Prayer before confession

[wwjdcscc]

I have reached a point in my life where i know i am being called. I feel the need to go to confession. However i know there is a prayer that needs to be said and formality to be followed. I am unsure of these. Can anyone guide me?

 

[otm]

Don’t sweat the small stuff. Just go, and tell Father that you are unsure of the format. You need to make an act of contrition, but if the priest doesn’t give you time to say it or says to say it later, do so later. There are several formulas, any of which will work. They aren’t magic; it is not a case of “if I don’t get every word right, will I be forgiven?”.

Only three things you need; 1) your sins (the laundry list); admission of those sins to the priest, and sorrow for those sins (which, of course, includes the intent not to commit them again!).

Go, and don’t hesitate.

Many of the confession settings will have a written guide, if you need a prompt. If they don’t, you’ll still do fine.

 

[jeffreedy789]

i’m a convert (from a baptist background) and so i don’t think i’ve done the ‘formula’ right yet. i just go, and if it’s a priest to whom i’ve never confessed before, i just say ‘hi, i’m a convert. i’m not very good at this. be patient if i do something wrong.’ and they usually smile or laugh and talk me through it.

 

[rheins2000]

Here is one I like that may help you…I assure you the prayer works:

Receive my confession, O most loving and gracious Lord Jesus Christ, only hope for the salvation of my soul. Grant to me true contrition of soul, so that day and night I may by penance make satisfaction for my many sins. Savior of the world, O good Jesus, Who gave Yourself to the death of the Cross to save sinners, look upon me, most wretched of all sinners; have pity on me, and give me the light to know my sins, true sorrow for them, and a firm purpose of never committing them again.
O gracious Virgin Mary, Immaculate Mother of Jesus, I implore you to obtain for me by your powerful intercession these graces from your Divine Son.
St. Joseph, pray for me.

---

I have been guilty of hiding sins in my past, or not properly meditating on my soul in discernment to search them out, I pray that you will not do as I had done. Hold nothing back, for then your penance will not be valid.(Remember, you are talking directly to Jesus, the Priest is only his vessel)

The actual formula can go something like this.(not necessary, but may help you)

Enter the confessional, make the sign of the cross and say "Bless me Father for I have sinned, it has been (state the length, say 20 years) since my last confession. "

Confess your sins, being very careful to tell him the exact(or as close as you know) number of times of each occurrence.

At the end, you can add, "for these sins, and those I have forgotten, I am truly sorry"

The priest will then take over, giving you advice, stating your penance and then will ask you to say an Act of Contrition. (If you dont know the Act of Contrition, tell the priest and he will guide you through it.

The Priest will absolve you of your sins, then you can say, "Thank you, Father."

Then go and perform your penance.

 

[dizzy_dave]

Hi - This is how I do it… Good morning Father, Bless me Father for I have sinned it’s been one week since my last confession (this is the part that helps the priest better know my background and where I’m coming from) I’m a Husband and a Father… He always makes a comment about me adding this in, he says I’m the only one who does this anymore. Of course if your single you should tell your confessor that, after that list your mortal sins (required) and if you want your venile (less serious) sins and after that I also add my faults. Then I say For these sins and all my past sins I am truly sorry and I ask God’s forgiveness and Father guidance and absolution from you. Then the priest will ask for any clarification if he needs it, give some advice, talk a little (or a lot), ask me to say an Act of Contrition and then absolve me of my sins. I then thank him and go and say or do my penance. Good luck! :tiphat:

 

[Christy_Beth]

In my parish, that formula hasn’t exactly been enforced. I do pray before I enter the confessional. I ask God to help me make a proper confession. Then, I go in. Our confessionals (there are two of them, but only one priest) is set up so that you can do it through a screen or face to face. I cross myself, and tell the priest how long it’s been since my last confession. I try to go every month.

My sins are usually the veneral kind. Although I have had a mortal sin or two to confess as well. Like, one time I was so mad at my older brother, I wanted to bash his head in. While he was asleep.

Anyway, I confess even the veneral kind as well. Like, my attitude isn’t what it should be. I have a hard time letting things go. I try not to hold grudges, but I have to really struggle to let things go. I confess this because this can lead to serious sin. It is in our thoughts and attitudes that mortal sin creeps in. And in his letter, James said,… would you believe I lost my train of thought? I forgot what I was going to say. This has been happening more and more often. All the more reason to go to confession often.

 

[CatholicNerd]

I like the prayer that’s an adaptation of the prayer of the tax collector (The Jesus Prayer). “Lord Jesus, Son of the Living God, be merficul to me, a sinner.”

or this variant:

“O God, be merciful to me a sinner.
O God, cleanse my sins and have mercy on me.
O Lord forgive me for I have sinned without number”.

Not terribly wordy and they are the words that Christ himself used when he told the parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector. He wouldn’t have used them if they weren’t good words to pray, no?