Reconciliation or Confession ??

“You like potato and I like potahto

You like tomato and I like tomahto

Potato, potahto, Tomato, tomahto.

Let's call the whole thing off.”

In the church we have a sort of potato-potahto, tomato-tomahto conundrum, but it’s with choosing the right word, not the right pronunciation.

We have a sacrament that is called different names by different people. It’s either penance, confession or reconciliation, depending on whom you ask. So which one is right?

The Catechism of the Catholic Church asks the same question, under the title:

I.                   WHAT IS THIS SACRAMENT CALLED?

And here is the response:

1423 It is called the sacrament of conversion because it makes sacramentally present Jesus' call to conversion, the first step in returning to the Father from whom one has strayed by sin.

It is called the sacrament of Penance, since it consecrates the Christian sinner's personal and ecclesial steps of conversion, penance, and satisfaction.

1424 It is called the sacrament of confession, since the disclosure or confession of sins to a priest is an essential element of this sacrament. In a profound sense it is also a "confession" - acknowledgment and praise - of the holiness of God and of his mercy toward sinful man.

It is called the sacrament of forgiveness, since by the priest's sacramental absolution God grants the penitent "pardon and peace."

It is called the sacrament of Reconciliation, because it imparts to the sinner the life of God who reconciles: "Be reconciled to God." He who lives by God's merciful love is ready to respond to the Lord's call: "Go; first be reconciled to your brother."

So, it turns out, there are five names for the same sacrament. And all are right.

Whatever you choose to call it, you can receive it tonight from 5 to 7 p.m, – and on Thursday evenings throughout Lent, as part of an archdiocese-wide initiative to make the sacrament more accessible during this season that’s all about conversion, penance, confession, forgiveness and reconciliation.

There’s also a Lenten Penance Service scheduled for 7 p.m. March 25 – as well as the regular reconciliation times Saturday afternoons from 3:30-4:30 and from 5 to 5:20 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays.

Let us dare to be like the leper who approached Jesus and said: “Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean.”

And we can receive the same response: “He stretched out his hand, touched him, and said, “I will do it. Be made clean.”

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.

The Ulitmate Evil

Sometimes we take for granted words and concepts we've known and grown accustomed to.

We hear the words, but they no longer have meaning for us.

One such word for me is "sin."

Blessed John Henry Newman set me straight, though. I found his thoughts on sin in a meditation in the prayer publication Magnificat and was jolted back to reality.

The saint noted all the evils he saw in the world: war, famine, sickness, death. They bring about immense, indescribable suffering, yet they are nothing compared with sin, he said. They are mere fruits of sin, he wrote, effects of sin, "shadows of it, but nothing more."

Sin itself is far worse. "All these dreadful pains of body and soul are the fruits of sin, but they are nothing to its punishment in the world to come," the saint wrote. "The keenest and fiercest of bodily pains is nothing to the fire of hell; the most dire horror or anxiety is nothing to the never-dying worm of conscience; the greatest bereavement, loss of substance, desertion of friends, and forlorn desolation is nothing compared to the loss of God's countenance. Eternal punishment is the only true measure of the guilt of sin."

The famous preacher helped me realize the horror that Jesus saved us from, perhaps why He had to suffer so much on our behalf and why we should hate sin and be moved to tears by it.

Sin is real, the ultimate evil. But another Magnificat reading reminded me of our victory over sin in Christ. God "is more powerful even than that most terrifying of enemies, death, which prowls the world seeking to devour all the living. Life, not death, has the last word."

We have an opportunity to receive God's life-giving forgiveness and grace tonight at a 7 p.m. reconciliation service, part of the parish's mission week.

Let's pray with Blessed John Henry Newman, asking God to teach us what sin is. "And, not only teach me about it, but in Your mercy and by Your grace, remove it."

Inspired by the Year of Faith, Susan Szalewski began writing weekly columns for us. Although that year is over, we liked them so well that we asked her to keep writing. Thankfully, she said yes. So watch for these on Thursdays and see the Year of Faith Blog here.

How Do I Go to Confession?

With our Parish Reconciliation Service 
Thursday at 7 p.m., this might be helpful:

Sacrament of Reconciliation

How do I go to Confession?

Sign of the Cross
I make the sign of the Cross and say, “In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”

Introduction
Say, “Bless me Father, for I have sinned. It has been (length of time) since my last confession.”

Confession of Sins
The priest listens as I explain my sins, how I have hurt God, others, and myself. End with, “For these and all my sins I am truly sorry.”

Penance
The priest asks me to say a prayer or do an act of goodness.

Act of Contrition
I tell God I am sorry for my sins. I say a prayer of sorrow:
O my God, I am sorry for my sins with all my heart. In choosing to do wrong and failing to do good, I have sinned against you, whom I should love above all things. I firmly intend, with the help of your grace, to do penance, to sin no more and to avoid whatever leads me to sin. Our savior Jesus Christ suffered and died for us. In his name, my God, have mercy. Amen.

Absolution
The priest says a prayer in the name of the Church, asking God to forgive my sins. With this prayer, all my sins are forgiven.

Dismissal
The priest says, “Your sins are forgiven, go in peace.”
I answer, “Thanks be to God.”

Pennance Services Today

This morning Fr. Vogel led a pennance service for the students in our school. This evening there will be another service for those in our Religious Formation classes.

Among those helping with both are Fr. Gary Welsh, one of our former associate pastors.

One of the expectations of all members of our parish is to "Receive the forgiveness of God through Reconciliation at least once a year." In addition to our normal schedule for Reconciliation, our Lenten Pennance Service is next week on Thursday, March 22nd at 7 p.m. in the church.

The "Good" News

 

 

In today's Gospel Jesus was in the Temple area and spoke the "Good News" to the Jews. At the end of today's Gospel we hear how they responded:

"So they picked up stones to throw at him."

So if the Good News is preach well here, there are plenty of stones to throw.

Our Parish Mission Week continues.
There will be at least nine priests here tonight for Reconciliation

6:15 Mass
7:00 Mission/Pennance Service