I feel guilty.

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Love_much

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I grew up Baptist and started attending a Catholic school in the sixth grade until my high school graduation. From time to time, we would attend Mass as a class or have liturgies in our gym. No one, not even the nun who came in from time to time, ever told me, to my knowledge, about the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. She told me how to hold my hands to receive the sacrament, but that’s all I remember her telling me. I remember receiving Communion one day at school and excitedly telling my mom that I received Communion with all the other kids - I think I specifically said ‘First Communion’ because I had heard the term. Some kids told me about folding my arms over my chest for the priest’s blessing, but no one told me that I needed to do that because I wasn’t prepared to receive the sacrament.

This was all before my Baptism/Confirmation/First Communion five years ago, but I feel so bad about it now that I know better. I don’t even know how many times I received Communion in church, completely oblivious to what Catholics believe about it. I didn’t know about the Real Presence until I completed RCIA and was received into the church.

Help, please?
 
Love_much said:
I grew up Baptist and started attending a Catholic school in the sixth grade until my high school graduation. From time to time, we would attend Mass as a class or have liturgies in our gym. No one, not even the nun who came in from time to time, ever told me, to my knowledge, about the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. She told me how to hold my hands to receive the sacrament, but that’s all I remember her telling me. I remember receiving Communion one day at school and excitedly telling my mom that I received Communion with all the other kids - I think I specifically said ‘First Communion’ because I had heard the term. Some kids told me about folding my arms over my chest for the priest’s blessing, but no one told me that I needed to do that because I wasn’t prepared to receive the sacrament.

This was all before my Baptism/Confirmation/First Communion five years ago, but I feel so bad about it now that I know better. I don’t even know how many times I received Communion in church, completely oblivious to what Catholics believe about it. I didn’t know about the Real Presence until I completed RCIA and was received into the church.

Help, please?
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If you did not know about it, you did not sin. The sin is on those in charge for not explaining (or perhaps they were not aware you weren’t Catholic).

Mortal sin requires three elements:
  1. Grave matter;
  2. Full knowledge that the act you are committing is a sin;
  3. Full consent of the will.
In your case point 2 was clearly not present. So no mortal sin.

Go in peace 🙂
 
OraLabora said:
If you did not know about it, you did not sin. The sin is on those in charge for not explaining (or perhaps they were not aware you weren’t Catholic).

Mortal sin requires three elements:
  1. Grave matter;
  2. Full knowledge that the act you are committing is a sin;
  3. Full consent of the will.
In your case point 2 was clearly not present. So no mortal sin.

Go in peace 🙂
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I’m grateful that it was not mortal and also that it was all completely forgiven through Baptism, but it came to my mind earlier today at Mass, right after I had received Communion, and I felt so bad that I was receiving the sacrament unworthily, even though I was ignorant. Earlier today, a family member told my mom, “You don’t have to go to Confession first to receive Communion,” and I had to correct her because I didn’t want the sacrament profaned. I would never have willingly gone up to receive Communion if someone had pulled me aside and said, “You aren’t supposed to do this.” I was really in the dark about the faith at that point; I was calling myself Catholic by the seventh or eighth grade because I was interested in it and identified heavily with it, but obviously I was not united to the church yet.

Thank you for your comforting words. 🙂
 
You can just confess your sins and start over. Ask God’s forgiveness because you don’t know at that time.
 
Thank you all. I guess it would be silly to think that Jesus would be upset with me for doing something out of ignorance. It’s not like I went up there and thought, “I know this is something I’m not supposed to receive, but I’m going to anyway.”
 
As everyone has stated you are not guilty of a mortal sin, but may I suggest that there is something you can do that I think would help alleviate your sense of guilty?

If you haven’t yet, offer a penance for the reparation of the sacrilege that took place and the sin of those who allowed it. This way you are actively doing something about it instead of just feeling guilty. 🙂
 
Adam95 said:
As everyone has stated you are not guilty of a mortal sin, but may I suggest that there is something you can do that I think would help alleviate your sense of guilty?

If you haven’t yet, offer a penance for the reparation of the sacrilege that took place and the sin of those who allowed it. This way you are actively doing something about it instead of just feeling guilty. 🙂
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That’s a very good idea. I’ll do that. Thanks for the suggestion! 🙂
 
You said that all this happened before your Baptism/Confirmation/First Communion. If you were baptized AFTER this happened please remember that ALL the sins you committed before your Baptism were forgiven - completely! There is no need for you to go to confession about this - you’ve already been cleansed of any stain of sin that may have been impressed upon your soul at the time.

We go to confession for sins we commit after Baptism, there’s no need to confess sins committed before Baptism.

I understand you feel guilty and you may wish to talk with a priest about the situation but your soul has been wiped clean of any wrong-doing in this case.
 
Mary_Ellen said:
You said that all this happened before your Baptism/Confirmation/First Communion. If you were baptized AFTER this happened please remember that ALL the sins you committed before your Baptism were forgiven - completely! There is no need for you to go to confession about this - you’ve already been cleansed of any stain of sin that may have been impressed upon your soul at the time.

We go to confession for sins we commit after Baptism, there’s no need to confess sins committed before Baptism.

I understand you feel guilty and you may wish to talk with a priest about the situation but your soul has been wiped clean of any wrong-doing in this case.
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You’re right about Baptism, and I feel good about that. I guess I’m just feeling guilty in general because I’ve made some pretty silly choices in the five years since then, a lot of it because of anxiety (which led to staying home from Mass because I was sick, which led to trying different denominations, which led to questioning things too much…it’s a slippery slope). It seems like all my major sins are a result of fear leading to something mortal. :confused:
 
I recall in high school, being shown a video about a host catching fire, bleeding, and pulsating, but again, I don’t recall anyone saying that the Real Presence was what the miracle was pointing to. I’m not exactly sure how many times I went to church around this point. I just know that 1) I don’t do well with vague things and 2) I know it happened at some point. My friend was an Anglican and went up with all the other kids, so I really didn’t know I was doing anything wrong. 😦

I’ll try to focus on the Baptism and be done with it.
 
Why feel guilty? You’re growing in an awareness of the presence of God and of the sacredness of the Holy Mass. Be thankful and ask God to deepen that grace.

For whatever reasons, the essential truths of our faith were downplayed for a few decades by the very people to whom transmitting the faith has been entrusted. Pray for them. But also pray and read.

Youtube has many good videos on Catholic topics. Try watching some of those but use discernment about which you select. Father Barron has many amazing and doctrinally sound videos.

The Vatican Archives and EWTN website have TONS of resources which will instruct you and help you to grow.

When the student is ready, the teacher appears.
 
Boy_Wonder said:
Why feel guilty? You’re growing in an awareness of the presence of God and of the sacredness of the Holy Mass. Be thankful and ask God to deepen that grace.

For whatever reasons, the essential truths of our faith were downplayed for a few decades by the very people to whom transmitting the faith has been entrusted. Pray for them. But also pray and read.

Youtube has many good videos on Catholic topics. Try watching some of those but use discernment about which you select. Father Barron has many amazing and doctrinally sound videos.

The Vatican Archives and EWTN website have TONS of resources which will instruct you and help you to grow.

When the student is ready, the teacher appears.
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This perspective is really helpful, comforting, and appreciated. Thank you! 🙂
 
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