Help with confession

[TwoNames]

Hello dear friends.

I tried my best to not start this thread… I think some are getting sick of this type of threads. …but here i am. I went to confession today only after a few days, because i commited a mortal sin more than once. I told the priest what I did and how many times. Then I confessed other sins that as far as i know fall in the category of venial sins. It was really hard for me to concentrate. I am dead tired because of the heat. I was not all that focused when i was making an act of contrition. I did not feel forgiven when I left the confessional. I think i did a good examination of my life since last confession. I did not use any list of questions though. It was only three days so i do not think it was needed. So i dismissed the thoughts of bad confession and received the holy communion.

Later i remembered that i probably should confess the sin of pressumption. I still feel very very guilty and sorry for my sins. But i am not sure if i had such a contrition when i was in confessional. I might not have been focused enough. Am I forgiven? Does anyone see anything wrong with my confession?

 

[Dmitri77]

Hello dear friends.

I tried my best to not start this thread… I think some are getting sick of this type of threads. …but here i am. I went to confession today only after a few days, because i commited a mortal sin more than once. I told the priest what I did and how many times. Then I confessed other sins that as far as i know fall in the category of venial sins. It was really hard for me to concentrate. I am dead tired because of the heat. I was not all that focused when i was making an act of contrition. I did not feel forgiven when I left the confessional. I think i did a good examination of my life since last confession. I did not use any list of questions though. It was only three days so i do not think it was needed. So i dismissed the thoughts of bad confession and received the holy communion.

Later i remembered that i probably should confess the sin of pressumption. I still feel very very guilty and sorry for my sins. But i am not sure if i had such a contrition when i was in confessional. I might not have been focused enough. Am I forgiven? Does anyone see anything wrong with my confession?

Honestly I think it’s a bad idea asking for a strangers advice on this issue. It seems to me you are scrupulous and it’s robbing you of your peace and joy. So even though I think this thread is a bad idea I’m going to give you my advice. If you don’t have a spiritual director I would strongly recommend you get one and tell him your problem and then listen to him

When you confess you should feel happy, joyous and free. God isn’t trying to trick us. If you repent you are forgiven. I will pray for you my friend.

 

[Scottgun]

What Dimitri said, get some outside counselling with a spiritual director.

Now, for the benefit of lurkers: absolution in the Sacrament of Reconciliation is a judicial act. It isn’t therapy (in the modern, secular sense) and has nothing to do with whether you feel forgiven or not. Our Lord Himself invested the Apostles and their successors with the authority to forgive sins, so when the priest says “I absolve you”, you can take that to the bank that your sins are forgiven assuming you didn’t deliberately and willfully conceal objective sins. This is good news because a judicial act liberates one from playing mind games with one’s self.

 

[Vic_Taltrees_UK]

… I did not feel forgiven when I left the confessional. I think I did a good examination of my life since last confession. I did not use any list of questions though. It was only three days so I do not think it was needed. So I dismissed the thoughts of bad confession and received the holy communion.

Later I remembered that I probably should confess the sin of presumption. … But I am not sure if I had such a contrition when I was in confessional. I might not have been focused enough. Am I forgiven? Does anyone see anything wrong with my confession?

Having a mind that is half switched off (when we are doing a good thing and among people who are doing a good thing) can be a good gift to protect us against too much intensity.

It could be presumptuous to presume you had been presumptuous!

Why not just be happy that you are a good person!

 

[Dmitri77]

I’ll reiterate, you are a child of God. He’s not trying to trick you or play gotcha looking for something you forgot or some incorrect thought so He can toss you into hell. Obviously you are repenting and working out your salvation. You just need a spiritual director and confessor to help you with your scruples.

I’ll give you a wonderful example. This is a letter from an Orthodox nun to a lay person who is struggling with scruples. Read this and take it to heart. Maybe it can help you until you get a spiritual director for yourself.

Safely Home to Heaven