Annual Confession?

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Eddie18

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Surprising to see some Catholics now only go to Confession annually. Some food for thought on the subject:

The Catechism Explained, Spirago 1899, The Sacrament of Penance:
The more often a house is purified the cleaner it is; so it is with the soul of the Christian. The more frequently he goes to confession, the more thoroughly he casts off the yoke of the devil; for as a bird does not generally return to build its nest again in a place whence it has been driven away, so the evil one is not so prompt to molest the soul whence he has been expelled by confession. Confesion once a year suffices to make one a member of the Catholic Church, but it is not sufficient for the welfare of the soul. As well might one expect a house to be clean that was only swept out once a year. The Christian who only goes annually to confession is like Absalom, who only had his hair polled once a year (2 Kings xiv. 26) ; in the hour of temptation he is in danger of being caught and held fast, as Absalom was in the branches of the oak.

Catechism of Pope St. Pius X
21 Q: Is it a good thing to go to confession often?
A: Yes, it is an excellent thing to go to confession often, because the sacrament of Penance, besides taking away sin, gives the graces necessary to avoid sin in the future
 
The priest who heard my first confession said that I should go to Confession during Advent, Lent, early Summer and then after the Summer holidays (when most people really need to go said with a laugh).And in between when you need to! I just love that as most priests just say “once a month or so is good”. Receiving the Eucharist often makes me go to Confession regularly when I need to.
 
We’re certainly not the first generation of Catholics to fail to live up to the ideal. The minimum of yearly confession and Communion was established because people were not going to confession at all and not partaking of Holy Communion. I’d be willing to bet that even such a clear directive from the church back then didn’t change some people’s habits.
 
Indeed. If we do the bare minimum, toeing the line, we are at much higher risk of slipping over that line. Not good. What is lacking in all ages of mankind, but particularly in our age, is humility.

We must humble ourselves before Christ and His ambassador, the Priest. The parable of the tax collector and the Pharisee comes to mind.
 
in the 1790s only a fraction of the people made their Easter duty.
 
I thought the first word - of your topic title - was another word - lol - glad I did a double take !
 
Eddie18 said:
Confesion once a year suffices to make one a member of the Catholic Church
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Strange thing to say, since we are members of the Catholic Church due to baptism not the sacrament of Penance. Note that the Latin Easter Duty is to receive communion annually (if not excommunicated):
CIC
Can. 920 §1. After being initiated into the Most Holy Eucharist, each of the faithful is obliged to receive holy communion at least once a year.
CCEO
Can. 708 The local hierarchs and the pastors are to see that with every diligence the Christian faithful are instructed concerning the obligation of receiving the Divine Eucharist in danger of death and also at those times which are established by a most praiseworthy custom or by particular law of their own Church sui iuris, especially at Easter time, during which Christ handed down the eucharistic mystery.
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Eastern Catholic canon law strongly suggests frequent penance:
CCEO
Can. 719 Anyone who is aware of serious sin is to receive the sacrament of penance as soon as possible; it is strongly recommended to all the Christian faithful that they receive this sacrament frequently especially during the times of fasts and penance observed in their own Church sui iuris.
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AugustTherese said:
Did not Pope Saint John Paul go to Confession daily?
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It was either daily or weekly, but regardless, many of the saints went as often as they could.

It is a great thing to go regularly. So much of the filth you didn’t even realize was there comes to the surface.
 
Since we must receive Holy Communion at least annually to avoid excommunication, and since we must be in the state of grace to receive Holy Communion, it logically follows that we go to Confession at least annually (best right before for Holy Communion to assure we are in the state of grace).
 
What nobody has really acknowledged is that confession schedules are determined by the parish. I think that most parishes would have weekly confessionals, though exceptionally populous parishes might have daily. As such your ability to attend confession will be dependent upon that unless you’re willing to travel to another parish. I think that the biggest issue we face in not confessing often is forgetting or minimizing some of our more frequent sins and continually repeating them. Especially if you’re going a year without confessing. There’s no way you’ll remember that sin you committed at the beginning of the year. I think once a month is a good guideline. But I think one should also incorporate a daily reflection when they come to their evening prayers that includes an examination of conscience. The more frequently we confront our sinful ways and feel true repentance (even outside of confession), the more likely we are to address them.
 
poche said:
in the 1790s only a fraction of the people made their Easter duty.
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I think this is way too broad of an answer to be particularly useful.

Where? In France, absolutely. I would imagine attempting to make one’s Easter duty would have been quite dangerous. In Missionary territories that is also what I would expect. What about Ireland? Or Italy? Or Mexico?

And what kind of a fraction? 1/10 or 9/10? Do you have any statistics? Because I’d actually find them quite interesting.
 
Eddie18 said:
Surprising to see some Catholics now only go to Confession annually.
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Considering that most Catholics never go or go once every 20 years; I think once a year is better than never.

Me: I go on average once every 2 weeks, if not more.
 
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Eddie18 said:
Since we must receive Holy Communion at least annually to avoid excommunication, and since we must be in the state of grace to receive Holy Communion, it logically follows that we go to Confession at least annually (best right before for Holy Communion to assure we are in the state of grace).
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Except that we would not be excommunicated for not following that precept, and also would not require confession if there were only venial sins.
 
Given that Scripture refers to a just man falling 7 times a day, it’s quite a frightening thought to go a year without confession. And sometimes it’s debatable whether our sins were mortal or venial, so who would take the chance! Going monthly is a safe bet whether you think you have mortal sins or not.
 
For some people, confession is a frightening thought because they have anxiety or had a past bad confession experience. Also, the current emphasis on a loving, merciful God causes many people to convince themselves they don’t really need confession, so they don’t find it frightening to go without.
 
Tis_Bearself said:
For some people, confession is a frightening thought because they have anxiety or had a past bad confession experience. Also, the current emphasis on a loving, merciful God causes many people to convince themselves they don’t really need confession, so they don’t find it frightening to go without.
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What a shame that some people see it this way. I see Confession as a very tangible way to experience God’s love and mercy.
 
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