Questions about the sacrament of Reconciliation

[TBolt1000T]

I have some questions about Reconciliation.

1. Can a baptized RCIA student receive this sacrament, even way before he or she is confirmed?
2. If someone confesses a nonviolent crime, would turning himself in to the authorities be imposed as a penance?
3. What kinds of penances are usually imposed for mortal sins?

 

[Claire_from_DE]

I have some questions about Reconciliation.

1. Can a baptized RCIA student receive this sacrament, even way before he or she is confirmed?
2. If someone confesses a nonviolent crime, would turning himself in to the authorities be imposed as a penance?
3. What kinds of penances are usually imposed for mortal sins?

1. Depends on the priest. He would have to be pretty sure the candidate was going to come into the Church.
2. Not ordinarily.
3. It probably depends on the sin and the penitent. Usually some prayers or a charitable act.

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

I have some questions about Reconciliation.

1. Can a baptized RCIA student receive this sacrament, even way before he or she is confirmed?
2. If someone confesses a nonviolent crime, would turning himself in to the authorities be imposed as a penance?
3. What kinds of penances are usually imposed for mortal sins?

1. They must be offered the opportunity to receive the Sacrament and are seriously obligated to use it so that they do not receive the other Sacraments in a state of mortal sin.
2. Not as a penance, but it could be suggested as a possible consideration.
3. That depends on the sin.

 

[Sir_Knight]

Just so you know, the forgiveness of your sins is NOT conditional on the performance of the penance. Once the priest absolves you of your sins, your sins are removed.

However, any penance which is not properly performed in this life will be required of us in the next life and it is said that we can pay our debt in this life with pennies on the dollar compared to what will be expected of us in the afterlife.

Which means that even the harshest penance that one can imagine will seem like a walk in the park when compared to what we would expereinece in the next life if we do not do the penance in this life.

Therefore, it would be rather foolish for us not to perform a penance given to us – no matter have difficult … but, as I said, performing the penance is not required in order for the sin to be forgiven.

 

[puzzleannie]

a baptized non-Catholic candidate for Confirmation must make a general confession of sins of his past life before being received into full communion with the Church and making first communion. If the candidate is Catholic and has never been to confession, his will also be a general confession, otherwise he will confess all grave sins since his last valid confession.

Penance is decided by the priest based on the needs of the penitent, and is in any case only a token, and does not necessarily correspond to the seriousness of the sin.

The confession is absolutely confidential and the priest cannot take any action based on what is confessed. He can refuse absolution to someone who is resolutely uncontrite and who has no intention of changing his behavior or sinful condition (someone who refused to end an adulterous relationship, for instance).

 

[TBolt1000T]

a baptized non-Catholic candidate for Confirmation must make a general confession of sins of his past life before being received into full communion with the Church and making first communion. If the candidate is Catholic and has never been to confession, his will also be a general confession, otherwise he will confess all grave sins since his last valid confession.

Penance is decided by the priest based on the needs of the penitent, and is in any case only a token, and does not necessarily correspond to the seriousness of the sin.

The confession is absolutely confidential and the priest cannot take any action based on what is confessed. He can refuse absolution to someone who is resolutely uncontrite and who has no intention of changing his behavior or sinful condition (someone who refused to end an adulterous relationship, for instance).

What does a general confession consist of? What if I can’t remember every mortal sin that I’ve committed? I only know of a couple mortal sins I may have committed since I was baptized, but I may be forgetting some.

 

[hilde_the_dog]

TBolt when I joined the RCC church sevenyears ago, wow how time flies by, I sat down with a priest and we were required at the time as part of RCIA to talk to a priest prior to confirmation/first communion. He asked me questions about the faith and I got to ask him questions. I was not expected to understand all catholic theology. This was about on month before that blessed day. We also had to go to confession before that day if we were not being baptised. (Which I was not as I was baptised in the dutch calvinist church). I combined them and so had a long talk which became a face to face confession. Many of the sins I could not count nor remember them all. I did x many times, more than I can cont. That was good enough.

 

[PhilotheaZ]

What does a general confession consist of? What if I can’t remember every mortal sin that I’ve committed? I only know of a couple mortal sins I may have committed since I was baptized, but I may be forgetting some.

