Mortal sin

[friardchips]

If one is in mortal sin and waits for scheduled confession, if something happens are they pretty much locked out of heaven? Or are they covered somehow until they can get to confession? A priest told me that most of us are going to have to do some time in purgatory, This place is a purgatory IMO pretty much to would think.

Bill

If you intended to go to Confession then you have presumably already felt sorry for your sin which is why you are going - God know the motions of our hearts. The Grace of God is what gets us there. I am most convinced that if one died on the way to making a confession then one would be forgiven. However, as to whether one would go straight to Heaven, or if one is enroute to Purgatory, how long one might have to spend there, only God can know.

 

[friardchips]

No bitterness, but shocked when it happened.

I’m always praying for him, even before this happened.

Jim

Sure.

Good to know.

 

[Techno2000]

St. Faustina had also one daily prayer that she never missed which was, “O Jesus inspire people to pray for the dying”. St. Faustina said that by prayer, “God’s mercy can touch the sinner even at the last moment, in a wondrous and mysterious way.** Outwardly, it seems as if everything is lost**, but it is not so. The soul, illumined by a ray of God’s powerful final grace, can turn to God even in the last moment, with such a power of love that in an instant, it receives from God, forgiveness of all sin and punishment, while outwardly it shows no sign either of repentance or of contrition, because souls [at that stage] no longer react to external things”. (Diary 1698)

An Unpublished Manuscript on Purgatory

Excerpt :

I can tell you about the different degrees of Purgatory because I have passed through them. In the great Purgatory there are several stages. In the lowest and most painful, like a temporary hell, are the sinners who have committed terrible crimes during life and whose death surprised them in that state. It was almost a miracle that they were saved, and often by the prayers of holy parents or other pious persons. Sometimes they did not even have time to confess their sins and the** world thought them lost**, but God, whose mercy is infinite, gave them at the moment of death the contrition necessary for their salvation on account of one or more good actions which they performed during life. For such souls, Purgatory is terrible. It is a real hell with this difference, that in hell they curse God, whereas we bless Him and thank Him for having saved us.
catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=6253

---

Dante’s Purgatorio
The Unshriven: Violent Deaths

We are all souls who met a violent death,
and we were sinners to our final hour;
but then the light of Heaven lit our minds,

and penitent and pardoning, we left
that life at peace with God, Who left our hearts
with longing for the holy sight of Him.”

 

[Herculees]

If you are truly repentant I believe and had plans to go to confession our Lord is merciful enough to forgive the sin whether venial or mortal. You do realize though you do NOT have to wait for the scheduled confession. You can always call a Catholic priest and ask for an appointment to have your confession heard.

 

[esieffe]

Let me just repeat what a priest told me when I expressed the same fears about dying before making a good confession: “God is not a jerk.”

By that he meant God is not just waiting to call “Time’s up!” on you and see if he can catch you in a state of mortal sin. If you are working towards the Good and are making regular confessions and doing your best, then trust that God sees that. When you sin, say an act of contrition, resolve not to repeat it, and then go to confession at the next opportunity. God is all good and merciful. It’s not like He’s looking for a reason to damn you to Hell. On the contrary, He’s looking for a reason to welcome you to Heaven.

My spiritual director and confessor said once that “our Lord does not play games.”

 

[Mike1955]

I have taken much comfort from the replies in this thread.

I certainly hope that Mother Mary will intercede with Him on my behalf on my behalf now and at the hour of my death.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

St. Faustina had also one daily prayer that she never missed which was, “O Jesus inspire people to pray for the dying”. St. Faustina said that by prayer, “God’s mercy can touch the sinner even at the last moment, in a wondrous and mysterious way.** Outwardly, it seems as if everything is lost**, but it is not so. The soul, illumined by a ray of God’s powerful final grace, can turn to God even in the last moment, with such a power of love that in an instant, it receives from God, forgiveness of all sin and punishment, while outwardly it shows no sign either of repentance or of contrition, because souls [at that stage] no longer react to external things”. (Diary 1698)

An Unpublished Manuscript on Purgatory

Excerpt :

I can tell you about the different degrees of Purgatory because I have passed through them. In the great Purgatory there are several stages. In the lowest and most painful, like a temporary hell, are the sinners who have committed terrible crimes during life and whose death surprised them in that state. It was almost a miracle that they were saved, and often by the prayers of holy parents or other pious persons. Sometimes they did not even have time to confess their sins and the** world thought them lost**, but God, whose mercy is infinite, gave them at the moment of death the contrition necessary for their salvation on account of one or more good actions which they performed during life. For such souls, Purgatory is terrible. It is a real hell with this difference, that in hell they curse God, whereas we bless Him and thank Him for having saved us.
catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=6253

---

Dante’s Purgatorio
The Unshriven: Violent Deaths

We are all souls who met a violent death,
and we were sinners to our final hour;
but then the light of Heaven lit our minds,

and penitent and pardoning, we left
that life at peace with God, Who left our hearts
with longing for the holy sight of Him.”

Beware that Pope Urban III was not a model Pope and one of the more corrupt Pope’s.

Also, Dante’s work on the Divine Comedy, which most accounts about hell are based on, is a fictional work. Dante never saw hell, purgatory nor heaven. He did put popes and bishops in hell, some of them still alive when he wrote the Inferno.

Jim

 

[billcu1]

As the Catechism of the Catholic Church states in bold letters, “Only God Forgives Sin.”

The authority given to priest to forgive sin, does not exclude God’s forgiveness.

