Dumb question about detailed confessions?

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WhiteOak

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Thanks to anyone who responds. I apologize in advance for my naive question. When I am in confession, there is usually a particular sin that I feel a need to address. I usually give a fairly detailed description of that sin. I also confess other sins without that level of detail. For example, I will say I am guilty of lust, but not share any details beyond that. The priest always ends it with saying my sins are forgiven, he doesn’t ask for more detail. Is that sin forgiven or will I have to share more than just saying lust or sloth? Thank you again to anyone who responds.
 
Yes that sin is forgiven .You don’t need to go into much detail,but if it’s an ongoing thing your priest will be able to give you advice if you say a bit about it .
Perhaps the number of times should be mentioned.
God bless.
 
WhiteOak said:
The priest always ends it with saying my sins are forgiven, he doesn’t ask for more detail.
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And just like that your sins are forgiven - it really is just that simple! 😎

If he needs to know more he’ll ask but, particularly, when it comes to sexual sins it’s really a case of less is best - as long as the priest is given sufficient detail to know what you’re talking about (euphemisms are fine) that’s all that needed.
 
You confessed the sin. I do not see how details are needed. Now if you feel the need and that need makes you feel better, then elaborate.
Occasionally the priest may ask that you are more specific.
But the main thing is that you freely admit that you have sinned, that you are sorry and beg forgiveness, and that you will try to amend your life.
God bless you! 🙏🙏🙏
 
Thank you for the reply. I am lucky that our parish has a priest that is actually quite helpful. Thank you very much.
 
Thank you for the help. Yes, I am not keen on going into detail about it, haha. Thank you again.
 
It’s been said often by more than one person on this site - when it comes to confession: be bold/blunt, be brief, be gone.
 
Thank you very much, I appreciate the encouragement. This is good to hear. Thank you again.
 
Thank you for the help and the reply. That is a good plan to put into action. Thank you again.
 
By the way, I don’t think your question was dumb at all 🙂 If we don’t ask we don’t know, right?
 
WhiteOak said:
Thank you for the help. Yes, I am not keen on going into detail about it, haha.
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You’re welcome - believe me when I say that, in hearing confessions, I’m really not keen on people going into too much detail either!
 
At the Christmas Advent Penance service, I went in with a small list so I wouldn’t forget. It was a face to face Confession and the priest was very glad I had a list and told me that was indicative of true contrition and accepting of all my faults.
 
You have to specifie the gravity of your sins in kind and number.

http://www.saintaquinas.com/howto_confess.html

How to Make a Good Confession

The Sacrament of Reconciliation is the normative means by which a Christian avails themselves of the mercy and grace of God for the forgiveness of sins. The two effects of confession are the sacramental forgiveness of sin through the redemption of Jesus Christ, and an increase in grace that helps renew a Christian’s soul and increase their ability to resist temptation. In an earlier article, I dealt with answering the question of why Catholics practice confession of sins to a priest. If you need an answer to this question, (Why Do Catholics Practice Confession of Sins to a Priest) for an answer. In this article I will help instruct the reader on how to make a good confession.
 
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In working for and with priests for over a decade, I’ve never heard one say “I so wish people were more detailed in their confessions”.

Confess the kind of sin, number of times. Priest will ask for any more details if he needs them.
 
I try to make my confessions as concise as possible, only giving more details if they are relevant to the nature or gravity of the sin, or if the priest were to ask. The only required information is the name of the sin, the number of times we have committed it since our last confession, that we are sorry for it and that we are asking for God’s forgiveness. If a sin has become a habit, I believe it is good to mention that as well.

I believe in being concise partly because the confessional lines are usually pretty long, and also because it prevents me from trying to excuse or minimize my sin. If the priest wants to discuss the sin to help me learn to avoid it, I am always willing to do so, but there is usually a very limited amount of time for priests to offer such advice during the scheduled confession time.
 
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Number, kind, frequency.

Confessing in great detail about sins of lust is… inadvisable. Seriously. Do not turn the confessional into a salacious storytelling session! If a priest ever asks you for that degree of detail, get out of the confessional and run away.

OTOH, if you were doing stuff that added to the sin (like having sex with somebody married, so that you were not just fornicating but getting somebody else to commit adultery), you should mention it. Not giving a play by play, but mentioning it.

By the same token, if you have mitigating factors (like you were tipsy or sleepy, and didn’t realize what was happening at first), you should mention them too. But again, no play by play.

If you need counseling in detail about sexual matters, there are psychologists and doctors who specialize in that. Priests are there to hear your confession.
 
TheLittleLady said:
In working for and with priests for over a decade, I’ve never heard one say “I so wish people were more detailed in their confessions”.

Confess the kind of sin, number of times. Priest will ask for any more details if he needs them.
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am sorry you got me wrong ,now did i say you have confess in detail ? No! Please don’t assume things, what i said was one have to confess the specify the gravity in kind and number according to the teaching of the church

Can. 988 §1. “A member of the Christian faithful is obliged to confess in kind and number all grave sins committed after baptism and not yet remitted directly through the keys of the Church nor acknowledged in individual confession, of which the person has knowledge after diligent examination of conscience.”

[1455] The confession (or disclosure) of sins, even from a simply human point of view, frees us and facilitates our reconciliation with others. Through such an admission man looks squarely at the sins he is guilty of, takes responsibility for them, and thereby opens himself again to God and to the communion of the Church in order to make a new future possible.

[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."54
 
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As others have said, if the priest needs more details, he’ll ask. If he doesn’t ask, you’re fine.

You don’t want to deliberately leave off details that are important or that could give the wrong impression. For example, if you say “I was rude to someone” as a euphemism for “I pushed my mother down the stairs”, then your lack of detail is misleading.

However, if you simply say, “I committed an impure act with myself” rather than giving the priest a descriptive play-by-play, the lack of detail is a good thing. Elaborating in that case would not add anything to the priest’s understanding of what you did.
 
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