A general confession consists of confessing all the serious (mortal) sins you have committed since Baptism (or for a significant portion of your life). This is done when it is your first confession, and is recommended at key points in your life (e.g., a time of major conversion from sin, a retreat where you want to “wipe the slate clean,” entering the religious life, when you are in danger of death, etc.).

It is a good idea to make a thorough examination of conscience before going to confession, especially a general confession.

Three conditions must be present for a sin to be mortal:

1. • It must involve serious matter;
   • You knew it was sinful at the time you committed it;
   • You consented to committing it (you were not forced to do it).
   There are many ways to know whether a sin is mortal:
   • A well-formed conscience knows when something is seriously sinful. (We are obligated to form our conscience in light of the Church’s teachings.)
   • Things listed in the Catechism as “gravely sinful,” “intrinsically evil,” and other similar wording.
   • There are some good printed examinations of conscience out there that can help. This one is very extensive: catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=3635
   • If in doubt as to whether something is a mortal sin, confess it anyway and ask the priest who is hearing your confession.
   Some common mortal sins are missing Mass on Sundays or holy days of obligation (for a Catholic who is required to attend Mass); involvement in occult practices; sexual sins (any activity intended to arouse sexual pleasure, with oneself or another, except for normal sexual relations with one’s spouse); use of any kind of artificial birth control; stealing or cheating someone of something of significant value (whether the value was significant to you OR to the person from whom it was stolen); causing significant bodily or spiritual harm to another person or yourself (including having an abortion, participating in one, or advising/assisting someone to have one); deliberately leaving out a mortal sin in confession; receiving Communion or any sacrament (Confirmation, marriage) when in the state of mortal sin; leading someone else to commit a serious sin, etc.
   
   If you don’t remember them all, that’s OK. You must carefully examine your conscience, and you must confess each mortal sin you remember, and give your best indication of how many times (you don’t have to do a lot of math; something like “about once a week for the past five years” is fine). To deliberately leave out a mortal sin (out of shame, embarrassment, fear, etc.) is yet another mortal sin and invalidates your entire confession (none of your sins are forgiven). If you leave one out accidentally (e.g., you really didn’t remember it), all your sins are forgiven anyway, but it is a good idea to mention it the next time you go to confession.
   
   It is a good idea, but not absolutely necessary, to also confess the venial sins that give you the most trouble.

 

[jmcrae]

I have some questions about Reconciliation.

1. Can a baptized RCIA student receive this sacrament, even way before he or she is confirmed?

Ask the RCIA coordinator whether a time is being arranged for you to do this during Lent. If not, then you will make your own arrangements.

Also, keep in mind, you can’t receive the Absolution until after you’ve received the Rite of Calling Candidates to Lenten Renewal (also sometimes referred to as the Call to Full Communion) - this occurs on the first weekend of Lent. So, it’s best to arrange your First Confession for some time during Lent. (I had mine on Holy Saturday, and in my case, that worked out just fine.)

1. If someone confesses a nonviolent crime, would turning himself in to the authorities be imposed as a penance?

No. The reason is that the priest is neither a police officer or an agent of the government. His role is to absolve you of your sins; not to punish you for them, nor make sure that you get punished.

1. What kinds of penances are usually imposed for mortal sins?

It depends upon the priest, and what he thinks is appropriate in any given case. Penances usually take the form of prayers, Scripture readings, or kind deeds.

 

[TBolt1000T]

I didn’t know that all sexual sins were mortal. I think that I was told that masterbation was a venial sin.

 

[jmcrae]

I didn’t know that all sexual sins were mortal. I think that I was told that masterbation was a venial sin.

The original event that led to this bad habit was a mortal sin, since it could not have occurred by accident. However, if someone already has the bad habit, and falls into it from time to time without consciously willing it, then it becomes a venial sin because the criteria of full consent is lacking.

So, in a general confession, you would mention the original event, and the fact that you have fallen into this habit, and the priest will take it from there, and advise you what to do next.

 

[Verbum_Caro]

To deliberately leave out a mortal sin (out of shame, embarrassment, fear, etc.) is yet another mortal sin and invalidates your entire confession (none of your sins are forgiven). If you leave one out accidentally (e.g., you really didn’t remember it), all your sins are forgiven anyway, but it is a good idea to mention it the next time you go to confession.

