We’re going to Mass tonight with my neighbors, who are very active in the Catholic Church here. He tells me that the general confession absolves and I, can and most certainly should, receive communion, and didn’t know what catechism I had been reading. I had been planning to attend a Lutheran church.
I think I probably ought to stay off this site, it’s not very encouraging. Real life people are where it’s at.
As I’ve mentioned before, God bless you on your journey, and prayers that you are led home. Merry Christmas!
Just sharing this next portion ‘for the record’ for the sake of clarification (and not directed at any one person):
Regarding General Absolution, grave necessity is required. This is from the
Vatican’s website:
1483 In case of grave necessity recourse may be had to a communal celebration of reconciliation with general confession and general absolution. Grave necessity of this sort can arise when there is
imminent danger of death without sufficient time for the priest or priests to hear each penitent’s confession. Grave necessity can also exist when, given the number of penitents, there are not enough confessors to hear individual confessions properly in a reasonable time*,* so that the penitents through no fa*ult of their own *would be deprived of sacramental grace or Holy Communion for a long time. In this case, for the absolution to be valid the faithful must have the intention of individually confessing their grave sins in the time required.92 The diocesan bishop is the judge of whether or not the conditions required for general absolution exist.93 A large gathering of the faithful on the occasion of major feasts or pilgrimages does not constitute a case of grave necessity.94
More information can be found here, and what is grave necessity, and what our responsibilities are:
catholicherald.com/stories/Straight-Answers-Is-General-Absolution-Allowed,6730
catholicexchange.com/confession-and-general-absolution
vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P3F.HTM
Us avoiding going to confession and then using ‘general absolution’ so as to avoid private confession is not grave necessity. Also, if we have committed sins and are not asking for forgiveness for them, and do not think that they are wrong, those are not forgiven.
catholicdoors.com/faq/qu27.htm#key
Q. 3. What does the following mean, “For the absolution to be valid the faithful must have the intention of individually confessing their sins in the time required?”
A. It means that when someone receives a valid general absolution, the faithful is still obligated to go to confession and to confess his sins to a priest as soon as possible. Otherwise, the general absolution received during the Sacrament of Confession is not valid. It would be as if the faithful never went to confession.
catholicism.about.com/b/2009/12/17/reader-question-reconciliation-services.htm
A general absolution, however, can only absolve us from the guilt of venial sin. If we are conscious of mortal sin, we must still seek out the Sacrament of Confession.
As for this site…sometimes we don’t always get the answers we want, and if we look, we can find someone who agrees with us and sounds authoritative. Some people here will be negative or unhelpful, but many/most will respond with at least good intentions, and more often, well researched information that is easily accessible nowadays (like the Vatican website).
