Are ALL sins forgiven?

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mlj1573

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I received the sacraments of initiation at Easter in 2007. Since then, I have not been to my first confession. I am afraid to go…I guess I just don’t have enough faith to believe that my sins will be forgiven. Maybe I’m just scared…

I have been in a state of mortal sin (a sin of impurity) and have received communion on more than one occasion. I know that this is sacrilege. I wrongly keep thinking that as long as I keep praying and going to church, and receiving communion, that i will be able to “cleanse myself” of my “habitual sin” of masturbation.

I almost feel like there is no hope for me. I have been on the brink of going to confession, but have failed to go for a number of “reasons”. I do not want to go “face to face” with my priest because I am so ashamed of what I’ve done, and the times for confession at my parish are extremely inconvenient for me. I can probably make it, but…

Any help? I “know” that I can be forgiven, but I don’t know that I “believe” it…
 
Don’t worry about it - priests have heard everything (especially older priests after 50-some years of hearing confession). Does your parish have a private confessional? (Or, even two chairs with a screen between them) Just tell the priest all of your sins to the best of your ability, especailly the mortal sins. Yes, it might be embarrasing, but it’s better to let them out now than to have them exposed at the Last Judgement without having them confessed.

If the time for confession is inconvient, you can call your parish office to set up an appointment for an alternate confession time.
 
mlj1573 said:
I received the sacraments of initiation at Easter in 2007. Since then, I have not been to my first confession. I am afraid to go…I guess I just don’t have enough faith to believe that my sins will be forgiven. Maybe I’m just scared…

I have been in a state of mortal sin (a sin of impurity) and have received communion on more than one occasion. I know that this is sacrilege. I wrongly keep thinking that as long as I keep praying and going to church, and receiving communion, that i will be able to “cleanse myself” of my “habitual sin” of masturbation.

I almost feel like there is no hope for me. I have been on the brink of going to confession, but have failed to go for a number of “reasons”. I do not want to go “face to face” with my priest because I am so ashamed of what I’ve done, and the times for confession at my parish are extremely inconvenient for me. I can probably make it, but…

Any help? I “know” that I can be forgiven, but I don’t know that I “believe” it…
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I would bet you that almost everyone on this board has committed this sin as well. It is one of the most common ones. Don’t sweat it/ Don’t receive until you confess/ Go confess with a firm purpose of amendment, try your best to stop sinning and move on. 👍
 
mlj1573 said:
I do not want to go “face to face” with my priest…
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You shouldn’t have to, if you don’t want to. That would understandably be a deterrent for many people, and thus screened confessionals are the standard… “face to face” confessions (if you even have that option) are usually an extra that you can choose, if you wish.
 
mlj1573 said:
I received the sacraments of initiation at Easter in 2007. Since then, I have not been to my first confession. I am afraid to go…I guess I just don’t have enough faith to believe that my sins will be forgiven. Maybe I’m just scared…

I have been in a state of mortal sin (a sin of impurity) and have received communion on more than one occasion. I know that this is sacrilege. I wrongly keep thinking that as long as I keep praying and going to church, and receiving communion, that i will be able to “cleanse myself” of my “habitual sin” of masturbation.

I almost feel like there is no hope for me. I have been on the brink of going to confession, but have failed to go for a number of “reasons”. I do not want to go “face to face” with my priest because I am so ashamed of what I’ve done, and the times for confession at my parish are extremely inconvenient for me. I can probably make it, but…

Any help? I “know” that I can be forgiven, but I don’t know that I “believe” it…
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Don’t delay your First Confession. I’m guessing part of it is that you’re worried that you’ve forgotten what they taught you in RCIA about how to go to Confession.

Don’t worry. Just tell the priest that you were received by baptism into the Church this past Easter, this is your first Confession, and you can’t remember how to say your prayers, and you need him to help you make a good Confession.

He’ll take it from there. Do not worry. You had no fear of confessing your sin to us; it’s no different when talking with a priest - you are just as anonymous (and even more so) in the Confessional as you are here - and the priest will most likely immediately forget everything that you confess. He’s not allowed to tell on you, even if he remembers, and he’s not allowed to think any less of you, either. 🙂
 
mlj1573 said:
I received the sacraments of initiation at Easter in 2007. Since then, I have not been to my first confession. I am afraid to go…I guess I just don’t have enough faith to believe that my sins will be forgiven. Maybe I’m just scared…

I have been in a state of mortal sin (a sin of impurity) and have received communion on more than one occasion. I know that this is sacrilege. I wrongly keep thinking that as long as I keep praying and going to church, and receiving communion, that i will be able to “cleanse myself” of my “habitual sin” of masturbation.

I almost feel like there is no hope for me. I have been on the brink of going to confession, but have failed to go for a number of “reasons”. I do not want to go “face to face” with my priest because I am so ashamed of what I’ve done, and the times for confession at my parish are extremely inconvenient for me. I can probably make it, but…

Any help? I “know” that I can be forgiven, but I don’t know that I “believe” it…
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What did you do about sin and forgiveness before you became Catholic? Did you pray to God asking Him to forgive you and trust that your prayer was heard? I hope so, it’d be sad indeed to have so little faith in His promises of forgiveness as to believe otherwise.

