Confessin Forgotten SIns

[C794]

So I’ve been told that we need to bring up sins that we forgot to confess in our previous confession, but how far back does that go. For example I just remembered a sin that I committed five years before my conversion and one I committed a year before my first confession. Do I need to confess these?

Also, what about sins that we didn’t view as mortal, or sinful at the time we committed it? Because I just realized that something I did a month before my first confession was likely a mortal sin. Until today (6 months later), I viewed it as non-sinful.

Lastly, if I remember new information about a confessed sin, do I have to bring it up again and add the new information? The information is something that could effect the gravity of the action.

So I’m asking this primarily because I want to make sure that my views on brining up forgotten sins in confession are accurate. Mentioning sins similar to the ones in my examples has gotten me into a mess with confession; one that I’m just starting to straighten out. Also, confessing some of these sins would be embarrassing.

 

[MichaelHowling]

If any of these sins are crippling you or holding you from moving on…confess them.

You can always do what’s called a general confession. Just looking back at your whole life and listing all the major problems you’ve had in your spiritual journey and then just move on.

 

[C794]

If any of these sins are crippling you or holding you from moving on…confess them.

You can always do what’s called a general confession. Just looking back at your whole life and listing all the major problems you’ve had in your spiritual journey and then just move on.

Thanks

I wouldn’t say that they were crippling, I’m not saying that they don’t disgust me, but they are more things that I want to move on from. And well, honestly I don’t want to confess them. Confessing something I did five years ago and then a sin from two years ago feels embarrassing. Also, one of the sins is one that I don’t wish to revisit and because of its nature will require some background information (doing this will be hard). The last sin is just something I don’t want to mention and I hope that I don’t need to because I didn’t view it a sinful while doing it.

I’m not sure a general confession would be wise because I am scrupulous. Before I make a general confession, I’d want to discuss it with my confessor. Not that it wouldn’t be nice, I’ve thought that doing one could help me full resolve my confession problems, but at the same time it could create new ones. And then I could find my self in an even bigger mess.

 

[MichaelHowling]

I suggest that you should mention these sins and get the background info out. You need to be comfortable with who you are and bring your misery and fears to a clensing and healing confessional.

One great trick of the devil is for us to keep it in the darkness…bringing out and calling it as it is = truth …and that = healing!

 

[MichaelHowling]

If you have a mortal sin you did not confess…and you remember them since your baptism… you’re obligated to confess it.

 

[C794]

Then I guess I’ll do that. Can I mention that how long ago a sin was? That way it will be known that it’s not something I’ve done for a long time.

 

[MichaelHowling]

you could.

but when you go to confession, it’s always been my practice to not make it easy for yourself…you did the crime so you should be able to do the time.

You can go through your current sins and then mention at the end “ok father… I have a few sins I have forgotten in the past to mention I’d like to sit before the lord…ive conqured these things several years ago and they are no longer a problem but I feel I should mention them and then give him the list.”

Keep in mind, when we go to confession …don’t make it easier on yourself. You are going in their with an accusatory spirit towards yourself. You are acknowledging who you are and presenting it to God and asking for change and healing. Confession should be kept simple : I accuse myself of X …X amount of times. No excuses, no back story, no extenuating circumstances…just “I did X”. and you leave the rest up to the mercy of God.

God bless buddy…lol, it’s gonna be ok!

 

[Ben_F]

you could.

but when you go to confession, it’s always been my practice to not make it easy for yourself…you did the crime so you should be able to do the time.

You can go through your current sins and then mention at the end “ok father… I have a few sins I have forgotten in the past to mention I’d like to sit before the lord…ive conqured these things several years ago and they are no longer a problem but I feel I should mention them and then give him the list.”

Keep in mind, when we go to confession …don’t make it easier on yourself. You are going in their with an accusatory spirit towards yourself. You are acknowledging who you are and presenting it to God and asking for change and healing. Confession should be kept simple : I accuse myself of X …X amount of times. No excuses, no back story, no extenuating circumstances…just “I did X”. and you leave the rest up to the mercy of God.

Very good. God bless: Thumbsup:: Thumbsup:: Thumbsup:
God bless buddy…lol, it’s gonna be ok!

 

[Mary_Ellen]

If you have a mortal sin you did not confess…and you remember them since your baptism… you’re obligated to confess it.

Clarification: you need not confess anything that happened before your baptism - **all **that was forgiven at the time of baptism - no need for confession before that point, just after.

 

[EasterJoy]

So I’ve been told that we need to bring up sins that we forgot to confess in our previous confession, but how far back does that go. For example I just remembered a sin that I committed five years before my conversion and one I committed a year before my first confession. Do I need to confess these?

