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jmeyer3131
Guest
Celebrating your birthday with confession? How incredibly cool is that!
Happy birthday! How are you feeling now?
Happy birthday! How are you feeling now?
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Mrs_Mac
Guest
The Franciscan Capuchins at St. John the Baptist are excellent confessors. The main entrance to the church is on 30th Street between 8th and 7th Avenue.
Inside, there is a garden devoted to St. Pio. The church itself is beautiful, and contains a shrine of St. Pio with a glove and sock that he wore. Way cool.
The daily 12:15 mass is preceded by the Angelus and Rosary and followed by exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and is worth a special trip.
Inside, there is a garden devoted to St. Pio. The church itself is beautiful, and contains a shrine of St. Pio with a glove and sock that he wore. Way cool.
The daily 12:15 mass is preceded by the Angelus and Rosary and followed by exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and is worth a special trip.
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valerie1102
Guest
Ok, so I am going to confession for the first time in I don’t know how long, on Saturday, before the 5:00 church service. I usually take my youngest daughter with me to church, so she’ll have to probably stay at home this time, since she’s too young to sit out and wait for me. I’m still nervous, but plan on just going and doing it so I can see how silly it was that I was nervous!
M
mercygate
Guest
May God give you the grace to know and to confess all of your sins with simplicity, transparency, and integrity of heart.
Then go have an ice cream sundae!
R
rotlex
Guest
I’ll keep this short, and about you, and not my own return to the church just a few months ago, but first…
Welcome back!
I know exactly where you are coming from, and can say with all of my heart, do NOT fear confession. Embrace it. I was in a possibly worse situation just a few months ago. Let’s just say I was called back to my faith, and the Catholic church. It had been a very, very long time since my last confession. Over 30 years to be exact, in which time I had done many, many things I was not very proud of.
I made an appt. with my local parish\priest as I didn’t want to go with the regular line my first time back as I had no idea how long it would take. (I also could barely remember anything other than "Bless me father, for I have sinned, it’s been…)
Let’s just say things went beautifully, and I have fully returned to my faith. I am still re-learning many things in regards to it, and the church, but I’m learning more each day. My wife is supportive, and well, I’ll stop now, and just say again do not fear a thing, but embrace it, love it, and go to God.
God bless you, and again, welcome back!
Welcome back!
I know exactly where you are coming from, and can say with all of my heart, do NOT fear confession. Embrace it. I was in a possibly worse situation just a few months ago. Let’s just say I was called back to my faith, and the Catholic church. It had been a very, very long time since my last confession. Over 30 years to be exact, in which time I had done many, many things I was not very proud of.
I made an appt. with my local parish\priest as I didn’t want to go with the regular line my first time back as I had no idea how long it would take. (I also could barely remember anything other than "Bless me father, for I have sinned, it’s been…)
Let’s just say things went beautifully, and I have fully returned to my faith. I am still re-learning many things in regards to it, and the church, but I’m learning more each day. My wife is supportive, and well, I’ll stop now, and just say again do not fear a thing, but embrace it, love it, and go to God.
God bless you, and again, welcome back!
M
MaineCoonKitty
Guest
I, too, also recently returned to the Church after many years away. I began praying the Rosary after seeing how much comfort it gave to a friend of mine who recently lost her 6 year battle with colon cancer. Ro carried her rosary with her everywhere, even took a knotted string rosary into the CAT scan machine with her. In her last days, I began to pray it with her that God would grant her a peaceful death. He did and it was Ro who brought me back to my faith after more than 20 years away.
The day she died, a Wednesday, I was drawn to the cathedral in my town, by something that called me to be there. As I sat there grieving for my friend, and praying my rosary for her, God opened my heart and called me back to His flock. That Saturday, I went to confession for the first time in 25 yrs. I was scared to death, but was drawn to it. I was frozen in my pew by sheer terror and felt the need to flee, but I prayed to Jesus to give me the strength to do it, and He did.
