy Spirit, who is mysteriously present in every human heart."


There is only one answer to the problem of the constituents of water, namely, two atoms of hydrogen and one of oxygen. There is only one answer to the question of what is the capital of the United States. There is only one true answer to the problem of two and two. Suppose that certain mathematicians in various parts of this country taught diverse kinds of multiplication tables. One taught that two times two equaled five, another two times two equaled six, another two times two equaled seven and one fourth, another two times two equaled nine and four fifths. Then suppose that someone decided it would be better to be broadminded and to work together and sacrifice their particular solutions for the sake of economy. The result would be a Federation of Mathematicians, compromising, possibly, of the pooled solution that two times two equaled five and seven eighths. Outside this federation is another group which holds that two times two equals four. They refuse to enter the federation unless the mathematicians agree to accept this as the true and unique solution. The broadminded group in conference taunts them, saying: "You are too intolerant and narrow-minded. You smack of the dead past. They believed that in the dark ages." 

Pope Francis: “Those who today always look for disciplinarian solutions, those who long for an exaggerated doctrinal ‘security,’ those who stubbornly try to recover a past that no longer exists­—they have a static and inward-directed view of things… If one has the answers to all the questions, that is the proof that God is not with him…The Great leaders of the peope of God have always left room for doubt.”

Now this is precisely the attitude of the Church on the subject of the world conferences on religion. She holds that just as the truth is one in geography, in chemistry, and mathematics, so too there is one truth in religion, and if we are intolerant about the truth that two times two equals four, then we should also be intolerant about those principles on which is hinged the only really important thing in the world, namely, the salvation of our immortal soul. If the assumption is that there is no Divinity, no oneness about truth, but only opinion, probability, and compromise, then the Church must refrain from participation. Any conference on religion, therefore, which starts with the assumption that there is no such thing as truth, and that contrary and contradictory sects may be united in a federation of broadmindedness, must never expect the Church to join or cooperate. 

Paul VI, Ecclesiam Suam, 1964, #81
“Dialogue promotes intimacy and friendship on both sides. It unites them in a mutual adherence to the Good, and thus excludes all self-seeking.”

As we grew from childhood to adolescence, the one thing that probably did most to wreck our faith in Santa Claus-I know it did mine -was to find a Santa Claus in every department-store window. If there were only one Santa Claus, and he was at the North Pole, how could there be one in every shop window and at every street corner? That same mentality which led us to seek truth in unity should lead us in religious matters to identically the same conclusion. 

The world may charge the Church with intolerance, and the world is right. The Church is intolerant-intolerant about Truth, intolerant about principles, intolerant about Divinity, just as Our Blessed Lord was intolerant about His Divinity. The other religions may change their principles, and they do change them, because their principles are man-made. The Church cannot change, because her principles are God-made. Religion is not a sure of beliefs that we would like, but the sum of beliefs God has given. The world may disagree with the Church, but the world knows very definitely with what it is disagreeing. In the future as in the past, the Church will be intolerant about the sanctity of marriage, for what God has joined together no man shall put asunder;



she will be intolerant about her creed, and be ready to die for it, for she fears not those who kill the body, but rather those who have the power to cast body and soul into hell. She will be intolerant about her infallibility, for "Lo," says Christ, "I am with you all the days even unto the end of the world." And while she is intolerant even to blood, in adhering to the truths given her by her Divine Founder, she will be tolerant to those who say she is intolerant, for the same Divine Founder has taught her to say: "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do." 

There are only two positions to take concerning truth, and both of them had their hearing centuries ago in the court-room of Solomon where two women claimed a babe. A babe is like truth; it is one; it is whole; it is organic and it cannot be divided. The real mother of 'the babe would accept no compromise. She was intolerant about her claim. She must have the whole babe, or nothing-the intolerance of Motherhood. But the false mother was tolerant. She was willing to compromise. She was willing to divide the babe-and the babe would have met its death through broadmindedness.   



IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY, PRAY FOR US!



Monday, September 9, 2013

Prayer for Union with Jesus



  Come to me, Lord, and possess my soul. Come into my heart and permeate my soul. Help me to sit in silence with You and let You work in my heart.
  I am Yours to possess. I am Yours to use. I want to be selfless and only exist in You. Help me to spoon out all that is me and be an empty vessel ready to be filled by You. Help me to fie to myself and live only for You. Use me as You will. Let me never draw my attention back to myself. I only want to operate as You do, dwelling within me.
  I am Yours, Lord. I want to have my life in You. I want to do the will of the Father. Give me the strength to put aside the world and let You operate my very being. Help me to act as You desire. Strengthen me against the distractions of the devil to take my from Your work.
  When I worry, I have taken my focus off of You and placed it on myself. Help me not to give in to the promptings of others to change what in my heart You are making very clear to me. I worship You, I adore You and I love You. Come and dwell in me now.