Feeling like I haven't been forgiven after Confession

[MrTambourineMan]

Hi all,

I just came back from Confession. I went into with love in my heart for God and a hate of the sins I’ve committed. I feel like Jesus hasn’t forgiven me though. I was in a state of moral sin (impurity with myself) and don’t think that He could forgive me after all the times I have fallen. I also may have left out a few sins out of forgetfulness, not out of hiding them from the priest. They were not mortal, as I made sure to confess all of my mortal sins. Have I been forgiven? Were those venial sins I forget to confess forgiven with the absolution? Should I go back?

God bless you all and Merry Christmas!

 

[suko]

Have I been forgiven? Were those venial sins I forget to confess forgiven with the absolution? Should I go back?

Rest assured, all your sins have been forgiven. Including the venial ones u forgot to mention, which aren’t mandatory to mention, but recommended.

God bless, and Merry Christmas to u, too!

 

[TiggerS]

Rest assured, all your sins have been forgiven. Including the venial ones u forgot to mention, which aren’t mandatory to mention, but recommended.

God bless, and Merry Christmas to u, too!

…
After a good Confession, which you have done, you are fully restored in your relationship to God and His Church in every way, as if one had never sinned in the first place - so total is the forgiveness of The Lord. No need whatsoever to go to Confession again.

What you are experiencing (conflict between feelings and belief) is a difficult spiritual trial and you are being asked, as it were, to put your Faith (belief) before what you feel. Faith transcends feelings. Our feelings (and we are feeling creatures) can come from various sources and very often it can be difficult to impossible to understand why we feel the way that we do. Our Faith (belief) is a matter of will, of free choice while our feelings are not. Be this as it may, it can be a very difficult trial indeed, to invest in Faith rather than feelings - simply because we are feeling creatures. Faith is supernatural - above nature.

God bless and a very Happy Christmas and 2014!

 

[Zekariya]

I just came back from Confession. I went into with love in my heart for God and a hate of the sins I’ve committed. I feel like Jesus hasn’t forgiven me though.

Our feelings deceive us. It applies to the opposite of your statement as well, just because you “feel” does not mean that you are forgiven. Many “feel” that they are okay in the eyes of God but are not. How we feel does not have any bearing on how God feels.

God gave us the Sacrament of Confession. As long as we make a good confession, we know that we are forgiven regardless of our feelings. Do not let Satan deceive you. Go to Confession as often as you fail.

Proverbs 24:16 For a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again, but the wicked shall fall by calamity.

A disciple came to a certain Elder, one day, and said, “Father, I have fallen!”

The Elder answered, “Get up!”

Again and again he came to the Elder and said, “I have fallen!”

And the Elder invariably answered, “Get up!”

“Until when must I continue getting up?” the disciple asked.

And the Elder answered, “Until the day when you give up your soul to God!”

Thus, every time when we feel that we have fallen, the Sacrament of Repentance tells us to get up.

You do not lose the battle against sin until you quit getting (give up struggling against it).

Abba [St] Anthony [the Great] said to Abba Poemen, ‘This is the great work of a man: always to take blame for his own sins before God and to expect temptation to his last breath.’

We will be tempted. We will likely have shortcomings in the future. Thankfully we have the Sacrament of Confession.

“Did you commit sin? Enter the Church, repent for your sin, for here is the physician, not the judge. Here one is not investigated; one receives remission of sins.” - St John Chrysostom

 

[Hieronymi]

For we walk by faith and not by feeling.

From Catholic Answers The Forgiveness of Sins

From the CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH-THE ACTS OF THE PENITENT
Contrition, Confession, Satisfaction: 1450-1460

Formula of Absolution.
God, the Father of mercies,
through the death and the resurrection of his Son
has reconciled the world to himself
and sent the Holy Spirit among us
for the forgiveness of sins;
through the ministry of the Church
may God give you pardon and peace,
and I absolve you from your sins
in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

 

[esieffe]

…Sometimes, I think it is harder to forgive ourselves, than it is to be forgiven by the Lord.

 

[drforjc]

If you confessed any mortal sins by kind and number with at least imperfect contrition, all your sins are forgiven. Be at peace. Rejoice in God’s merciful love.

 

[anex]

…Sometimes, I think it is harder to forgive ourselves, than it is to be forgiven by the Lord.

I agree, and isn’t that weird, why is it so easy for God to forgive us yet we have trouble either letting go, or accepting that we are forgiven. ?

I myself went to reconciliation as well today being the last chance to before Advent ends, I am trying to continue to go more often than not, realizing even though I struggle with things and even though it might be an addiction or bad habit or even an engrained habit, that my issue is still considered a sin, though I feel like I am just spinning my wheels, sometimes I feel that it is pointless to even go cause eventually I am going to just fall into it again. I don’t have this overwhelming feeling of joy coming out of confession, nor relief, I just hope that I did something right with God and that it means something to Him even though I cant figure it out. An I guess all I can do is be great full for the breaks in between.

 

[ClearWater]

I think we place too much credence on feelings. It’s sort of like with the Eucharist, that some expect to feel something each time they receive communion, and are disappointed if that doesn’t happen! It’s similar with confession. We may feel something, may not. Either way, provided we have done a good confession, are repentent, received absolution, we are forgiven. We need to have faith on that and not second guess it.

If you’ve done all these things, be at peace.