List of devoted Catholic sins

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I would be glad to frequent confession once a month or more, but I have trouble coming up with sins to confess. In my mind this is not as arrogant as it sounds. I am middle aged, live a pretty stable life, have a small group of close friends at home church and work, frequent the sacraments regularly, I’m just a cradle Catholic who has cultivated good habits. I have a hard time coming up with sins to confess. The usual examination of conscience lists are not all that helpful. I have not counseled anyone to get an abortion, or committed perjury, etc.

So I’m asking some of you who are frequent confessors: help me come up with a list of sins that a devoted Catholic would use as an examination of conscience. What are some examples?

If you respond with a challenge that I am deluding myself and I really do have lots of sins… then I’ll agree with you. I am sure I am not more holy than the recent popes who go to confession every week. So what do they confess? Do you mostly just confess imperfections (which are not really sins)? Help me uncover what sins I must have that I am not seeing.
 
Not knowing you makes this a bit of a stretch! (if I was your spouse, I’m sure I could come up with more 🙂 )

Perhaps for you it is not so much sins of commission as sins of omission? Time wasted that could have been used helping your neighbor or in prayer? Neglecting prayer? Unkind or uncharitable thoughts? Not contributing a fair share of your time and talents to the Lord?
 
SaintPat said:
I would be glad to frequent confession once a month or more, but I have trouble coming up with sins to confess. In my mind this is not as arrogant as it sounds. I am middle aged, live a pretty stable life, have a small group of close friends at home church and work, frequent the sacraments regularly, I’m just a cradle Catholic who has cultivated good habits. I have a hard time coming up with sins to confess. The usual examination of conscience lists are not all that helpful. I have not counseled anyone to get an abortion, or committed perjury, etc.

So I’m asking some of you who are frequent confessors: help me come up with a list of sins that a devoted Catholic would use as an examination of conscience. What are some examples?

If you respond with a challenge that I am deluding myself and I really do have lots of sins… then I’ll agree with you. I am sure I am not more holy than the recent popes who go to confession every week. So what do they confess? Do you mostly just confess imperfections (which are not really sins)? Help me uncover what sins I must have that I am not seeing.
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Do you always confess to the same priest? If so, have you discussed this with him?
 
Perhaps if you read more of the writings of the saints they will start to reveal to you your vices, by their virtues?

‘But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance.’

Hebrews 9:7
 
As good as I think I’m doing, all I have to do is read the lives of the saints to be brought back down a peg or 2.

Look at commandment #1…

Did I ACTUALLY love God above all things, with ALL my mind, heart, and strength… or did I love my own comfort & security a little more?..Hmm…

And that’s just the first one!

Did I keep proper custody of my eyes and thoughts in regards to lust? Not if I keep checking out the backside of that chick that works in packaging I don’t! Even if I stop myself…I failed to some degree.

Imagine the Lord appearing to you in person. I’d cry and fall on my face and just say “I’m so sorry”.
 
I am sure there are even more thorough examples out there, but just glancing through this seems to be a pretty thorough Examination of Conscience:
fatima.org/essentials/requests/examconc.asp

If the Pope can find enough on his conscience to go to weekly confession, surely we can too. 🙂
 
I agree with you. The exams of conscience I see talk about mortal sins. I almost feel like I am wasting the priest’s time, but I know I receive grace from the sacrament and it really helps in keeping my conscience more atuned to what is good and what is evil.
 
Ophelia23 said:
I am sure there are even more thorough examples out there, but just glancing through this seems to be a pretty thorough Examination of Conscience:
fatima.org/essentials/requests/examconc.asp

If the Pope can find enough on his conscience to go to weekly confession, surely we can too. 🙂
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That’s the fatimanetwork.org website. Fr Nicholas Gruner, who heads the site, has had his faculties to celebrate the sacraments suspended. I avoid the website, as suggested by CAF apologist, Michele Arnold The Fatima Network

An EOC based on the Beatitudes was recommended to me. I’ve read it over, it’s pretty through, plan to use it for my next confession.

Beatitudes
 
I always think about this;
***for even the “just man falls seven times a day” (Prov. 24:16), ***
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I go to confession at least twice a month because Our Lord fills you full of His Grace and strengthens you! To me it’s the most under-used Sacrament there is…and that’s a shame.
 
asia53 said:
That’s the fatimanetwork.org website. Fr Nicholas Gruner, who heads the site, has had his faculties to celebrate the sacraments suspended. I avoid the website, as suggested by CAF apologist, Michele Arnold The Fatima Network

An EOC based on the Beatitudes was recommended to me. I’ve read it over, it’s pretty through, plan to use it for my next confession.

Beatitudes
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:eek: Eeks! Well try this one instead. scborromeo.org/confess.htm

Sorry to have posted a bad site. I didn’t mean to!
 
Is my presence a source of peace to those around me…that made me go ooooohhhffff, good one to remember!!
 
Here is a good examination of conscience

ncregister.com/info/confession_guide_for_adults/

There are many online, I do like this one. One poster said they normally only list mortal sins, I do not believe that is the case.

As to not having sins to confess, I always remember what one priest told me. He said, without fail, the people who seldom go to confession are the ones who will only have 2 or 3 sins to confess. He says that someone who comes in and says they were at confession 2 weeks ago will have many sins to confess and you can tell they sincere. But people will come in after 6 months and not be able to think of anything to say. If one does not make a regular examination of conscience, one tends to loose one’s own sinfulness.