My confessor was very kind and patient. When I told him my story and gave him my confession, I could hear the absolute joy for me in his voice. He concluded by saying, “Welcome home, beloved child of God. There is great joy in your Father’s House tonight because you have come home.” Those words washed away all the shame and healed me. I can’t describe the feeling of peace and comfort that washed over me from those words. I know now that my friend, Ro, was responsible for bringing home to my Father and my family in Christ,and God smiled on her for that.
Since then, I have become much stronger than ever in my faith. I pray the Rosary daily and weekly Mass is my oasis of calm in a hectic life. I dedicated the Novena of the First Five Saturdays to my return to the Church and faithfully attend confession monthly. Each time I confess and am cleansed, that wonderful feeling of peace washes over me again. I am addicted!
My husband was astonished at my return to the Church after so many years. I never asked or pressured him to join me in going to Mass (he’s a former altar boy), but he was so impressed by the difference it has made in me that he began coming with me. Now, we go to Saturday evening Mass and out to dinner afterward as our “date night”. It’s made a huge difference in our marriage as well. We’re both calmer, kinder, and more focused individuals, because God has called us back to His loving care.
So don’t fear going to confession. God is waiting for you to come back too and He’s missed you very much.
The day she died, a Wednesday, I was drawn to the cathedral in my town, by something that called me to be there. As I sat there grieving for my friend, and praying my rosary for her, God opened my heart and called me back to His flock. That Saturday, I went to confession for the first time in 25 yrs. I was scared to death, but was drawn to it. I was frozen in my pew by sheer terror and felt the need to flee, but I prayed to Jesus to give me the strength to do it, and He did.
My confessor was very kind and patient. When I told him my story and gave him my confession, I could hear the absolute joy for me in his voice. He concluded by saying, “Welcome home, beloved child of God. There is great joy in your Father’s House tonight because you have come home.” Those words washed away all the shame and healed me. I can’t describe the feeling of peace and comfort that washed over me from those words. I know now that my friend, Ro, was responsible for bringing home to my Father and my family in Christ,and God smiled on her for that.
Since then, I have become much stronger than ever in my faith. I pray the Rosary daily and weekly Mass is my oasis of calm in a hectic life. I dedicated the Novena of the First Five Saturdays to my return to the Church and faithfully attend confession monthly. Each time I confess and am cleansed, that wonderful feeling of peace washes over me again. I am addicted!
My husband was astonished at my return to the Church after so many years. I never asked or pressured him to join me in going to Mass (he’s a former altar boy), but he was so impressed by the difference it has made in me that he began coming with me. Now, we go to Saturday evening Mass and out to dinner afterward as our “date night”. It’s made a huge difference in our marriage as well. We’re both calmer, kinder, and more focused individuals, because God has called us back to His loving care.
So don’t fear going to confession. God is waiting for you to come back too and He’s missed you very much.
K
kristie_m
Guest
What an absolutely beautiful post! Thank you for sharing.I, too, also recently returned to the Church after many years away. I began praying the Rosary after seeing how much comfort it gave to a friend of mine who recently lost her 6 year battle with colon cancer. Ro carried her rosary with her everywhere, even took a knotted string rosary into the CAT scan machine with her. In her last days, I began to pray it with her that God would grant her a peaceful death. He did and it was Ro who brought me back to my faith after more than 20 years away.
The day she died, a Wednesday, I was drawn to the cathedral in my town, by something that called me to be there. As I sat there grieving for my friend, and praying my rosary for her, God opened my heart and called me back to His flock. That Saturday, I went to confession for the first time in 25 yrs. I was scared to death, but was drawn to it. I was frozen in my pew by sheer terror and felt the need to flee, but I prayed to Jesus to give me the strength to do it, and He did.
