Penance

[MarianD]

Can anyone tell me about penance (not the Sacrament, but willingly suffering for reparations for crimes and blasphemies committed against the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Sacred Heart of Christ)?

If one were to do something they didn’t want to do (bookwork, schoolwork, heavy lifting, etc.), can one devote the unpleasantness of the experience as an Act of Penance for crimes and blasphemies committed against God and Mother Mary?

Thanks

 

[JohnDamian]

Only extraordinary acts should be offered up as penance.

It would not for example; be suitable to offer up standard schoolwork as an act of penance; as you would have done the schoolwork anyway.

The best thing’s to use as pennances are either prayer; or acts of charity. This might include helping someone with heavy lifting; or helping someone with their schoolwork.

You might want to go over specifics with your Priest or Spiritual Director.

 

[MarianD]

Only extraordinary acts should be offered up as penance.

It would not for example; be suitable to offer up standard schoolwork as an act of penance; as you would have done the schoolwork anyway.

The best thing’s to use as pennances are either prayer; or acts of charity. This might include helping someone with heavy lifting; or helping someone with their schoolwork.

You might want to go over specifics with your Priest or Spiritual Director.

I see. So how about something that is unpleasant and voluntary? Something like wearing a jacket in hot weather, or something like choosing to walk a couple of miles instead of driving. Can these be offered up as penance?

 

[Barbkw]

I pray to the Holy Spirit, that His will be done here on Earth for the correction of all human hearts, minds and souls.

Most people, have to be allowed to hit absolute rock bottom before they will realize the effect of sin in their lives.

Sponsors in AA or NA meetings know this first hand.

If you have a particular sin, that you have fought against and gained a length of time of control over, think about being there to help other people in their struggle.

Spend yourself on other people

 

[sherri315]

Any suffering, no matter how minute, can be offered as penance so long as you accept it gracefully. The greater the suffering, the better the offering, but size doesn’t matter for it to be penance.

 

[baltobetsy]

Your act need not be extraordinary to qualify as penance. Any discomfort, annoyance or contradiction, now matter how small, may be offered. Even if you were going to do it anyway, as in homework or difficult portions of your professional work, you can do it with or without a good intention. To do your normal unpleasant things with purity of intention is very pleasing to God and may surely be offered as penance. How else would the ordinary person be able to offer anything?

Betsy

 

[Lief_Erikson]

Can anyone tell me about penance (not the Sacrament, but willingly suffering for reparations for crimes and blasphemies committed against the Sorrowful and Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Sacred Heart of Christ)?

If one were to do something they didn’t want to do (bookwork, schoolwork, heavy lifting, etc.), can one devote the unpleasantness of the experience as an Act of Penance for crimes and blasphemies committed against God and Mother Mary?

Yes, you can and should! Anything and everything unpleasant should be offered up in mortification to God, whether our state in life requires us to do it or not.

MarianD:

So how about something that is unpleasant and voluntary? Something like wearing a jacket in hot weather, or something like choosing to walk a couple of miles instead of driving. Can these be offered up as penance?

Yes, these also can be offered up as penance. Anything suffered, big or small, required or not required, can be offered up to God in penance.

JohnDamian:

It would not for example; be suitable to offer up standard schoolwork as an act of penance; as you would have done the schoolwork anyway.

It is true that the school work would have been done anyway, but that doesn’t mean it has no value to offer it up. It still has value. Unpleasant things that are taken on, which we would not have done anyway, might be more valuable in God’s eyes, but everything we offer up has value to Him. This is St. Therese’s Little Way, offering up every little thing, every day, to God, whether we have to do it or not. St. Francis de Sales says that we miss out on an innumerable number of opportunities to receive grace by failing to take advantage of the little things we can offer up to God each day.