Reconsiliation/confession

[bcprincess]

I wondered when and why confession became known as reconsiliation.

I also wonder if in my own case mixing the two words would be more fitting…

If it was called re-confession it would explain why I keep going back in to confess the same sins

 

[Deo_Gratias42]

It was renamed shortly after Vatican II. Reconciliation isn’t the greatest name for it, as we only need reconciliation with God if we commit mortal sins and sever that relationship. For those of us who, for the most part, are staying out of mortal sin and go to confession out of devotion, we don’t need to “reconcile with God”.

 

[Richard320]

Good question. I wish I had a definitive answer.

Near as I recall (scratching my grey whiskers) it was sometime in the 1970s. Last Rites became The Sacrament of the Sick about the same time, Confession became Reconciliation and they started pushing it face-to-face rather than through a dusty screen. It took a while, but eventually the confessionals became janitor’s closets and new “reconciliation rooms” with chairs showed up. And then they had to put windows in the doors so people waiting outside could see the priest wasn’t molesting the penitent, although it would have been simpler to move the vacuum cleaner to the new room and start using the confessionals again.

It’s scary to think that the Catholic Church may have been at the forefront of political correctness. Confession sounds so negative, reconciliation is such a happy word. Last Rites is so doom and gloom…

 

[Cristiano]

Reconciliation is a word that has a deep meaning if you look at its Latin origin. The concilium was the popular assembly of the Roman republic. When we sin we separate ourselves from God and from the Church, we offend them, now through confession and absolution we obtain God’s forgiveness and we are brought back into the bosom of the Church. Now we are back, we are again (re-) part of the assembly (concilium) of the people of God.

BTW Concilium comes from com (together) and calare (to call, to summon)

 

[NewEnglandPriest]

The names for the sacrament come from its basic elements:

1. Confession - we confess our sins.
2. Reconciliation - the words of absolution
3. Penance - the prayers we say in reparation for our sins.

All 3 are acceptable names for the sacrament and are used depending on where one wants to place the emphasis.

 

[Carolus_Martell]

reconciliation/confession

Yeah…It kind of snuck up on me as well. But as someone that resists change I have to admit reconciliation is the more appropriate word for the sacramental process aka confession.

Think about it this way, you can confess grievances/offenses to friends, love one’s, the Law and they may NOT be so forgiving. They may treat you differently …or still hold them against you.

However with “reconciliation”… right out of the gate it’s a done deal.