Would this be a complete penance?

[fakename]

So if a priest says pray to be a better christian and to avoid lust, would simply praying to be a better christian automatically cover the latter part or would you need to pray both intentions?

 

[bzkoss236]

So if a priest says pray to be a better christian and to avoid lust, would simply praying to be a better christian automatically cover the latter part or would you need to pray both intentions?

Did he say it just like that?

If so, I would have understood it as

1. Pray to be a better Christian
2. Avoid lust

instead of

1. Pray to be a better Christian
2. Pray to avoid lust

Where the avoiding lust is an action you are to take, but I would recommend praying about it too. I personally would pray for both intentions, seeing as it is specific.

 

[Joannm]

It sounds as if it were more advice than a penance. My confessor often asks me to do things but not as a penance. He is very specific when he assigns a penance, such as a prayer or a specific act to be completed within a certain time. This “penance” seems to open ended.

 

[Bookcat]

I would pray for both. The general and the specific. That seems to have been his intent.