thistle:
Thanks. If I might ask if what you mean is when the priest at confession specifies a penance to be done and it is not done by the person who received absolution this would be construed as unremitted temporal punishment, i.e. he has had his mortal sins taken away, his guilt lifted, but he has not fulfilled his part (the penance).
If that is the case and a person always does the penance then there is no unremitted temporal punishment, and such a person would go to purgatory only with venial sins outstanding? Is my understanding correct?
Hi Thistle,
I’m trying to answer the best I know how, but simply and clearly. Let me say, at the outset, that I am attempting to convey the teaching of the Church on this matter, not my own opinons, and if I deviate from it, we should reject it.
From what I gather in your above post, you are asking whether or not the penance imposed by the priest in a sacramental confession (whether of a mortal or venial sin) makes FULL satisfaction of the temporal punishment due to that sin, if the sacramental penance is faithfully and duly performed.
The answer is: normally, no. The Church encourages us to supplement these penances where possible (hence, Lenten penance, Friday penance, extra devotions, etc.). Because the “effects of sin” are many the penance inmposed by a priest may not be able to address it entirely.
Strictly speaking, the performance of penance is not an *essential *part of the sacrament, but it is an *integral *one, meaning it is not necessary to perform it to be forgiven, but it is necessary to perform it to obtain the desired secondary effect of the sacrament – removal of temporal punishment, and conversion of life.
What EENS was speaking of, I beleive, is that IF one purposefully intends to not perform the penance then it
may be an indication of that person lacking one of the
two essential parts of confession: namely
contrition (sorrow for sin). [The other essential part is the actual confessing of the sins themselves].
But, again, strictly speaking, the penance does not have to be performed to be
forgiven. A penitent may be unable to perform it for some reason (illness, death, impossibility) and they would still be in the state of grace. But the imposition of a penance does
oblige us in duty to perform it, and it is quite possible that willfully not performing it would be a sinful act.
I try to look at the penance this way:
- Nothing I can do, no penance I can perform, can strictly merit the abundant grace and forgivness offered to me in the sacrament of confession. So, its really about the dispostion of the heart and will when performing your penance – not about the number of prayers, or the length of time, etc.
- The Church in Her wisdom and generosity, and LOVE for her children gives us a penance to encourage us to begin on the path of reforming our lives. She imposes the duty on us for our own good, and gives us the grace to perform it. By making it an obligation we have the added merit of obedience when we perform it, which is fitting since our sin was a form of disobedience.
I hope these reflections help some.
Sincerely,
VC
