Confession

[catholic1seeks]

The Sacrament of Reconciliation in a reconciliation service – how does it work? Do you say the Act of Contrition after confessing the sins or is that only in the private/booth confession? What is the best way to confess sins? When I went to a Catholic school, I usually said it like “When I…, when I…, and when I have…”

I never really had instruction on how to to do confession. Even in the reconciliation service (with more than 10 priests present), will I still have to walk up to one and say “Forgive me Father…” like they do in movies ?

Thanks!

 

[benedict_XVIII]

How to Confess
How to make a good Confession

[From the Catechism of Pope St Pius X:]

Q. How many conditions are necessary to make a good confession?
A. To make a good confession five things are necessary: (1) Examination of Conscience; (2) Sorrow for having offended God; (3) A resolution of sinning no more; (4) Confession of our sins; (5) Satisfaction or penance.

Q. What should we do first of all to make a good confession?
A. To make a good confession we should first of all earnestly beseech God to give us light to know all our sins and strength to detest them.

Q. How do you present yourself to the confessor?
A. I kneel at the feet of the confessor and I say: “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.”

Q. What do you do while the confessor blesses you?
A. I humbly bow my head to receive the blessing and I make the Sign of the Cross.

Q. Having made the Sign of the Cross what should you say?
A. Having made the sign of the Cross, I say: “I confess to Almighty God, to Blessed Mary ever Virgin, to all the Saints, and to you, my spiritual Father, that I have sinned.”

Q. And then what must you say?
A. Then I must say: “I was at confession such a time; by the grace of God I received absolution, performed my penance, and went to Holy Communion.” Then I accuse myself of my sins.

Q. Whey you have finished the accusation of your sins what must you do?
A. When I have finished the accusation of my sins I say: “I accus myself also of all the sins of my past life, especially of those against such or such a virtue” – for example, against purity or against the Fourth Commandment, etc.

Q. After this accusation what should you say?
A. I should say: “For all these sins and for those I do not remember, I ask pardon of God with my whole heart, and penance and absolution of you, my spiritual Father.”

Q. Having thus finished the accusation of your sins what remains to be done?
A. Having finished the accusation of my sins I should listen respectfully to what the confessor says, accept the penance with a sincere intention of performing it; and, from my heart, renew my act of contrition while he gives me absolution.

Q. Having received absolution what remains to be done?
A. Having received absolution I should thank the Lord, perform my penance as soon as possible and put in practice the advice of the confessor

 

[thistle]

How to Confess
How to make a good Confession

[From the Catechism of Pope St Pius X:]

Q. How many conditions are necessary to make a good confession?
A. To make a good confession five things are necessary: (1) Examination of Conscience; (2) Sorrow for having offended God; (3) A resolution of sinning no more; (4) Confession of our sins; (5) Satisfaction or penance.

Q. What should we do first of all to make a good confession?
A. To make a good confession we should first of all earnestly beseech God to give us light to know all our sins and strength to detest them.

Q. How do you present yourself to the confessor?
A.** I kneel** at the feet of the confessor and I say: “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.”

Q. What do you do while the confessor blesses you?
A. I humbly bow my head to receive the blessing and I make the Sign of the Cross.

Q. Having made the Sign of the Cross what should you say?
A. Having made the sign of the Cross, I say: “**I confess to Almighty God, to Blessed Mary ever Virgin, to all the Saints, and to you, my spiritual Father, that I have sinned.”
**
Q. And then what must you say?
A. Then I must say: "I was at confession such a time; by the grace of God I received absolution, performed my penance, and went to Holy Communion." Then I accuse myself of my sins.

Q. Whey you have finished the accusation of your sins what must you do?
A. When I have finished the accusation of my sins I say: “I accus myself also of all the sins of my past life, especially of those against such or such a virtue” – for example, against purity or against the Fourth Commandment, etc.

Q. After this accusation what should you say?
A. I should say: "For all these sins and for those I do not remember, I ask pardon of God with my whole heart, and penance and absolution of you, my spiritual Father."

Q. Having thus finished the accusation of your sins what remains to be done?
A. Having finished the accusation of my sins I should listen respectfully to what the confessor says, accept the penance with a sincere intention of performing it; and, from my heart, renew my act of contrition while he gives me absolution.

Q. Having received absolution what remains to be done?
A. Having received absolution I should thank the Lord, perform my penance as soon as possible and put in practice the advice of the confessor

The parts I highlighted are not required to be said and we are not required to kneel at the feet of the priest.
A penitent can keep it a lot simpler than that.

 

[MarieVeronica]

The Sacrament of Reconciliation in a reconciliation service – how does it work?

