Question about confession?

[Rose_Petal]

I’m going to be going to confession soon and confessing some things that I wasn’t brave enough to confess before. I am aware that not confessing something is a sin in itself. I know that you have to say what you did and how many times, but the problem is, I didn’t keep track of how many times I did a particular sin. Some I did in really low numbers, and others too many times to count. How can I still make a good confession? Would a rough estimate be enough?

 

[Sirach2]

It might be helpful to say something like this: I committed this sin around *** times a day, or *** times a week, or *** times a month. Knowing the frequency will help the priest to know how habitual it is for you and give you proper advice.

For example, saying your sin was commited ten times makes a big difference if it is ten times a day, versus ten times a month. I hope this helps you. It is usually what I do when I can’t remember the number of times.

Another useful tip might be to say why you fell into it. I had a bad habit of profanity due to being around people that used it. It took a long time to get over it, but I noticed whenever I went to confession, which I did at least monthly, the number of times grew lesser and lesser, which I think was the grace of the sacrament and my determination to stop. Occasionally, I would belt out a good one whenever I was aggravated or impatient, and I would confess the source of the problem. “I used profanity *** times due to impatience.”

May Our Lord give you the blessing and grace of a truly good confession!

 

[JimG]

I’m going to be going to confession soon and confessing some things that I wasn’t brave enough to confess before. I am aware that not confessing something is a sin in itself. I know that you have to say what you did and how many times, but the problem is, I didn’t keep track of how many times I did a particular sin. Some I did in really low numbers, and others too many times to count. How can I still make a good confession? Would a rough estimate be enough?

First, you have to say what you did and how many times, only for mortal sins. To be mortal, you have to know for sure that it’s mortal and freely decide to do it. If you are not certain whether a sin is mortal, it isn’t.

Second, when you don’t know the exact number of times, it’s OK to use approximations. “I did this about 6 times.” or “I did this about three times a month.” or “I did this about twice a week.”

 

[Joan_M]

Besides saying how many times per week or month you had been committing the sin, you would need to say for how long - e.g. I committed fornication 3 times a week for four or five years.

After all, you might have done it for only one week, or a month or two, which would be far fewer mortal sins than having done it for years.

Just do the best you can. If the priest needs to need more, he will ask you. The Mercy of God is infinite.

 

[lutherlic]

I’m going to be going to confession soon and confessing some things that I wasn’t brave enough to confess before. I am aware that not confessing something is a sin in itself. I know that you have to say what you did and how many times, but the problem is, I didn’t keep track of how many times I did a particular sin. Some I did in really low numbers, and others too many times to count. How can I still make a good confession? Would a rough estimate be enough?

You just have to confess what you recall if you can’t remember exact counts just do your best and give an honest estimate (and be clear it is an estimate).

There are some complications however. You did not receive absolution in confessions where you knowingly withheld confessing any mortal sins. If you later received the Eucharist, you sinned again.

If the withheld sins were in your last confession, just repeat it, add the withheld sins, add any other mortal sins, and (if applicable) the mortal sin of receiving the Eucharist not in a state of grace. If you have been withholding these sins for a long time then make an appointment for Reconciliation and discuss the situation with the priest.