Serious confession problem - need advice quick!

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Yablabo and John, please pay attention to this provision:

Can. 1357 §1. Without prejudice to the prescripts of cann. 508 and 976, a* confessor can remit in the internal sacramental forum an undeclared latae sententiae censure of excommunication or interdict if it is burdensome for the penitent to remain in the state of grave sin during the time necessary for the competent superior to make provision.*

§2. In granting the remission, the confessor is to impose on the penitent, under the penalty of reincidence, the obligation of making recourse within a month to the competent superior or to a priest endowed with the faculty and the obligation of obeying his mandates; in the meantime he is to impose a suitable penance and, insofar as it is demanded, reparation of any scandal and damage; however, recourse can also be made through the confessor, without mention of the name.

The first paragraph clearly states that an undeclared latae sententiae excommunication – the kind that happen “automatically” and which are NOT formally decreed by the pope or a bishop – can be lifted privately in the confessional (remitted in the “internal sacramental forum”) if it would be “burdensome” for the penitent to have to wait for the bishop or some other Church official to approve it.

The second paragraph states that the penitent in that case has one month to contact the “competent superior” (i.e. bishop or religious order superior) or a “priest endowed with the faculty and the obligation of obeying his mandates” and that if the offense involved some kind of actual harm or scandal to someone else, reparation should be made if it is possible or necessary. Moreover it is the confessor who has the duty of informing the penitent of this obligation. Also, this obligation can be fulfilled “through the confessor” if the penitent wishes to remain anonymous.

So John, it seems to me that even in the worst case scenario, in which you genuinely were excommunicated (which I still think is extremely unlikely) and are obligated to contact the bishop, you still have 30 days to do so, and can receive the sacraments in the meantime. So please DON’T WORRY ABOUT THIS today, and go ahead and receive Communion! If you are really that worried, ask these same questions of another priest, or call the chancery sometime in the next month and ask if priests in your diocese have been given authority to lift latae sentientae excommunications, and if so, for what kind of offenses.

Also, if the priest specifically told you not to confess those past sins, then you didn’t wilfully withhold mention of them, so your confession is still good.
 
If heresy is “obstinate denial” and apostasy is “total repudiation” I dunno if I’m actually guilty of those, or at least guilty of them since I was 16, I mean I flirted with other religions for a few weeks but very quickly rejected them. But I did post something very blasphemous in public media as a “joke” (going to hell sure is funny), which carries latae sententiae.

I lost my state of grace regardless of whether I’m excommunicated or not and whether the confession I did yesterday was valid or not (sucks because this is the ONLY priest in my parish so I don’t know what I’m going to do if he’s going to refuse to hear huge chunks of my confession). I’m peeved at the Church for making it so easy to get excommunicated, I’m peeved at God for allowing it, I’m peeved at myself because I’m 17, have no car or license, am extremely busy with finals and projects and term papers, and have now found out that the only thing that’s kept me going for the past few months is cut off from me and that I have to go through a very involved process to get it lifted, and, of course, if I die in the next couple of weeks I’ll go straight to Hell, all of my confessions have been invalid, even all of those sobbing intense confessions that I never want to have to do again but apparently now I do.
 
John, you know you have a problem with scrupulosity, on top of all your other problems? So please, calm down.

I’ll assume for the sake of argument that you really are excommunicated and you do have to either contact the bishop or consult a priest whom you are absolutely certain has the faculties to lift an excommunication.

You STILL have 30 days to take care of that! Canon law specifically says so. You have too many other things on your mind to cut yourself off from the grace of God so, again, DON’T WORRY about this today! 🙂

If you posted “something very blasphemous in public media as a joke,” have you since gone back and tried to remove it (if that’s possible), or posted something else saying that you regret doing it and you want everyone to disregard it? If so then you have “made recourse” for the offense.