“catholic1” The way it worked at my parish: Everyone entered the main church. There were several little “confession stations” set up all over the inside <the corners, the aisles, etc.>… at which, a priest from a visiting parish was seated. I think there were at least 6 to 8 priests the night we attended.

Then… our Pastor stood on the altar for a few moments… said some prayers; After that, the lights were turned down dim… and everyone could then, silently approach whatever “confession station” they chose. People formed respectful lines… and stood back, from the priest and the penitent. <if you’re not sure how to make a confession, just tell the priest. He will know how to guide you>.

After everyone made individual confessions… they would go back to their pew, say their penance… and quietly depart.

That’s how it worked in my parish. Hope this helps. God bless.

 

[catholic1seeks]

“catholic1” The way it worked at my parish: Everyone entered the main church. There were several little “confession stations” set up all over the inside <the corners, the aisles, etc.>… at which, a priest from a visiting parish was seated. I think there were at least 6 to 8 priests the night we attended.

Then… our Pastor stood on the altar for a few moments… said some prayers; After that, the lights were turned down dim… and everyone could then, silently approach whatever “confession station” they chose. People formed respectful lines… and stood back, from the priest and the penitent. <if you’re not sure how to make a confession, just tell the priest. He will know how to guide you>.

After everyone made individual confessions… they would go back to their pew, say their penance… and quietly depart.

That’s how it worked in my parish. Hope this helps. God bless.

Thanks.

How long should it take for an individual? I know it varries, but I’m guessing it shouldn’t take as long for a person in the service than in a private/scheduled “booth” time.

 

[baltobetsy]

Thanks.

How long should it take for an individual? I know it varries, but I’m guessing it shouldn’t take as long for a person in the service than in a private/scheduled “booth” time.

The nice thing about those services is that if one person takes a long time, causing the line to stop moving, people in line are free to move to a different priest’s line if they wish.

You are correct that a confession by appointment often lasts longer than one in a service or on a regular Saturday scheduled time. I’d guess that most people finish in three to five minutes, some even less time than that. But it’s no big deal to take longer. So, without going unprepared and rambling on and on, take all the time you need to confess all your mortal sins and whatever venial sins you want to include. After that, it’s pretty much up to the priest how long it will take.

Betsy

 

[SuscipeMeDomine]

The Sacrament of Reconciliation in a reconciliation service – how does it work? Do you say the Act of Contrition after confessing the sins or is that only in the private/booth confession? What is the best way to confess sins? When I went to a Catholic school, I usually said it like “When I…, when I…, and when I have…”

I never really had instruction on how to to do confession. Even in the reconciliation service (with more than 10 priests present), will I still have to walk up to one and say “Forgive me Father…” like they do in movies ?

Thanks!

Typically the Reconciliation service begins with the Liturgy of the Word and will seem very much like the beginning of Mass. There will be a scripture reading, responsorial psalm, gospel, and homily.

That may be followed by an examination of conscience where the priest will lead you through the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes, or some other list that allows you to consider your sins.

You may say the Confetior or an Act of Contrition together.

Usually multiple priests are available. Some will be in the confessional(s) while others will be spread throughout the church. You select a priest and go to him to confess your sins and receive absolution. In my experience there is usually some music playing in the background to help minimize the possibility of being overheard.

Depending on how things are structured there may be another time of communal prayer or people may simply leave after confession.

How long should it take for an individual? I know it varries, but I’m guessing it shouldn’t take as long for a person in the service than in a private/scheduled “booth” time.

That varies all over the place. You may get one person who takes a couple of minutes and another who takes much longer. For some people this is the opportunity to return to the sacrament after many years while for others it’s something they do frequently. Take as much time as you need but not more than that.

 

[benedict_XVIII]

You can google “How to make a good confession”

or try this link:

saintaugustinechurch.org/university/goodconfession.html

 

[LilyM]

‘Forgive me father’ or ‘Bless me father’ is as good a start as any - helps while you’re summoning up the courage to admit those sins! The way I tend to say it is 'it’s been x weeks since my last confession, and in that time I have sacrificed live goats to Baal twice, tried five times to assassinate the President etc etc … ’

Don’t worry about the length of time - take as long as you need. Mind you, if it’s your first confession in 20 years or something you might want to make a special appointment outside the scheduled times.

 

[MarieVeronica]

and in that time I have sacrificed live goats to Baal twice, tried five times to assassinate the President etc etc … ’

:bigyikes: This is in NO way intended, to undermine the seriousness of the OP’s topic… but I have to say this.

Lily, your sense of humor is eclipsed only by your wisdom. lol!!!

God bless.

 

[brigid12]

and in that time I have sacrificed live goats to Baal twice, tried five times to assassinate the President etc etc … ’