Also, what about sins that we didn’t view as mortal, or sinful at the time we committed it? Because I just realized that something I did a month before my first confession was likely a mortal sin. Until today (6 months later), I viewed it as non-sinful.

Lastly, if I remember new information about a confessed sin, do I have to bring it up again and add the new information? The information is something that could effect the gravity of the action.

So I’m asking this primarily because I want to make sure that my views on brining up forgotten sins in confession are accurate. Mentioning sins similar to the ones in my examples has gotten me into a mess with confession; one that I’m just starting to straighten out. Also, confessing some of these sins would be embarrassing.

I’ve had sins that I remembered later, and I just said at a subsequent confession that I didn’t know if the sin needed to be confessed, but that I wanted to mention it because I thought I’d feel better if I did. My confessor was fine with that. Having said that, though, the sacrament of penance is not primarily an antidote for anxiety. There gets to be a point where you have to make an act of faith and really believe that absolved sins are indeed absolved. In order to get past this, though, I encourage you to ask your confessor about how to handle these things. Then resolve to do what you are told, and not what you want to do instead!

If you did not know something was sinful when you did it, it wasn’t even a sin. In order for something to be a mortal sin, you must know it is seriously wrong when you do it, you must had some opportunity for some reflection, and you must have freely chosen to do it anyway. IOW, if you didn’t think it was a sin, while the act was just as wrong but you are not culpable for having committed a sin, and it does not need to be confessed. (You do need to renounce it and resolve not to do it again.)

 

[C794]

I’ve had sins that I remembered later, and I just said at a subsequent confession that I didn’t know if the sin needed to be confessed, but that I wanted to mention it because I thought I’d feel better if I did. My confessor was fine with that. Having said that, though, the sacrament of penance is not primarily an antidote for anxiety. There gets to be a point where you have to make an act of faith and really believe that absolved sins are indeed absolved. In order to get past this, though, I encourage you to ask your confessor about how to handle these things. Then resolve to do what you are told, and not what you want to do instead!

If you did not know something was sinful when you did it, it wasn’t even a sin. In order for something to be a mortal sin, you must know it is seriously wrong when you do it, you must had some opportunity for some reflection, and you must have freely chosen to do it anyway. IOW, if you didn’t think it was a sin, while the act was just as wrong but you are not culpable for having committed a sin, and it does not need to be confessed. (You do need to renounce it and resolve not to do it again.)

Thanks for the reply. When I’m confessing forgotten sins they are things that I viewed as sinful, but were committed when I was a Protestant. As a result, I did not categorize them as mortal or venial sin. The only exception would be with habits that I come to view as sinful. In these cases I confess them (including the past ones). But other then that they are sinful. Like the one’s mentioned in this topic, were definitely sinful.

 

[Edmundus1581]

Keep in mind, when we go to confession …don’t make it easier on yourself. You are going in their with an accusatory spirit towards yourself. You are acknowledging who you are and presenting it to God and asking for change and healing. Confession should be kept simple : I accuse myself of X …X amount of times. No excuses, no back story, no extenuating circumstances…just “I did X”. and you leave the rest up to the mercy of God.

Such an approach may be helpful for some, but it is by no means demanded by the Church or confessors. While the opposite extreme (ie. of embedding the naming of the sins in long stories, and telling all our problems) is advised against, there is no requirement to completely omit any extenuating circumstances, or other information which the confessor may find helpful. For example “I got drunk three times last week” could be better confessed as “I haven’t had a drink for five years, but I was fired from my job and got drunk three times last week”. From my own experiences of confessing such sins the confessors want to know something of the pattern.

For the OP, mentioning that these things happened a long time ago, and that he was not a Catholic at the time, is relevant. He is not obliged to mention it, but nor is he advised not to. I would do so, and have in the past, and it only adds a few seconds to the confession.

I have seen similar advise to yours posted in CAF previously, and so on one occasion I confessed just the sins, with no story, and the confessor asked more questions than usual! It can be like going to a doctor - if you know some relevant information, then don’t hold it back waiting for him to ask the right question.

 

[Edmundus1581]

…
Lastly, if I remember new information about a confessed sin, do I have to bring it up again and add the new information? The information is something that could effect the gravity of the action.
…

Only if it was a mortal sin in the first place, and only if the forgotten detail makes a significant difference.

For example, if I had confessed that I committed perjury to condemn an innocent man, and later I remember that it was my own brother I condemned, then yes, I should mention that. However if the sin were not mortal (eg. gossip rather than perjury), or the detail were not significant (ie. it wasn’t my brother or other person of trust), then there is no need to mention it.