Confession Diary

[StanJonesPhoto]

Hi! I was just recently baptized and confirmed during the easter vigil this year at the age of 21, and it’s amazing to finally take part in communion and participate fully in the parish.

I’ll cut to the chase though. As a new Catholic and Christian in general, I have quite a few old habits and mindsets (lustfulness, judgments, spite, etc…) that I’ve yet to rid my life of and I was just wondering if A: it would be a good idea to keep a diary / journal of all of the things I go in to confess and B: If I’m the only one who does this sort of thing, haha.

Any responses would be more than helpful! Thank you so much and God bless you all.

 

[Will_B]

I’ll tell you what one of the nuns told her young class before they went to their first confession… It’s OK to write down your sins, however once forgiven destroy the list.

She made it fun for the 11 to 12 year old… As they left the confessional, they would walk into Sister’s office and place their list in the shredder.

So:

1. 
   *]Make your list.
   *]Go to confession.
   *]Receive absolution.
   *]Shred your list.

 

[odile53]

Umm–I wouldn’t keep any sort of running written documentation of sins. You don’t want that information to fall into others’ hands. You might want to get a copy of a good examination of conscience, use it, and make brief notes on it just before you are going to confession if you need a memory jogger. Keep it in your possession, read from it if you need to. Then when you leave the confessional, shred it.

 

[PerfectTiming]

I’m a very nervous confesser so if I don’t have a list then the second I enter the confessional my mind goes completely blank and I can barely remember a single thing - I even have to keep a piece of paper with the structure of confession on it because otherwise I just can’t remember a thing.

I don’t keep a ‘diary’ really, I think that sort of thing could lead to being over-scrupulous and of course could fall into the wrong hands but when I do my examination of conscience I do write a list and take it with me. But as someone already pointed out, just be sure to destroy it after your confession. I tear mine up and put the pieces in various trash cans on my walk home.

Recently though I have started using that iPhone confession app as my list to take with me - I can record my sins so I don’t forget them and it guides you through so I don’t forget what I’m supposed to be doing/saying. And it is password-protected so no-one but me can get into it.