Priest gives the same penance during confession

[JesusEstelle]

Just a thought…I’ve been to confession 4 times last year…once during Christmas Easter and just two regular one…I have noticed that in all the confessions…the priest would say the same thing…and that is…" Everyday invite Jesus into your life…even if it takes 2 seconds…say hi to.him in the morning…invite him into your daily life"…I dont know but he has said the same thing during my other confessions…the first time i was o.k…but then it was the same penance the next and so forth…
Im just wondering but…do priests normally assign the same penance in all confessions?

 

[phil19034]

Just a thought…I’ve been to confession 4 times last year…once during Christmas Easter and just two regular one…I have noticed that in all the confessions…the priest would say the same thing…and that is…" Everyday invite Jesus into your life…even if it takes 2 seconds…say hi to.him in the morning…invite him into your daily life"…I dont know but he has said the same thing during my other confessions…the first time i was o.k…but then it was the same penance the next and so forth…
Im just wondering but…do priests normally assign the same penance in all confessions?

Some priests create their own “default penance” and tack on as needed. I don’t know how many (what percentage) do this, but I would imagine it’s easier than determining a custom penance on the fly for each confession.

 

[Used2beSherryG]

The most important thought contained in your query is the mere fact that you went to confession four times within a year. I believe our Holy Father goes weekly. The penance given need not be unique to each confession. The point of the sacrament is that we are all sinners, and coming into the confessional to recount our sins to Jesus and be sincerely sorry for them and making a firm purpose of amendment to change our lives for the better, then receiving absolution from Christ is the important aspect. Doing the penance while reflecting on our sins, being mindful to God’s love and mercy toward us is invaluable in using the graces we receive to become more Christ-like. Recognizing our sinfulness and repenting, going to Christ himself in the confessional for forgiveness. That is really all that we need to worry about. A priest is himself a human being, as St. Paul pointed out when approached by a sinner. What the priest gives us as a penance is sufficient, regardless of what he gives.

 

[Bonnie]

Do you really expect the priest to remember the penance he gave you 3 months ago & come up with a customized penance just for you? Even in a small parish such as ours, the priests hear hundreds of confessions each month. I wouldn’t expect any of the priests to remember what my previous penance was - or even when my last confession was.

If the priest was also your spiritual director & you talked with him weekly, then perhaps you could have some expectation of a personalized penance.

 

[SwizzleStick]

Just a thought…I’ve been to confession 4 times last year…once during Christmas Easter and just two regular one…I have noticed that in all the confessions…the priest would say the same thing…and that is…" Everyday invite Jesus into your life…even if it takes 2 seconds…say hi to.him in the morning…invite him into your daily life"…I dont know but he has said the same thing during my other confessions…the first time i was o.k…but then it was the same penance the next and so forth…
Im just wondering but…do priests normally assign the same penance in all confessions?

I have had the same penance many, many, many times over the years (say three “Our Father” and three “Hail Mary” prayers) and I am not so young anymore. I used to find it amusing that my penance is frequently the same one that I had as a child and wondered at the same simplicity applied when as an adult as when I was a child, even though the priests that have heard my confessions over the years have certainly varied. So, what does that say? To me, it means that priests frequently assign the same penance. And also to me, the important thing is that one does the penance and repents for sin, resolves to turn away from sin. The important thing is to repent, not the small penance that the priest assigns, though one should complete the penance as part of repentance.

Does that help? I hope so.

 

[Bonnie]

JesusEstelle -

My apologies for a rather curt reply. I had read your OP with an attitude the post did not contain. You asked a different question than the one I answered.

 

[JimR-OCDS]

My pastor tells me to say two Our Fathers, and he tells my wife the same.

Always has always will, he retires the end of this week.

Anyway, going to Confession in of itself is Penance, so I wouldn’t get to uptight about not being given a customized penance.

Jim

 

[SwizzleStick]

Some priests create their own “default penance” and tack on as needed. I don’t know how many (what percentage) do this, but I would imagine it’s easier than determining a custom penance on the fly for each confession.

I agree with this. I think that is probably what happens and that many of our priests do this.

 

[InNomineDomini]

(1) Yes, many priests give different penances, mostly depending on the severity of your sins. My understanding is that the priest does have some moral obligation to help undo the damage done by your sin, in the form of assigning penance, and this penance does have to be somewhat proportionate to the disorder our sins have brought into the world.

(2) Go to Confession more often!

(3) Maybe the sins you confess are often of the same type, and maybe your priest(s) give(s) penances for that **type **of sin that are always the same or very similar. For example, I could imagine that someone who is somewhat neglectful of their wife being told to find more time for her. If they always confess this sin, they may always be told to do the same thing. I hope that makes sense.

(4) Go to Confession more often!!!

 

[fred_conty]

Actually sins are forgiven when the priest gives absolution and not when the penance is performed.

However even simple penances can be done with passion and love, or they can be done routinely and recited without meaning. It is up to the penitent. And if they are simple penances, then that can be more difficult to do in the right way than a penance that is unique. In other words the penance can be a real penance if it is always the same … and do we deserve more if we love the Lord? Or maybe our routine penance should remind us how routine our sins have become.

 

[Bonnie]

Or maybe our routine penance should remind us how routine our sins have become.

I like that!

 

[powerofk]

In my experience, priests will often give the same penance to people unless (a) the specific person is coming every week for a habitual sin or (b) the priest feels that the a specific sin that a person has requires more reparation.

I’ve had priests give the same penance many a time. I sometimes joke about it, because I almost always know what a given priest is going to give for penance. Where I go, we have a full-time pastor and associate pastor, and sometimes the pastor emeritus and associate pastor emeritus also help out with Masses and confession - and they’re very predictable as to what they’ll give for penance. The pastor usually has me pray personal prayers, the associate pastor usually has me pray a decade of the rosary, and the pastor emeritus (who is the abbot of the Norbertine abbey - all the priests at my parish are Norbertines) usually has people reflect over the Sunday gospel for the week. They’re pretty predictable.

 

[eatpraylove11]

Some priests create their own “default penance” and tack on as needed. I don’t know how many (what percentage) do this, but I would imagine it’s easier than determining a custom penance on the fly for each confession.

I think so too