My confessor was very kind and patient. When I told him my story and gave him my confession, I could hear the absolute joy for me in his voice. He concluded by saying, “Welcome home, beloved child of God. There is great joy in your Father’s House tonight because you have come home.” Those words washed away all the shame and healed me. I can’t describe the feeling of peace and comfort that washed over me from those words. I know now that my friend, Ro, was responsible for bringing home to my Father and my family in Christ,and God smiled on her for that.
Since then, I have become much stronger than ever in my faith. I pray the Rosary daily and weekly Mass is my oasis of calm in a hectic life. I dedicated the Novena of the First Five Saturdays to my return to the Church and faithfully attend confession monthly. Each time I confess and am cleansed, that wonderful feeling of peace washes over me again. I am addicted!
My husband was astonished at my return to the Church after so many years. I never asked or pressured him to join me in going to Mass (he’s a former altar boy), but he was so impressed by the difference it has made in me that he began coming with me. Now, we go to Saturday evening Mass and out to dinner afterward as our “date night”. It’s made a huge difference in our marriage as well. We’re both calmer, kinder, and more focused individuals, because God has called us back to His loving care.
So don’t fear going to confession. God is waiting for you to come back too and He’s missed you very much.
E
EasterJoy
Guest
This is a beautiful story, but not out of the norm at all. It is what good confessors do: celebrate the return of the contrite.
I have heard a confessor giving a talk on the Sacrament of Reconciliation who went so far as to say that a contrite penitent who is berated in confession instead of receiving mercy and good counsel as to how to avoid sin in the future should stop the confessor and say, “Father, I’m sorry, but I have approached the Sacrament for mercy. As there is none here today, I will have to go elsewhere.” And then leave. He said, “The priest’s failure to be the instrument of God’s grace is on his head, not yours. Find someone else, and do not feel guilty about it.”
These instances are mercifully very rare. I don’t know many priests who have much patience for their brother priests who fall into that particular error, either.
C
cecilia97
Guest
Valerie,
God bless you!
I went back to confession after a 16 year absence similar to yours…my last confession had been in eighth grade just before Confirmation. As soon as I told the priest that it had been 16 years, he told me to take my time and that it was OK. The penance he gave me seemed freakishly tiny at the time. Now, I think he was a very wise man who knew, through the Holy Spirit, to make the way back into the Church easy and welcoming for a prodigal soul.
You’ll do great, don’t sweat it. I’ll be at confession tomorrow afternoon around the same time as you. It gets a little less scary after a while.
WELCOME HOME!
God bless you!
I went back to confession after a 16 year absence similar to yours…my last confession had been in eighth grade just before Confirmation. As soon as I told the priest that it had been 16 years, he told me to take my time and that it was OK. The penance he gave me seemed freakishly tiny at the time. Now, I think he was a very wise man who knew, through the Holy Spirit, to make the way back into the Church easy and welcoming for a prodigal soul.
You’ll do great, don’t sweat it. I’ll be at confession tomorrow afternoon around the same time as you. It gets a little less scary after a while.
WELCOME HOME!
D
dessert
Guest
Just start and it will be a big burden of your shoulders. Your angel is telling you so listen. I was away for a long time too and after I started it was such a burden lifted from me, and yeah that is what the devil wants is for you not to go. Not only that you will be an example and role model for the child.
K
KatyElizabeth
Guest
… The priest will explode out of his side of the confessional, scream at you, and drag you by the ear to the altar, berating you for having been away so long, or,…
This indeed happened to a relative of mine about around 1960 or so.
I envy the recent converts who never had to go through these episodes.
I have the opposite concern regarding confession after many years.
I am actually afraid that the priest will be indifferent and not have time for me.
This indeed happened to a relative of mine about around 1960 or so.
I envy the recent converts who never had to go through these episodes.
I have the opposite concern regarding confession after many years.
I am actually afraid that the priest will be indifferent and not have time for me.