PhilotheaZ,

Just a bit of a tweak to your last line above: It is not only a good idea to mention a forgotten mortal sin at your next confession, it is an obligation.

VC

 

[Sir_Knight]

The original event that led to this bad habit was a mortal sin, since it could not have occurred by accident.

It could have happened without the person knowing that the action was sinful. In which case, the original event would not have been a mortal sin.

However, if someone already has the bad habit, and falls into it from time to time without consciously willing it, then it becomes a venial sin because the criteria of full consent is lacking.

So, in a general confession, you would mention the original event, and the fact that you have fallen into this habit, and the priest will take it from there, and advise you what to do next.

While the development of a “bad habit” lessens a person’s culpability, it does not excuse the action and does not automaticly make the action a venial sin in all cases. I refer you to the following …

SIXTH COMMANDMENT:

** “You shall not commit adultery.” (Ex 20:14) “You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife.” (Ex 20:17)

** Note: In the area of deliberate sexual sins listed below, all are mortal sins if there is sufficient reflection and full consent of the will. “No fornicators, idolaters, or adulterers, no sodomites,… will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Cor 6:9-10) “Anyone who looks lustfully at a woman has already committed adultery with her in his thoughts.” (Mt 5:28)

• Did I willfully entertain impure thoughts or desires?
• Did I use impure or suggestive words? Tell impure stories? Listen to them?
• Did I deliberately look at impure TV, videos, plays, pictures or movies? Or deliberately read impure materials?
• Did I commit impure acts by myself (masturbation)?
• Did I commit impure acts with another - fornication (premarital sex), adultery (sex with a married person)?
• Did I practice artificial birth control (by pills, device, withdrawal)?
• Did I marry or advise anyone to marry outside the Church?
• Did I avoid the occasions of impurity?
• Did I try to control my thoughts?
• Did I engage in homosexual activity?
• Did I respect all members of the opposite sex, or have I thought of other people as objects?
• Did I or my spouse have sterilization done?
• Did I abuse my marriage rights?

… Source.​

 

[jmcrae]

It could have happened without the person knowing that the action was sinful. In which case, the original event would not have been a mortal sin.

If it is of sufficient intensity to lead to the development of a bad habit, then it was probably done reflectively and deliberately. For example, smoking one cigarette to see what it’s like won’t result in a nicotine addiction, but sitting down and smoking and smoking until “it comes naturally” is the deliberate cultivation of a bad habit.

While the development of a “bad habit” lessens a person’s culpability, it does not excuse the action and does not automaticly make the action a venial sin in all cases. I refer you to the following …

The salient phrase in my statement was “without consciously willing it” - for example, the person who has cultivated a habit of smoking might, from time to time, find a lit cigarette in his hand, without being able to recall taking it out and lighting it - the action has become so habitual that he isn’t even conscious of doing it.

So, he wouldn’t have to confess each incident of finding a cigarette in his hand, but he would have to confess the initial event (smoking and smoking until it comes naturally) and he would have to mention that he is a smoker, and that the habit has become so ingrained that sometimes he finds himself with a cigarette in his hand without knowing how it got there.

In subsequent Confessions, he might mention how it’s going with his stop-smoking program, but he wouldn’t have to run to the Confessional every time he lit up a cigarette.

 

[Sir_Knight]

If it is of sufficient intensity to lead to the development of a bad habit, then it was probably done reflectively and deliberately. For example, smoking one cigarette to see what it’s like won’t result in a nicotine addiction, but sitting down and smoking and smoking until “it comes naturally” is the deliberate cultivation of a bad habit.

What I’m saying is that one could develop the habit BEFORE learning that the action was sinful. In which case the initial actions would not be sinful.

The salient phrase in my statement was “without consciously willing it” - for example, the person who has cultivated a habit of smoking might, from time to time, find a lit cigarette in his hand, without being able to recall taking it out and lighting it - the action has become so habitual that he isn’t even conscious of doing it.

So, he wouldn’t have to confess each incident of finding a cigarette in his hand, but he would have to confess the initial event (smoking and smoking until it comes naturally) and he would have to mention that he is a smoker, and that the habit has become so ingrained that sometimes he finds himself with a cigarette in his hand without knowing how it got there.