Being such, turn to God as soon as you are aware that you have committed a grievous sin.

Then, get to Confession the next time.

I was shocked when I asked my pastor to hear my confession before Mass, and he gave me an attitude, “NOW ?” He heard my confession which took all of three minutes, but it made me step back, especially as he told me the first time I asked for confession before Mass, “feel free to ask for Confession anytime.” I’ve gone to him before Mass three times before. No longer.

From now on, I leave my confession up to God and go to the scheduled confession, instead.

However, it may not be to my pastor where he refuses to leave access to the hall where the only restrooms are.

Jim

I agree with the poster in post #18 but I understand you too. Your Pastor had no reason to say that. He is human, I would’ve talked to him about that. Or the Vicar. Your confessor doesn’t have to be your Pastor. I did confession outside a restaurant once when one of the priests was around.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

I agree with the poster in post #18 but I understand you too. Your Pastor had no reason to say that. He is human, I would’ve talked to him about that. Or the Vicar. Your confessor doesn’t have to be your Pastor. I did confession outside a restaurant once when one of the priests was around.

I’m 65 years old and know I don’t have to go to my pastor.

However, I was going to Mass on a week-day at my parish and needed to confess before Mass.

When he said, “NOW ?” He then said, “how about after Mass ?” I said, but I want to be able to receive Holy Communion. He said, “you can still receive.” He was wrong of course, so I said, well, I really need to confess and it will only take a minute, so he said, “Ok.” He wasn’t very good about it and gave his usual pat penance. I felt ashamed for asking him to hear my confession.

Won’t happen again.

As St Teresa of Avila said, “if you find a good confessor, hang on to him for dear life.”

I haven’t had a good confessor since my former one moved to Arizona.

Jim

 

[Nelka]

I’m 65 years old and know I don’t have to go to my pastor.

However, I was going to Mass on a week-day at my parish and needed to confess before Mass.

When he said, “NOW ?” He then said, “how about after Mass ?” I said, but I want to be able to receive Holy Communion. He said, “you can still receive.” He was wrong of course, so I said, well, I really need to confess and it will only take a minute, so he said, “Ok.” He wasn’t very good about it and gave his usual pat penance. I felt ashamed for asking him to hear my confession.

Won’t happen again.

As St Teresa of Avila said, “if you find a good confessor, hang on to him for dear life.”

I haven’t had a good confessor since my former one moved to Arizona.

Jim

Sorry to hear that.

 

[billcu1]

I’m 65 years old and know I don’t have to go to my pastor.

However, I was going to Mass on a week-day at my parish and needed to confess before Mass.

When he said, “NOW ?” He then said, “how about after Mass ?” I said, but I want to be able to receive Holy Communion. He said, “you can still receive.” He was wrong of course, so I said, well, I really need to confess and it will only take a minute, so he said, “Ok.” He wasn’t very good about it and gave his usual pat penance. I felt ashamed for asking him to hear my confession.

Won’t happen again.

As St Teresa of Avila said, “if you find a good confessor, hang on to him for dear life.”

I haven’t had a good confessor since my former one moved to Arizona.

Jim

Eww. I see. My pastor right now is a good confessor but I never know when the Bishop will move him. They usually say a lot “God the Father…” But what is required is “I absolve you of your sins in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit” I guess.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

Eww. I see. My pastor right now is a good confessor but I never know when the Bishop will move him. They usually say a lot “God the Father…” But what is required is “I absolve you of your sins in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit” I guess.

I’ve had real good confessors and real horrible one’s.

The last good confessor was not in my parish, but at the parish where I was the scheduled adore’er at the adoration chapel. He moved to Arizona.

The next confessor, was OK, but didn’t really give any sort of spiritual direction. Just a pat rehearsed penance. In fact, my wife and I got the same penance.

Anyway, I’ll merely have to go during scheduled confession from now on. Ask God for forgiveness if I mess up, beforehand.

Jim

 

[Vico]

With perfect contrition one would confess and should be doing all they can to stay out of sin. With not much temptation I fall. This is a flesh sin and they say they’re the worst. Fasting of something helps. If one keeps sinning there’s a real problem devotions help me. Maybe it’s less than perfect contrition. But I don’t want to stay in sin.

Yes, avoiding the near occasions of sin is what should be done.

Catechism
1735 Imputability and responsibility for an action can be diminished or even nullified by ignorance, inadvertence, duress, fear, habit, inordinate attachments, and other psychological or social factors.

2352 … To form an equitable judgment about the subjects’ moral responsibility and to guide pastoral action, one must take into account the affective immaturity, force of acquired habit, conditions of anxiety or other psychological or social factors that lessen, if not even reduce to a minimum, moral culpability.

 

[billcu1]

Yes, avoiding the near occasions of sin is what should be done.

Catechism
1735 Imputability and responsibility for an action can be diminished or even nullified by ignorance, inadvertence, duress, fear, habit, inordinate attachments, and other psychological or social factors.

2352 … To form an equitable judgment about the subjects’ moral responsibility and to guide pastoral action, one must take into account the affective immaturity, force of acquired habit, conditions of anxiety or other psychological or social factors that lessen, if not even reduce to a minimum, moral culpability.

Well I take many a pill for anxiety. And panic attacks too.

 

[friardchips]

Well I take many a pill for anxiety. And panic attacks too.

May I suggest that you try a peace-inviting prayer solution, which is actually straight-up prayer, at the start of the day. With the words:

“Come, Holy Spirit.”

and/or “Come, Lord Jesus”.

?