Venial sins and confession: please help

[DianaS]

I have a question about confessing venial sins. I know that it is not required to confess them but what if one has venial sins but does not confess them even if one remembers them during confession? I know we should confess all, but is it a sin and does it invalidate the confession? I know you can’t withhold any sins during confession but I was wondering/confused since you don’t have to confess venial sins. Thanks for any help.

 

[baltobetsy]

Your confession must include all previously unconfessed mortal sins of which you are aware. Period. That’s all.

Your confession may include any number of venial sins or none at all, regardless of whether you are thinking of them during your confession. When it comes to which venial sins to confess, I usually go for the ones I’m particularly sorry for, and/or habitual ones I’m really ready to work on eliminating. That’s just me. What is not good, however, is to list every single venial sin, regardless of whether you have contrition and purpose of amendment for them. That’s just a waste of time.

Betsy

 

[DianaS]

Thanks for your response. So, it’s okay if I go to confession and remember a venial sin but don’t confess it? I just want to be very sure that I’m not doing anything wrong.

 

[baltobetsy]

Thanks for your response. So, it’s okay if I go to confession and remember a venial sin but don’t confess it? I just want to be very sure that I’m not doing anything wrong.

Yes, it’s OK to do that. Some reasons for doing so are better than others, but it’s always OK to omit a venial sin.

Betsy

 

[Gertabelle]

I have a question about confessing venial sins. I know that it is not required to confess them but what if one has venial sins but does not confess them even if one remembers them during confession? I know we should confess all, but is it a sin and does it invalidate the confession? I know you can’t withhold any sins during confession but I was wondering/confused since you don’t have to confess venial sins. Thanks for any help.

Incidentally, receiving Holy Communion removes all venial sins, so long as you are not aware of having committed any unconfessed mortal sins.

Gert

 

[HNA444]

What if you are not sure whether a sin is mortal or venial? I guess best bet would be to just confess the sin. I’ve asked this before, but are we supposed to explain our sin or rather, for example, just say thinking of lustful thoughts, lying, etc.? I don’t know if I have any mortal sins, but I might have some and don’t remember. If I don’t remember them, is that OK?

 

[Joe_Kelley]

It is not necessary to confess all venial sins, and may be a hinderance to ones growth to do so. There is a tendency to develop a grocery list of venial sins and reel them off each time with little thought or contrition. Much better to pick one or two which are chronic, reflect on them and develop a true sorrow for having done them.

One approach is to categorize them under the capital sins

1866 Vices can be classified according to the virtues they oppose, or also be linked to the capital sins which Christian experience has distinguished, following St. John Cassian and St. Gregory the Great. They are called “capital” because they engender other sins, other vices.138 They are pride, avarice, envy, wrath, lust, gluttony, and sloth or acedia.

One usually finds that several of ones venial sins will cluster under one of those. Confess that one and work on eliminating it.