N
Nickkname
Guest
Offer up your fear to the Lord for love of him and for whatever intentions are in your heart (such as the conversion of sinners), then go to Confession. Know that you confess not to the priest but to Jesus Christ. The Lord himself has said this:Hi…I’m really new to these forums, but was looking for some place to get some advice and support and found this site. I have been Catholic all my life, went to Catholic school from K-8 grade and now have two beautiful daughters, my youngest of which has started Catholic school. However, I stopped attending confession after about 8th grade, and am ashamed to say that my life since then has included things I’m not very proud of. While I have tried very hard to overcome and stop sinful behaviors, it was not until recently, when I again began attending church regularly and taking my daughter to school that I began to notice a change in myself, my behaviors and my feelings over things I’ve done in my past. In short, I have changed and truly believe that this is through the power of my faith and for the first time in a long time, i am feeling better about myself and my relationship with God. However, I know that I need to go to confession in order to truly make peace with God over the things I have done, and I am scared as to what the priest will say. I am so ashamed over the things I have done in my past, mortal sins, and even when I would commit the sins, I was ashamed of myself and my actions and depressed to the point of developing an eating disorder over it. I know in my heart that those days of sin are behind me and I want to be a good and positive role model for my daughters, but I don’t know what to do about my fear of confession…it has been so long since I went…do I just go in and confess it all to the priest and go into specific details? And since this is the school/church that my daughter goes to, will he look at me differently after? Should I go to a different church to confess? I have been praying every day for a sign that God knows I am sorry and committed to living a good life and I feel he has answered me in some ways over the past few days, and now by finding this site. I guess I’m just looking for some advice
Thanks for reading this far if you made it. I’m sorry if I didn’t post right or something. but thanks for any encouragement you all can give me
“When you approach the confessional, know this, that I Myself am waiting there for you. I am only hidden by the priest, but I myself act in your soul.” (Divine Mercy In My Soul, 1602)
*“The person of the priest is, for Me, only a screen. Never analyse what sort of a priest it is that I am making use of; open your soul in confession as you would to Me, and I will fill it with My light.” *(DMIMS, 1725)
Never fear Jesus, always trust in him, for as he said:
“Have confidence, My child. Do not lose heart in coming for pardon, for I am always ready to forgive you. As often as you beg for it, you glorify My mercy.” (DMIMS, 1488)
“Tell them that no soul that has called upon My mercy has been disappointed or brought to shame. I delight particularly in a soul which has placed its trust in My goodness.” (DMIMS, 1541)
*“My daughter, do you think you have written enough about My mercy? What you have written is but a drop compared to the ocean. I am Love and Mercy itself. There is no misery that could be a match for My mercy, neither will misery exhaust it, because as it is being granted - it increases. The soul that trusts in My mercy is most fortunate, because I myself take care of it.” *(DMIMS, 1273)
“Write, speak of My mercy. Tell souls where they are to look for solace; that is, in the Tribunal of Mercy. There the greatest miracles take place [and] are incessantly repeated. To avail oneself of this miracle, it is not necessary to go on a great pilgrimage or to carry out some external ceremony; it suffices to come with faith to the feet of My representative and to reveal to him one’s misery, and the miracle of Divine Mercy will be fully demonstrated. Were a soul like a decaying corpse so that from a human standpoint, there would be no [hope of ] restoration and everything would already be lost, it is not so with God. The miracle of Divine Mercy restores that soul in full. Oh, how miserable are those who do not take advantage of the miracle of God’s mercy! You will call out in vain, but it will be too late.” (DMIMS, 1448)
*“Daughter, when you go to confession, to this fountain of My mercy, the Blood and Water which came forth from My Heart always flows down upon your soul and ennobles it. Every time you go to confession, immerse yourself in My mercy, with great trust, so that I may pour the bounty of My grace upon your soul. When you approach the confessional, know this, that I Myself am waiting there for you. I am only hidden by the priest, but I myself act in your soul. Here the misery of the soul meets the God of mercy. Tell souls that from this fount of mercy souls draw graces solely with the vessel of trust. If their trust is great, there is no limit to My generosity. The torrents of grace inundate humble souls. The proud remain always in poverty and misery, because My grace turns away from them to humble souls.” *(DMIMS, 1602)
After the Sacrament of Confession, kneel before Jesus in the Tabernacle and pray to him. Tell him everything - your worries, your life, your weaknesses, your needs, etc. Speak to him as if you were speaking to one of your friends.
