Is it wrong to try to persuade someone to go to confession?

[RascalJones]

Say you know someone that needs to go. They know they need to go, but are dragging their feet about it. Is it wrong to keep asking them when they’re going to go? Or suggesting opportune times?

 

[CatholicCajun]

Say you know someone that needs to go. They know they need to go, but are dragging their feet about it. Is it wrong to keep asking them when they’re going to go? Or suggesting opportune times?

You need to be careful about this one, you don’t want to turn them off and then they won’t go at all, or worse, leave the church. Pray for them. Ask the Holy Spirit to gently guide them to the confessional. God Bless you for caring about the salvation of another person.

 

[puzzleannie]

Say you know someone that needs to go. They know they need to go, but are dragging their feet about it. Is it wrong to keep asking them when they’re going to go? Or suggesting opportune times?

actually, in Christian charity, we do not know when another person needs confession, it is that private. If we are talking about a parent of a minor, yes the parent is within their rights in offering opportunities to get to confession, and even insisting that the child accompany them to church, but they can’t force them even verbally to enter the confessional, and cannot discuss matter for confession or probe about it. If we are talking about a friend, a better tack than making judgemental statements about the other person’s actions, is to talk about the sacrament itself, and our own wonderful experience with the sacrament and its graces.

 

[Pious_Mat]

I agree with puzzleannie’s last remarks, and would add that it is always a good idea to remind people that if they are in a state of mortal sin, it would another mortal sin to recieve communion. I strongly believe that spreading the word about this particular point is essential to the future of the church.

The other day, I spoke with a woman I know who said that she hadn’t been to confession in about 20 years, and wondered why we really needed it. To make things worse, she regularly receives communion.

Some parish priests have begun doing something very positive in this respect: they are placing little pamphlets explaining how to go to confession, why to go, what is a mortal sin, etc. I like to take a Socratic approach to this problem, and think that most wrongdoings regarding confession stem from ignorance rather than a deliberate desire to disobey.