confession confusion.

[newone]

well I don’t know what to think. I come here and I read that when you withhold any mortal sin in confession it makes all other sins confessed invalid and in need to be re confessed as well as the sacralige of withholding it. I Have talked to a could of priest and asked them if this is true and they have all told me that all the sins you have confessed and forgiven and not made invalid and in no need to be re confessed rather they should be buried so that healing and penance can commence. I can understand confessing that you withheld a sin and then confessing it and i would assume the sacralige is implied but if not confess that to. Im confused. In my case I didnt withold the sin in confession but out of nervousness and embarrassments I was not completely honest about the amount of times it was committed. I started by saying a few times which implies about 5 I guess. Knowing it was probably something a little more than that I stumbled and then said 2 or 3 times. Iam in utter fear to have to re confess this sin and am hoping that I wont have to because I am trying to forget about it and move on but until this is resolved I feel trapped.

 

[Woodleigh]

Obviously you believe that the only way you can have peace of mind about any sin(s) you have committed requires you to confess openly and honestly to a priest.

This is a Church commandment, although many Catholics appear to no longer believe in Confession (Reconciliation). I doubt they torture themselves about all their transgressions and how many times they went wrong. Many, I’m sure, have contrition and strive to do better.

I suggest you speak to a priest on a face-to-face basis. Find a priest who is truly understanding and compassionate. He will put your mind at ease and free your suffering conscience.

My intuition tells me you haven’t done anything millions of others haven’t also done. Love yourself, even with the flaws, and try to do better each day.

 

[Joan_M]

well I don’t know what to think. I come here and I read that when you withhold any mortal sin in confession it makes all other sins confessed invalid and in need to be re confessed as well as the sacralige of withholding it. I Have talked to a could of priest and asked them if this is true and they have all told me that all the sins you have confessed and forgiven and not made invalid and in no need to be re confessed rather they should be buried so that healing and penance can commence. I can understand confessing that you withheld a sin and then confessing it and i would assume the sacralige is implied but if not confess that to. Im confused. In my case I didnt withold the sin in confession but out of nervousness and embarrassments I was not completely honest about the amount of times it was committed. I started by saying a few times which implies about 5 I guess. Knowing it was probably something a little more than that I stumbled and then said 2 or 3 times. I am in utter fear to have to re confess this sin and am hoping that I wont have to because I am trying to forget about it and move on but until this is resolved I feel trapped.

The sentence I highlighted is the crucial one on your post. There is only one way to move on - go to confession and confess all of this. The devil does not want you to do this because he does not want you to be in a state of grace.

Ask yourself why this “utter fear” of re-confessing this sin? God already knows you committed the sin, and how many times. He just wants you to confess it to one of his priests, humbly, with repentance.

Jesus tells us “do not be afraid” - so go, as soon as you can, to confession. Confess what you have told us and be at peace.

 

[Ruthie]

In my case I didnt withold the sin in confession but out of nervousness and embarrassments I was not completely honest about the amount of times it was committed.

Since you confessed the sin, it has been forgiven. You didn’t make a false confession; you made an imperfect one. So get on with your healing!

Since you were not completely honest about how many times you did it, you might want to confess that. I don’t think you have to, but from what you’ve said, you probably need to! I don’t think you need to mention the specific sin again, just say that in a previous confession you said you committed a sin 2 or 3 times when it was actually (however many).

HTH,

Ruthie

 

[Corki]

According to the Catechism, if you with hold sins purposely, nothing is forgiven.

1456 Confession to a priest is an essential part of the sacrament of Penance: “All mortal sins of which penitents after a diligent self-examination are conscious must be recounted by them in confession, even if they are most secret and have been committed against the last two precepts of the Decalogue; for these sins sometimes wound the soul more grievously and are more dangerous than those which are committed openly.”
When Christ’s faithful strive to confess all the sins that they can remember, they undoubtedly place all of them before the divine mercy for pardon. But those who fail to do so and knowingly withhold some, place nothing before the divine goodness for remission through the mediation of the priest, “for if the sick person is too ashamed to show his wound to the doctor, the medicine cannot heal what it does not know.”

That being said, one must take care not to become scrupulous. Take your case of “ommission” to a good and faithful priest and follow his lead.

 

[newone]

According to the Catechism, if you with hold sins purposely, nothing is forgiven.

That being said, one must take care not to become scrupulous. Take your case of “ommission” to a good and faithful priest and follow his lead.

well I didnt intentionally withhold any sin I knew of at that time but rather as you say omitted a more accurate number of times committed. In truth I don’ know really how many times I just know that it was more than I said. So is there anything in the catechism that talks about the importance of the number of times committed.

I plan on finding a good priest who I can bring this up to in confession.I have asked a priest already and he said it was valid because when we confess we bring to God every sin of our life and it is taken away by his grace and not by our means at all. basically what another priest told me when I was in the confessional last time and told him this. He asked if that was my confession and I was a little taken of guard because I was ready to have to re confess everything I could think of from that time. I just feel like maybe they are not really seeing what im saying. Or maybe they are and i am just being really scrupulous. I do suffer from scrupulosity but not because I don’t believe in the power of the sacrament but rather because I don’t trust myself and for my own mental health want to get everything off my concisions and worry Im forgetting something or not doing something right.

 

[hilde_the_dog]

This number issue was a problem for me. Now I just stick with few, couple, several or a lot. If the priests wants to know what that means he can ask

 

[GailMac]

Perhaps this question would be better asked of Fr. Serpa here at CAF.

If a mortal sin isn’t mentioned purposely in the Confessional then nothing is forgiven and the person giving the Confession commits sacrilege. This is a fact that cannot be changed.

However, God is patient and merciful. All one needs to do is go back to the Confessional and get honest. The priest has heard it *all *before. Say a prayer to your guardian angel to get you there and open your heart before the Lord.

Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Peace,

Gail

 

[EasterJoy]

…“for if the sick person is too ashamed to show his wound to the doctor, the medicine cannot heal what it does not know”…obviously, this does not fully apply to your situation. You did not withhold the sin, but rather did not confess it very well, and did not make a poor confession on purpose, but only out of nervousness.

Explain this to your confessor. Probably your fear of being completely open about your faults is the wound that will most concern your “doctor”. It may be more of a fault than a sin, perhaps, which might be why the priest did not judge it to have invalidated the entire confession. Even so, it would be a fault that stands in the way of your spiritual advancement, all the same.

A confessor with whom you can be entirely open is a great gift. Ask God for this gift, and the additional grace needed to avail yourself of his help.

 

[EasterJoy]

Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Yes, but the fear that God lacks mercy or that it is embarrassment rather than sin that is deadly are the poisonous substitutes that the Evil One tries to palm off as reverence and humility.

The Evil One would have us either in presumption or despair, and cares not which one.