You can get more quotes from Divine Mercy In My Soul here: catholic-forum.com/churches/cathteach/divinemercy1.htm
You can read the whole Divine Mercy In My Soul here: our.homewithgod.com/divinemercy/intro/
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EasterJoy
Guest
The screaming incident should be repudiated, and the confessor I spoke about was very clear that the penitent should not hesitate in the least to be the one to do it.
I think he would also encourage those who think they are literally getting the “short shrift” to speak up, or else look elsewhere for a good confessor, and stick with him.
K
KatyElizabeth
Guest
It was a long time ago and he is passed away. I doubt if any priests would resort to these tactics nowadays.
J
jmcrae
Guest
This is very true; for about a year I went to the same priest for Confession every week, but I never saw him outside of the Confessional.
One time I saw him in the street and waved “Hello,” to him and he looked really confused and said, “Oh, hello, I don’t believe we’ve met before?”
So, yeah, they really don’t remember anything that happens in Confession.
C
CreatioNova
Guest
Like you I was scared witless about going to confession after a gap of several decades.
The priest listened patiently to me, encourages me, gave me advice and absolution, and a weight was lifted off me. He then welcomed me back home.
As so many have said, the rejoicing your return will cause is far outweighed by any discomfort you may initially feel.
The patience kindness and love of that priest who heard my first confession will stay with me forever.
God Bless
The priest listened patiently to me, encourages me, gave me advice and absolution, and a weight was lifted off me. He then welcomed me back home.
As so many have said, the rejoicing your return will cause is far outweighed by any discomfort you may initially feel.
The patience kindness and love of that priest who heard my first confession will stay with me forever.
God Bless
J
jmcrae
Guest
I doubt they would, either.
I understand your fear about getting an indifferent priest, though. Origen tells us, “Take care in choosing the physician of your soul, that he is both wise and kind.”
In your shoes, I would watch how they interact with children and the elderly, and go to the one who takes time with them and is kind to them - that’s your man, I think.
E
EasterJoy
Guest
Nevertheless, I liked it that this particular confessor was giving penitents permission in advance to take it upon themselves to refuse to tolerate unmerciful behavior in a confessor (as opposed to appropriate firmness or insistence on actual contrition). It was an approach to catechesis about the sacrament that I had never heard before.
M
Metroform
Guest
Go to Confession my dear. Have no fear. You will get chills when the Priest says, “I absolve you from your sins…” I always do.
The most important part for the penitent is contrition (sorrow) and it is all through your email. God is Mercy and He awaits you, just you to come to Him on that day of your choosing. How excited the angels too must be that you are going to get it all out on the table of the Lord and watch as it is all absolved and forgotten.
I used to be petrified of Confession and now, it has become my second favorite Sacrament. I have a great Confessor and Spiritual Advisor and am so blessed.
Blessings and Peace,
Doc
The most important part for the penitent is contrition (sorrow) and it is all through your email. God is Mercy and He awaits you, just you to come to Him on that day of your choosing. How excited the angels too must be that you are going to get it all out on the table of the Lord and watch as it is all absolved and forgotten.
I used to be petrified of Confession and now, it has become my second favorite Sacrament. I have a great Confessor and Spiritual Advisor and am so blessed.
Blessings and Peace,
Doc
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EasterJoy
Guest
It makes Mass better, too. Absolutely, go! And if the confessor isn’t so great, keep looking until you find a good one. It is worth the search!
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