If this is really bothering you, just call your chancery tomorrow and ask them – “if I was automatically excommunicated for any reason, did this priest (you could name him) have the faculties to remove it?” Maybe ask to speak to the Tribunal because that department would have canon lawyers on staff or available to consult with. If you don’t want to trouble them, ask another priest whom you trust.
 
John, you have said that the priest who heard your last confession was the only one in your parish. From that, I deduce that he knows you well and understands your scrupulosity. I would guess that the reason he did not let you confess old sins was so that you do not feed your scrupulosity.

I don’t think it’s helpful for you to be scouring Trent and Canon Law to figure out your situation. Priests have been to seminary and studied all this stuff, and its application to particular circumstances. When you read it, you do not have the advantage of a seminary education to help you interpret what you read. Also, the priest is acting in the person of Christ in the confessional, so he has the authority to tell you what you may or may not confess. If, by some remote chance, an error was made, it is the priest’s responsibility, not yours, as long as you obey. Do you really think a loving God would give us shepherds who would lead us into error, and then hold us responsible? God loves you. He is not playing some cosmic game of “Gotcha,” trying to see if you can overcome all the obstacles and make it to heaven. HE LOVES YOU!!

If you want to set your mind at ease, make an appointment outside of confession to discuss your concerns with the priest who heard your confession. Do not call the chancery or the bishop’s office. If there is need for recourse to higher authority, the priest will take care of that for you. When you meet with him, please try to stay calm and express your concerns respectfully.

I also suggest you Google “Scrupulous Anonymous,” to find some excellent resources for dealing with your issues.

Betsy
 
Hello John92,

Those who are under 18 are not subject to automatic excommunication (canon 1324). So, since you are 17, you are not and never have been excommunicated latae sententiae.

As for the confession question, at your next opportunity to confess, say what you want to say and what you need to say as far as unconfessed mortal sins. That is your obligation(c. 988). In the meantime, keep in mind what canon 916 says about making a perfect act of contrition and going to confession again as soon as possible. Also, continue to be willing to accept the directions and advice of your confessor.

(I am not quoting the canons because you seem to have access to them and they would make this post too long.)

Dan
 
The Holy Spirit must have inspired Dan to give such a sensible and pertinent answer to the question of possible excommunication.

If one accidentally omits confessing a mortal sin(s) it is forgiven. If he remembers it later, he is to confess it. Remember, it is already forgiven, however he is to bring it the Lord in the sacrament anyway. This should be done the next time he goes to confession.

John, you attempted to do what you knew was required. The priest possibly misunderstood or possibly told you not to confess them because he is aware that you suffer from a scrupulous conscience. In any case, your intention was to confess your forgotten sins. You were prevented from doing that. You didn’t deliberately refuse to do it. Just do it the next time you go to confession. If you go back to the same priest, try to make it clear that you want to confess some serious sins that you forgot, not ones already confessed.

This did not make your confession invalid. You didn’t intend to withhold anything.

John, I think you have trouble trusting in Jesus’ mercy. You don’t have any idea how delighted God is that you have turned back to him and that you want to do everything you can to make things right with Him. You remind me of the prodigal son when he was on the trip home to his father. He was so focused on all the bad things he had done and what he would say to his father that is never occurred to him that his father would be happy to see him again. Just possibly, you are much harder on yourself than God would be.
 
Do Catholics who suspend their faith, and during the interim merely investigate other faiths, have they been excommunicated, too?

(Because wow, that would be a lot of Catholics actually.)
 
John92,

Simply go to another confessor and confess the sins that you have forgot in your earlier confession if this is troubling you this much.

Go to confession again. Relax.

If you are worried about receiving the Lord unworthily then don’t until you can go to confession again.
 
Elizabeth502 said:
Do Catholics who suspend their faith, and during the interim merely investigate other faiths, have they been excommunicated, too?

