Lied in confession?

[catholicjames29]

At the end of the last confession the priest asked me if I was saying my daily prayers. For some reason I let the word yes slip out. Honestly I had not been praying daily during the day though I was praying every day. Should I address this on my next confession or would this just be considered an accident. Thanks

 

[thistle]

At the end of the last confession the priest asked me if I was saying my daily prayers. For some reason I let the word yes slip out. Honestly I had not been praying daily during the day though I was praying every day. Should I address this on my next confession or would this just be considered an accident. Thanks

Sorry but that doesn’t make sense. If you are praying every day that means you are praying daily! The time of day (morning, afternoon, evening, night) is totally irrelavant.

 

[Sonic]

At the end of the last confession the priest asked me if I was saying my daily prayers. For some reason I let the word yes slip out. Honestly I had not been praying daily during the day though I was praying every day. Should I address this on my next confession or would this just be considered an accident. Thanks

You’re okay. You didn’t lie.

As long as you pray, it doesn’t matter what time of day you do it. Even if you forget or fall asleep during your prayers, your intention to pray is sufficient. Also, if you are distracted in your prayers, my parish priest said to simply offer the distractions to God and He will be just as happy with you.

This is the sort of question I might expect from someone who is dealing with scrupulosity. Do you have OCD?

 

[josephdaniel29]

Sorry but that doesn’t make sense. If you are praying every day that means you are praying daily! The time of day (morning, afternoon, evening, night) is totally irrelavant.

Perhaps they have a specified prayer rule that they are not following?

 

[catholicjames29]

You’re okay. You didn’t lie.

As long as you pray, it doesn’t matter what time of day you do it. Even if you forget or fall asleep during your prayers, your intention to pray is sufficient. Also, if you are distracted in your prayers, my parish priest said to simply offer the distractions to God and He will be just as happy with you.

This is the sort of question I might expect from someone who is dealing with scrupulosity. Do you have OCD?

Yes I so suffer from scrupulosity. The priest who herd this confession was one I had not gone to very often. From now on I will be going to the priest who herd my general confession last week because he is familiar with all my bad habits

 

[catholicjames29]

Sorry but that doesn’t make sense. If you are praying every day that means you are praying daily! The time of day (morning, afternoon, evening, night) is totally irrelavant.

oops by daily I meant more than once in one day. I told the priest I had but that was a lie. I can honestly say I def need to pray more, it seems like I just get soo caught up with whats happening around me I forget and neglect it. I need to find better ways to incorporate prayer into my life.

 

[MarkThompson]

oops by daily I meant more than once in one day. I told the priest I had but that was a lie. I can honestly say I def need to pray more, it seems like I just get soo caught up with whats happening around me I forget and neglect it. I need to find better ways to incorporate prayer into my life.

How does “daily” mean “more than once in a day”?

 

[Sonic]

Yes I so suffer from scrupulosity. The priest who herd this confession was one I had not gone to very often. From now on I will be going to the priest who herd my general confession last week because he is familiar with all my bad habits

I also have OCD. So, I know what you might be going through. It’s called the doubting disease for a reason. You’re constantly asking whether you did something or you didn’t do something. You’re never sure. So, you go back and do something again or your asking someone else if you did something wrong or not. It’s very much like being stuck in a doorway and not knowing whether you should go forward or backward.

I’ve learned that checking and rechecking provides temporary relief, but it ultimately makes the anxiety stronger and doesn’t help.

Try these links from Father Thomas Santa. They might help.

Ten Commandments for the Scrupulous by Rev. Thomas M. Santa, C.SS.R.:

mission.liguori.org/newsletters/scrupulosity.htm

Ten Commandments for the Scrupulous (Revised) by Rev. Thomas M. Santa, C.SS.R.:

mission.liguori.org/newsletters/scrupulosity2.htm

Scrupulous Anonymous:

mission.liguori.org/newsletters/scrupanon.htm

The book Obsessive Compulsive Disorder for Dummies also helped me.

 

[catholicjames29]

How does “daily” mean “more than once in a day”?

It doesn’t. I should have said in my original post " the priest asked if I was praying often during the day, everyday" instead of daily. Basically The priest just wanted to know if I was devoting enough time to prayer. I am really sorry for the confusion.

 

[catholicjames29]

I also have OCD. So, I know what you might be going through. It’s called the doubting disease for a reason. You’re constantly asking whether you did something or you didn’t do something. You’re never sure. So, you go back and do something again or your asking someone else if you did something wrong or not. It’s very much like being stuck in a doorway and not knowing whether you should go forward or backward.

I’ve learned that checking and rechecking provides temporary relief, but it ultimately makes the anxiety stronger and doesn’t help.

Try these links from Father Thomas Santa. They might help.

Ten Commandments for the Scrupulous by Rev. Thomas M. Santa, C.SS.R.:

mission.liguori.org/newsletters/scrupulosity.htm

Ten Commandments for the Scrupulous (Revised) by Rev. Thomas M. Santa, C.SS.R.:

mission.liguori.org/newsletters/scrupulosity2.htm

Scrupulous Anonymous:

mission.liguori.org/newsletters/scrupanon.htm

The book Obsessive Compulsive Disorder for Dummies also helped me.

LOL exactly, I always feel I need to re-confess sins that I already confessed or I can think of an unjustified reason to make myself think that my last confession was invalid. LOL the door analogy is perfect.
Thanks for the links Ill check um out!

 

[MarkThompson]

It doesn’t. I should have said in my original post " the priest asked if I was praying often during the day, everyday" instead of daily. Basically The priest just wanted to know if I was devoting enough time to prayer. I am really sorry for the confusion.

Ah, no problem. And so, if I understand you right, although you don’t really believe that you are praying enough, you said that you were? If that’s all that happened, then pray for the ability to reflect on questions and answer honestly rather than blurt out self-serving answers unthinkingly. And mention it at your next confession.

 

[catholicjames29]

Ah, no problem. And so, if I understand you right, although you don’t really believe that you are praying enough, you said that you were? If that’s all that happened, then pray for the ability to reflect on questions and answer honestly rather than blurt out self-serving answers unthinkingly. And mention it at your next confession.

Yes, I told the priest I was dedicating time to thoughtful prayer throughout the day when in reality I was giving very little time and thought to my prayer. Basically “going through the motions” as my HS basketball coach would say. Thanks for the advice:thumbsup: