Do I need to confess schism/heresy?

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AdJesusPerMariam

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Hello dear friends.

I was baptised Catholic at around 2011 but had no real faith formation by anyone. I lived a worldly, sinful life until (thanks be to God) I discovered the Catholic Faith mid 2019. Although I had essentially not even known the basics of the Catholic Faith until early 2020, i spent the entire latter half of 2019 slowly by surely doing research on the Faith.

Unfortunately some of earliest “research” I did into the Catholic Faith involved an infamous YouTube channel by the name of “vaticancatholic dot com”, where they preached the sedevacantist heresy. And since I didn’t know better, I bought into it, but for a very brief amount of time. Eventually I made my way out of believing this heresy and essentially blindly subscribing to the SSPX ideology, another schismatic organization. Keep in mind however that I had never attended Mass at any of these group’s services.

I don’t remember much but around the end of 2019 I had called the RCIA people at my local New Mass parish to sign up for RCIA, so I’m positive at around that time, at least intellectually I was in communion with Rome. But I did not make my first Confession until late January 2020, where I do remember confessing the sin of heresy, since I was essentially an easy-beliefism protestant before I discovered the Faith.

My question through all of this is, since Catholics must confess sins they forgot to confess at confession, must I confess that long before I had a sensible faith formation, I had blindly, briefly, and loosely subscribed to two schismatic organizations?

I’ve looked long and hard for the answer on whether or not someone must confess whether they committed schism or not, and I can’t really find a clear answer. My two guesses are that you don’t need to confess schism and just need to formally adhere to the Catholic Faith, another guess is that since I was so poorly formed, it was merely material heresy and therefore not sin. But if I am incorrect, I ask, dear friends, to please correct me!

Thanks in advance!
 

I’ve looked long and hard for the answer on whether or not someone must confess whether they committed schism or not, and I can’t really find a clear answer. …
If it was a mortal sin then it should be confessed, but others will not be able to determine that for you.

Catechism of the Catholic Church
2088 The first commandment requires us to nourish and protect our faith with prudence and vigilance, and to reject everything that is opposed to it. There are various ways of sinning against faith: … Voluntary doubtInvoluntary doubt … 2089 IncredulityHeresyapostacyschism 11
11 CIC, can. 751: emphasis added.
https://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s2c1a1.htm#2088
https://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/index/s.htm
 
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Why not just say what you just said… but in confession instead of an Internet forum???
 
There are three requirements for mortal sin:
  1. Grave matter – heresy and schism, yes
  2. Full knowledge of the wrong – tell the priest: did you KNOW it is wrong?
  3. Full consent of the will – it is wrong, you knew it is wrong, did you intend to do it, despite all this?
Lacking any one of these three conditions, it is not mortal and confession is not necessary.
 
  • Grave matter – heresy and schism, yes
  • Full knowledge of the wrong – tell the priest: did you KNOW it is wrong?
  • Full consent of the will – it is wrong, you knew it is wrong, did you intend to do it, despite all this?
Unless one is culpably ignorant of the wrongfulness…

…Not that I am saying that’s the case here. Just pointing out that this formula (while based on the CCC) is not as good as it might seem.
 
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must I confess that long before I had a sensible faith formation, I had blindly, briefly, and loosely subscribed to two schismatic organizations?
You have to intend to be heretical - in other words it has to be a deliberate act. Doing so “briefly, blindly and loosely” therefore does not count.
 
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