Making a list before Penance

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Renton405

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Has anyone here made a list of all the sins they could remember before going to the priest? Would reading your sins off a piece of paper reduce the genuiness of the confession?? Last time in confession I made a list(took around 5 days) of every single sin I could remember and wrote it down. The confession took quite a long time actually(20 min around I think, luckily I was last in line)…It was actually one of the most intense confessions Ive made, very nervous because many of the sins I confessed were embarassing and distasteful.
 
a more helpful practice would be the traditional examination of conscience using one of the many guides linked on these forums in past threads. Using the daily examen, a briefer review of your day, before bed each night also helps to keep before you that which you must remember to confess, that which requires amendment, and that which has improved and requires thanks.
 
I’m sure even doing the examen could be aided if you made written notes as you did so, which could also be taken to confession if required.

I’m also positive the sincerity of the confession is not affected in the slightest by having written notes. I do on occasion, and don’t on others, no discernible difference in sincerity, great difference in thoroughness!
 
A very thorough examination like the one you did may be helpful on a very rare occasion, such as when you are making a general confession covering a long period of time (for example, when you have not made a good confession in many years).

Writing a long list on a regular basis may lead you in the direction of scrupulosity (an over-sensitive conscience, seeing sin where there is none, seeing small sins as serious), which should most definitely be avoided.

While every mortal sin you remember must be confessed (if you honestly forgot one it is forgiven anyway), it is not necessary (and sometimes not helpful) to confess every venial sin. Concentrating on one or two areas which are giving you the most trouble, and which you really want to work on avoiding, can be a better aid to your spiritual life. (How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.)
 
Because I have such a bad memory I tend to jot my sins down and have them ready if I need them. I don’t think there is anything wrong with that. I always tend to get nervous when going to confession no matter how many or how grave my sins are…that sometimes has an effect on my being able to remember them. Good to hear you’re going to confession, God bless you.
 
I make a list. I am soooooooooooooo forgetful that if I don’t, I’ll leave something out. Plus it helps me to stay focus & concentrate.

I went to confession the other day without a list. After sin #1, I completely forgot what else I was going to confess because I was so ashamed and disturbed by what I had done, I lost focus on the rest of the confession just thinking about what I had done. Then the priest goes “Are you still there?” (it was one of those screened ones.)
 
I have never actually taken a written list with me. During one of the Communal Penances, however, the examination of conscience was intense so I brought a copy into the confessional with me in order to stay focused.
 
I always make a list and take it with me. I still get so nervous when I go to confession that I forget what I want to confess if I don’t have a list. Of course, I destroy the list afterwards.
 
I make a list most of the time, but I’m trying to go weekly or everyother week so hopefully I’m not that forgetful!!
 
I make a list, but the purpose of the list is really to translate what I want to confess into Korean. My priest doesn’t speak English, and it’s important to me that he understands what I’m saying. Otherwise, I’d feel like I was hiding behind a language. (Granted, with my terrible Korean grammar, he may not understand me anyway. But at least I tried.)
 
I have to make a list, otherwise I forget what I wanted to confess in my nervousness. Some say you will lose this practice the more you go to confession, some say you don’t. At the moment, I don’t feel comfortable going in without a list, because I’m so apt to forget.
 
I made a list once, way back when I was returning to the Church. The priest thought it was pretty funny, I guess, because he laughed at me for having a list with me. Maybe people don’t realize that even though you have created a list, that doesn’t mean you haven’t done a thorough examination of conscience or aren’t able to have true contrition for your sins.

On another note, I never get asked by my parish priest if I am sorry for my sins, and he doesn’t require me to say the act of contrition, so I no longer go to him for confession, preferring a different priest, who unfortunately is many miles away.
 
I like to make a list if I have a lot to confess. However, here’s something to always be cautious of: one time I made a list a day or two before my confession and didn’t really review it except for a brief read-thru. I went to a church I don’t usually go to, and the confessionals were pitch dark. :o So here I am looking at my hands holding this paper that I can’t see, and I’m thinking ok, what do I do now, I don’t remember 3/4 of my sins. I worked my way through it however, but it wasn’t easy.
 
I’d carry it there in a sealed envelop with the priests name on the outside (in case I was in an accident, someone would just assume it was a letter to be mailed) and make sure it was finely shredded or burned after confession;)
 
MSJoan said:
I’d carry it there in a sealed envelop with the priests name on the outside (in case I was in an accident, someone would just assume it was a letter to be mailed) and make sure it was finely shredded or burned after confession;)
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Oh I write in code (just a letter or two standing for the name of each sin, which is enough to remind me, rather than the whole word) and sometimes destroy it afterwards (feels great!) or just toss it out with the rest of the trash.
 
Hahaha I have been in a similar situation. One time when I was going to confession, I hadn’t been in a few years so I had to write down on paper all the sins I needed to confess. I was going to my new parish, an old church with the old school confessionals.

I was so nervous, but some of the nice people in the queu allowed me to go first and showed me where to go. Once in got inside, there was only a curtain to close ( so I am pretty sure everyone standing outside could hear what I said if they wanted to… ) and it was PITCH BLACK in there. I couldn’t see my list!! I tried hard to look at it but instead I had to remember. I did forget a few. The priest also was not the parish priest and he spoke as though he wanted me to get it over with quickly… so I felt as though I didn’t have time to finish. Isn’t that horrible?

I read somewhere later that you shouldn’t write your sins down anyways… They are private. What if you lost the piece of paper? OH MY! :eek:
 
Sina said:
I read somewhere later that you shouldn’t write your sins down anyways… They are private. What if you lost the piece of paper? OH MY! :eek:
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I always keep my list tucked inside of a devotional or prayer book that I take with me. Afterwords, I shred or burn the list. 🙂
 
Sina said:
What if you lost the piece of paper? OH MY! :eek:
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Would that be a problem other than privacy? I sometimes make confession lists and just throw them away or lose them… and I personally don’t mind if someone sees them - I don’t usually hide much from others anyway. But is there another reason why no one should see a confession list?
 
I make a small list, but mainly because I confess sins of omission (in a general sense) and I also cite any of the ‘7 deadly sins’ that I break with any frequency.

I figure that takes care of the venial sins - I don’t forget the occasional mortal sin, so no need to write that down.
 
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