In subsequent Confessions, he might mention how it’s going with his stop-smoking program, but he wouldn’t have to run to the Confessional every time he lit up a cigarette.

There are two problems with your answer. First off, a person needs to confess a sin only once. Once it is forgiven, it is gone and no longer has to be confessed. Therefore a person would not have to keep confessing the initial event.

Secondly, just because a person has a sinful habit, that does not allow that person to engage in that activity without sin. A person has to make an honest effort to break that sinful habit. If they freely engage in that activitly without making a sincere desire to overcome that sin, then they are mortally sinning.

 

[jmcrae]

What I’m saying is that one could develop the habit BEFORE learning that the action was sinful. In which case the initial actions would not be sinful.

There are two problems with your answer. First off, a person needs to confess a sin only once. Once it is forgiven, it is gone and no longer has to be confessed. Therefore a person would not have to keep confessing the initial event.

The topic of the thread is First Confession for an adult, which is a general confession of all sins committed since baptism. The person would only confess it the once, in the general confession, by saying something like, “When I was ten years old I experimented with cigarettes and became addicted to nicotine; I am currently trying to stop smoking.”

Secondly, just because a person has a sinful habit, that does not allow that person to engage in that activity without sin.

True. If they have the ability to control their actions, then they must control their actions. They also have to avoid the near occasion of sin, which means they have to avoid anything that might trigger them to do their bad habit.

But if they suddenly find themselves doing the action without knowing how they got there, then it isn’t a mortal sin, even if it might be grave matter. In the general confession, they wouldn’t have to confess every single instance of smoking a cigarette throughout their entire lives; they would just say, “I became a smoker.”

 

[Sir_Knight]

The topic of the thread is First Confession for an adult, which is a general confession of all sins committed since baptism. The person would only confess it the once, in the general confession, by saying something like, “When I was ten years old I experimented with cigarettes and became addicted to nicotine; I am currently trying to stop smoking.”

Agreed.

True. If they have the ability to control their actions, then they must control their actions. They also have to avoid the near occasion of sin, which means they have to avoid anything that might trigger them to do their bad habit.

True.

But if they suddenly find themselves doing the action without knowing how they got there, then it isn’t a mortal sin, even if it might be grave matter.

I’m not sure how something like that could happen but if it did, the what you say is true.

In the general confession, they wouldn’t have to confess every single instance of smoking a cigarette throughout their entire lives; they would just say, “I became a smoker.”

Agreed.

 

[jmcrae]

I’m not sure how something like that could happen but if it did, the what you say is true.

You are very lucky, never to have experienced an addiction.

(*Keep *it that way!! )

 

[Sir_Knight]

You are very lucky, never to have experienced an addiction.

(*Keep *it that way!! )

I’ve struggled with this addition for most of my adult life. It’s only been in recent years through the mercy of God that I have seen progress in over-coming it and even now I still periodically fall back on that sinful habit.

 

[puzzleannie]

What does a general confession consist of? What if I can’t remember every mortal sin that I’ve committed? I only know of a couple mortal sins I may have committed since I was baptized, but I may be forgetting some.

a general confession is just that, a confession of all the mortal (deadly or grave) sins of one’s past life, to the best of your recollection. The time in RCIA spent in teaching on the sacrament of penance and moral teachings, and specifically how to make an examination of conscience, is designed to help you make a good confession. Recall the 3 conditions for a mortal sin: it must be grave matter, you must have known it was gravely sinful when you did it, and you must have freely consented to doing it. If you did not know it was sinful you were not guilty of sin. If you did not freely consent you did not sin. If you forgot all about something you did long ago, you are not bound to confess it. All your sins, the ones you remember and the ones you forget, are forgiven when you confess and receive absolution from the priest. All.

It is very beneficial spiritually to confess something that you did in the past, not realizing it’s gravity, when you first become aware that it was a sin. i.e. If you did not know artificial contraception was sinful when you used it early in your marriage, but later come to understand the reasons why it is wrong, it would be very helpful spiritually to confess it and express your contrition for that past sin. It is also helpful spiritually to confess something from long ago you have forgotten, when you remember it but it is not required.