(Because wow, that would be a lot of Catholics actually.)
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Hi Elizabeth502,

A principle of canon law regarding penalties is that these laws must be interpreted strictly. So, we wouldn’t be able to broaden the definition of heresy or apostasy or schism to include “suspension” of faith. If a person obstinately denies or doubts a truth of the faith which must be believed, or totally repudiates the Christian faith or withdraws from submission to the Pope and/or communion with the Church, then heresy, apostasy or schism are present (c. 751) and the penalty given in c. 1364 might be incurred. I say “might be” because there are lots of other conditions which have to be met before any penalty would come into effect…

On the one hand, it seems difficult to “suspend” faith without doubting or denying. But, this doubt or denial must be obstinate. It would have to be looked at on a case by case basis.

That’s how it seems to me, anyway.

Dan
 
I just wanted to thank you all for your kind, kind replies. I’m sorry I was so unreasonable, melodramatic, etc. Pretty embarrassing really, but hey, I’m a proud jerk and things like this help to keep that in check sometimes.

If I’d obstinately denied the faith and joined another I may have been latae sententiae excommunicated but such was not the case. I could’ve incurred latae sententiae if I’d joined a secret society which plots against the Church and promoted or directed it, but that wasn’t the case either. The secret society I was interested in doesn’t plot against the Church, afaik, anyway, at least not outside the fact that it’s a false occult religion (i.e. it’s bad but not bad in the way that 18th-century Freemasonry was).

Also you don’t incur latae sententiae for making blasphemous statements or harming good morals through social communication: rather such offenses are to be punished with a “just penalty” - which could, I’d think, include excommunication depending on the gravity of the offense (but I’m not a canon lawyer) - but it’s not a latae sententiae thing. I confessed it and did penance for it, so I’d think that was my “just penalty” - though once again not a canon lawyer!

Unfortunately my priest - and he really is a nice guy, I like him a lot and he’s given me good advice in the past and humbled me when I’ve needed it (which is often) - doesn’t think that we need to confess past mortal sins that we remember. I brought it up with him today and he disagreed and I didn’t want to argue with him - like I said, he’s a nice guy. I’ll just start confessing to another priest.

I’m very very sorry if my ridiculous, almost hysterical scrupulosity rubbed off on anyone else. Seriously, I really hope that’s not the case.
 
John92 said:
If heresy is “obstinate denial” and apostasy is “total repudiation” I dunno if I’m actually guilty of those, or at least guilty of them since I was 16, I mean I flirted with other religions for a few weeks but very quickly rejected them. But I did post something very blasphemous in public media as a “joke” (going to hell sure is funny), which carries latae sententiae.

I lost my state of grace regardless of whether I’m excommunicated or not and whether the confession I did yesterday was valid or not (sucks because this is the ONLY priest in my parish so I don’t know what I’m going to do if he’s going to refuse to hear huge chunks of my confession). I’m peeved at the Church for making it so easy to get excommunicated, I’m peeved at God for allowing it, I’m peeved at myself because I’m 17, have no car or license, am extremely busy with finals and projects and term papers, and have now found out that the only thing that’s kept me going for the past few months is cut off from me and that I have to go through a very involved process to get it lifted, and, of course, if I die in the next couple of weeks I’ll go straight to Hell, all of my confessions have been invalid, even all of those sobbing intense confessions that I never want to have to do again but apparently now I do.
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Hi sweetie!

I am in the process, and am hopefully green lighted for Easter.

I wanted to say this to you: I haven’t been able to go to reconciliation yet. There are two mortal sins that I thought would keep me from The Church. One day in RCIA, I broke down, and confessed what I’d done to a roomful of strangers.

John, I know that when my time comes, I will be confessing ALL my sins from the beginning (I hope Father has a few hours!). But, in the process of going through RCIA and taking classes and going through the Church’s doctrines and processes, I have found what I needed.

Don’t get upset…wait to see what He holds for you. It might be that He’s wanting you to heal through another process.

Peace Be With You!
Heather
 
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