We do precisely the same in confession - only we believe that God (who is equally present and equally the source of the forgiveness) acts through the agency of the priest. He chooses this means for our sake. It’s good for us to humble ourselves by confessing through another person, and to physically hear the words of absolution. It’s obvious from His promise to the Apostles to forgive who they forgive that this is how it was meant to be.

He works in the confessional in precisely the same way as He works through the priest at Mass to transform ordinary bread and wine into His body and blood, or worked through the minister at your baptism and confirmation to confer those sacraments upon you.

How about praying about it to Him first? Tell Him, in the words of the Gospels, ‘Lord I believe, help my unbelief!’ And I agree with the previous poster - whatever you do do NOT receive Communion again until you have confessed.

You don’t have to go face to face - your confessor is obliged by Canon law to provide a screen or grille for anonymity. If he hasn’t, just move your chair around so you’re not facing him, tell him why if he asks, and talk directly to Jesus who is surely present in the confessional with you and the priest.
 
mlj1573 said:
Thank You! And to all of you for posting. I feel better already.🙂
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…and, you can always go to another Parish and make your confession there!

I don’t actually advise this, as you SHOULD become closer with your Parish Priest(s), but it’s a way to “work up to” becoming comfortable with the process.

Don’t delay, of course. 🙂
 
CatsAndDogs said:
…and, you can always go to another Parish and make your confession there!

I don’t actually advise this, as you SHOULD become closer with your Parish Priest(s), but it’s a way to “work up to” becoming comfortable with the process.

Don’t delay, of course. 🙂
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Rubbish. Not all priests have the gift of being good confessors, and not all parishes schedule confessions at convenient times. I think people should find the best possible priest to confess to, and times that mean they can actually go frequently, and not just the closest one.
 
LilyM said:
Quote:
Originally Posted by CatsAndDogs
…and, you can always go to another Parish and make your confession there!

I don’t actually advise this, as you SHOULD become closer with your Parish Priest(s), but it’s a way to “work up to” becoming comfortable with the process.

Don’t delay, of course.

Rubbish. Not all priests have the gift of being good confessors, and not all parishes schedule confessions at convenient times. I think people should find the best possible priest to confess to, and times that mean they can actually go frequently, and not just the closest one.
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I agree with you entirely! 🙂

It is a good idea to get into a good relationship with your Parish Priest, but, as with Tango, it DOES take two!

Finding a really good spiritual advisor who’s willing to “take you on” is also a good idea, of course, but that’s probably even MUCH more difficult a bird to find.

How about checking in with the local Opus Dei folks, and see what they have to offer? I’m just blithering out ideas at this point. STOP me before I “advise” again!!!
 

  1. *]Jesus can, will, and does forgive any sin that we are sorry for, repent of, and try to avoid.
    *]As another poster said, priests have heard it all before. You won’t shock him. On the contrary, he will admire your bravery to confess even the embarrassing things and rejoice that you wish your spiritual life to deepen.
    *]The sin that you mentioned - everyone has done it, every Catholic has confessed it… probably many times.
    *]In addition, sins like that which have an habitual nature to them, a compulsion, many times do not meet all the qualifications to be a mortal sin. The action itself is grave/serious, but when there is a habit or compulsion, it lessens the culpability. Okay, you know the action is grave, i.e. a mortal sin… but do you really make the choice “I’m going to turn my back on You, Lord, and send myself to hell,” or do you try not to and then fall? It makes a difference and Jesus knows your heart and knows that you love Him and are trying not to sin.
    *]An excellent helper in this kind of sin is our Blessed Mother. Ask her every day to obtain for you from her Divine Son the gift of purity. Trust me… she’s really good at answering this prayer.
    *]As to confessors, let me say one thing and you must adapt it to your situation (method of transportation, availability of other parishes, etc.): Shop around! Find a good confessor and stick with him. It’s so much better when someone gets to know you (even if he never sees your face or knows your name, after a while he will know your voice) and your spiritual life, he can give much better advice and counsel as to how to avoid certain sins and grow spiritually. (Many years ago, I used to drive 115 miles for the confessor of my choice.)
    *]Finally, you know how great you feel after a long soak in a hot tub with your favorite bubble bath and then a good shampoo and conditioner? You get out of the tub and feel all squeaky clean and cozy wrapped in a fluffy bathrobe? Well, a good Confession kind of feels the same way spiritually. You come out and your soul feels all squeaky clean and new. It’s great!
 
In addition to what the other posters said, at the beginning tell the priest that this is your first confession since entering the church. This well help him counsel you better. Try to go to confession this week somewhere. It’s good to have a regular confessor or spiritual adviser but for now just go wherever you can.

I don’t know why, but I was terrified of confession for about 40 years. Just waiting in line would cause me to have stomach pains and the desire to leave. God finally freed me from this, again I don’t know why.

My advice is just do it. Whether to someone you know or not, behind a screen or face to face doesn’t really matter. God will forgive you and the priest won’t remember what you told him. You will feel much better.

God bless.
 
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