He related it to people (often protestants) who say confession is not needed because they go to God directly for forgiveness. His question to them is: how often do you really ask God for forgiveness, which, in general, cannot be done without recalling specific sins. Does one just tell one’s wife “I am sorry” or does one say “I am sorry for not doing XYZ”. The latter gets you forgiven, the former is certainly less sincere.

The bottom line, a regular examination of conscience and frequent confession. You are never wasting a priest’s time!!! That’s their job.
 
I use the examination of concience HERE.

It is based off the examen put out by Opus Dei and printed in the back of the MTF Roman Missal. I have added a few things I have come across.

The OP might want to look into a Jesuit examination of concience. It is quiet different, more of a conversation with God and less of a checklist.

-Tim-
 
I find this thread very helpful. I have often felt like a good solid mortal sin would be so easy to deal with but confessing the basket full of stupid petty sins that I cling to, is so hard to do. It becomes a matter of pride. I ask myself if these petty sins of which I have so many of make me a petty person.

It isn’t a matter of scruples, it becomes a matter of wanting to change the pettiness of my soul. For instance, it is down right embarrassing to say, “I ate half a pie yesterday.” “I was sarcastic to my sister yesterday.” Mortal sins. maybe not. Sinful yes. The same petty, stupid sins that I have dealt with since I was fifteen years old.

Worse of all, I am not sure that I really do not want to change. I know that it is only by going to confessing and once again admitting that my journey toward God has yet to begin.

It is hard to understand why confessing that one is addicted to drugs is easier to do than to confess that one is addicted to food.

It is hard to understand why confessing being unfaithful to one’s spouse is easier to do than to confess that one is sarcastic and thoughtless towards one’s spouse. It is hard to confess one’s irritablity toward their family.
 
HelenRose said:
I find this thread very helpful. I have often felt like a good solid mortal sin would be so easy to deal with but confessing the basket full of stupid petty sins that I cling to, is so hard to do. It becomes a matter of pride. I ask myself if these petty sins of which I have so many of make me a petty person.

It isn’t a matter of scruples, it becomes a matter of wanting to change the pettiness of my soul. For instance, it is down right embarrassing to say, “I ate half a pie yesterday.” “I was sarcastic to my sister yesterday.” Mortal sins. maybe not. Sinful yes. The same petty, stupid sins that I have dealt with since I was fifteen years old.

Worse of all, I am not sure that I really do not want to change. I know that it is only by going to confessing and once again admitting that my journey toward God has yet to begin.

It is hard to understand why confessing that one is addicted to drugs is easier to do than to confess that one is addicted to food.

It is hard to understand why confessing being unfaithful to one’s spouse is easier to do than to confess that one is sarcastic and thoughtless towards one’s spouse. It is hard to confess one’s irritablity toward their family.
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I agree, you have made my previous point better than I. The other thing to remember, how will I even remember they were sarcastic to my sister or thoughtless to my spouse when I did it two months before going to confession, or even making an examination on conscience.

It is not to scrupulous to want to overcome these venial (but non trivial) sins. And frequent examination on conscience and frequent confession is the best tool we have to do so.
One of the previous poster said they felt like they were wasting the priest’s time. Think of it this way: In the confessional, the priest is acting In Persona Christi. Do you really think these sins are trivial and unimportant to Christ. He is infinite, he truly loves you, He wants you to be better. So one cannot be wasting the priest’s time in confession, unless one thinks they are wasting Christ’s time. Don’t diminish His love for you that way.
 
Armor_of_Light said:
…

Did I keep proper custody of my eyes and thoughts in regards to lust? Not if I keep checking out the backside of that chick that works in packaging I don’t! Even if I stop myself…I failed to some degree.

…

.
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I’ve had a spiritual director and confessor (two different priests) tell me that stopping yourself is actually a virtue, and strengthens you. You have won a major victory by recognizing the sin, telling yourself that you love God more than that sin, and making an act of the will to resist temptation and not indulge in the sin. Give yourself credit for the victory, and build on it.
 
SaintPat said:
I would be glad to frequent confession once a month or more, but I have trouble coming up with sins to confess. In my mind this is not as arrogant as it sounds. I am middle aged, live a pretty stable life, have a small group of close friends at home church and work, frequent the sacraments regularly, I’m just a cradle Catholic who has cultivated good habits. I have a hard time coming up with sins to confess. The usual examination of conscience lists are not all that helpful. I have not counseled anyone to get an abortion, or committed perjury, etc.

So I’m asking some of you who are frequent confessors: help me come up with a list of sins that a devoted Catholic would use as an examination of conscience. What are some examples?

If you respond with a challenge that I am deluding myself and I really do have lots of sins… then I’ll agree with you. I am sure I am not more holy than the recent popes who go to confession every week. So what do they confess? Do you mostly just confess imperfections (which are not really sins)? Help me uncover what sins I must have that I am not seeing.
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I’m sure there are a lot of people who are glad that you asked this question. I think you will find the Examination of Conscience by Fr. John Hardon helpful. It is a particular examin on the theological virtues of Faith Hope and Charity
ewtn.com/library/spirit/examcons.txt
 
What thoughtful and encouraging answers everyone! I’ve got a lot of good suggestions now as I get ready for a good confession before Divine Mercy Sunday.

HelenRose, I heard of someone apologizing to their priest for confessing “the same old sins” and the priest pointed out “Well what would you want? Some new sins?” I guess if we’re all going to sin, struggling with the same ones is not any worse than struggling with new ones.

Thank-you to all for being so nice to a new poster.
 
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