Writing sins on paper and then burning it

[danalves1]

For communal penance service at my parish, it is the custom to right our sins down, give them to the priest, and then burn the paper. I realize that this is wrong and I have brought it up with my pastor. His response was that he does not have anything in writing that says it is plus the fact that other parishes are doing.
Where can I go to get Church document that does say it is wrong?

Thank you and God Bless,
Dan

 

[wjp984]

we did this on one of our retreats but everyone had the opportunity to go to confession individually afterwards.

 

[Digitonomy]

There is nothing wrong with writing your sins on a piece of paper and then burning it. It could possibly constitute a sacramental - not sure if there are very strict rules for these things.

However, there should be consideration that such an action can be misleading or inappropriate as part of a religious service, especially one focussed on a real sacrament.

 

[tilis]

danalves1:

For communal penance service at my parish, it is the custom to right our sins down, give them to the priest, and then burn the paper. I realize that this is wrong and I have brought it up with my pastor. His response was that he does not have anything in writing that says it is plus the fact that other parishes are doing.
Where can I go to get Church document that does say it is wrong?

Thank you and God Bless,
Dan

This is fine. But it must not be used as a substitution for sacramental confession, which is the only way to have mortal sins absolved.

 

[chicago]

Digitonomy:

There is nothing wrong with writing your sins on a piece of paper and then burning it. It could possibly constitute a sacramental - not sure if there are very strict rules for these things.

However, there should be consideration that such an action can be misleading or inappropriate as part of a religious service, especially one focussed on a real sacrament.

I think that the idea (as I recall it being practiced) is that you don’t actually confess much if anything off that list. You just get it burned up. Now, that said, if one does scribble down their sins on a piece of paper for confession as a memory device, it would be wise to burn them after you’re absolved.

To the question at hand…

The priest surely knows very well that sins need to be confessed orally. Who’s he foolin? The burden is upon HIM to answer where he got permission to do things this way. (He can’t, which is why he childishly appeals to “everybody else is doin’ it!” Sheesh, if I wanted to be crass with him, I would note that “lots of other priests have sexually abused kids, why don’t you just follow their lead on that too?”)

Here are a couple of things which might help:

1. Since “the faithful are obliged to confess, according to kind and number, all grave sins committed after Baptism of which they are conscious after careful examination and which have not yet been directly remitted by the Church’s power of the keys, nor acknowledged in individual confession”,(16) any practice which restricts confession to a generic accusation of sin or of only one or two sins judged to be more important is to be reproved. Indeed, in view of the fact that all the faithful are called to holiness, it is recommended that they confess venial sins also.(17)

from:

ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/JP2MISER.HTM

I also consider one of the best Church documents addressing these matters to be the following:

vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20000630_circolare-sulla-penitenza%20_en.html

In any case, the Church can’t, and unfortunately shouldn’t have to, slap down on every little abuse that crops up. Just because a few people think it would be cute and fall in line doesn’t make it right. But then if Father doesn’t grasp that, perhaps he ought to have the papers giving him his faculties to hear confessions and absolve handed over to the bishop and burned up, also.

 

[chicago]

From that latter link, here it is:

1. The divine constitution of the Sacrament of Penance requires each penitent to confess to a priest all mortal sins, as well as any specifying moral circumstances that he remembers after a diligent examination of conscience. For this reason the Code of Canon Law states clearly that “individual and integral confession and absolution is the sole ordinary means by which a member of the faithful who is conscious of mortal sin is reconciled with God and with the Church. Physical or moral impossibility alone excuses from such confession”. In specifying this obligation, the Church has insistently reiterated that “all the faithful who have reached the age of discretion are bound faithfully to confess their mortal sins at least once a year”. “Energetic efforts are to be made to avoid any risk that this traditional practice of the Sacrament of Penance fall into disuse.” Indeed, in this Jubilee Year Catholics are called in a particular way “to encounter anew the uniquely transforming experience that is individual, integral confession and absolution”. In accord with the law and practice of the Church, the faithful must orally confess their sins (auricular confession) , except in cases of true physical or moral impossibility (e.g., extreme illness or physical condition inhibiting speech, speech impediment, etc.). This disposition would exclude communal celebrations of the sacrament in which penitents are invited to present a written list of sins to the priest confessor. It should be noted that such innovations also risk compromising the inviolable seal of sacramental confession.

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

danalves1:

For communal penance service at my parish, it is the custom to right our sins down, give them to the priest, and then burn the paper. I realize that this is wrong and I have brought it up with my pastor. His response was that he does not have anything in writing that says it is plus the fact that other parishes are doing.
Where can I go to get Church document that does say it is wrong?

Thank you and God Bless,
Dan

You won’t find anything prohibiting this specifically. Individual Confession is still required of those attending.

 

[frommi]

It’s got a nice symbolism to it…one year we tried this at a local parish…and the flames got a little hot…and the entire church was filled with smoke…oops.

Another thing I’ve seen done is people bringing their Lenten ‘penance’ on a piece of paper and a parish bound those up and used them for the base of the Easter fire…they didn’t make a big deal of it, but they told people they were welcome to bring those on the night of the Vigil.

 

[JMJ_Theresa]

At my former parish, you would write your sins down, show them to the priest, he would nod his head at you, then you would toss them into the pot to be burned. I’m not sure if he gave absolution individually because I did not participate. I was too angry

It made me angry because this was how they did their religious ed and school confessions. Some of those kids never went to individual confession and may never go. The parish itself offered only 15 minutes for a confession a week.

One time I was racing down to confession for my 15 minute window and got stopped for speeding. I was so upset that I was missing a much needed confession that I burst into tears. I didn’t get a ticket, but I did miss confession.

my new parish is much more orthodox. We have confession daily.

 

[rwoehmke]

Verbally recounting your sins to the priest is part of the required rite of reconciliation. Communal Confession without such verbal participation would not give one the many graces available from the Sacrament. What a terrible waste. You feel good, but miss out on the goodies.

 

[Paed]

And an invention of Satan to gain souls. It was invented to replace the REAL form of confession.

To be quite honest with you I think communal penance servicesare a bad thing too(even if it involves personal confession it doesn’t involve personal pennance). Particular judgement will be a very invididual moment for each human being that ever existed. Its gonna be just the individual and the Judge. That is the way confession should be too!

 

[chicago]

frommi:

It’s got a nice symbolism to it…one year we tried this at a local parish…and the flames got a little hot…and the entire church was filled with smoke…oops.

Was that a statement on what kind of sinners you were?

 

[chicago]

Br. Rich SFO:

You won’t find anything prohibiting this specifically. Individual Confession is still required of those attending.

Reread the except I provided in post #6, part of which states:

“…This disposition would exclude communal celebrations of the sacrament in which penitents are invited to present a written list of sins to the priest confessor. It should be noted that such innovations also risk compromising the inviolable seal of sacramental confession.”

That document really does best spell out most of the problems with the administration of the Sacrament. It’s an excellent reference point which I think few people even know about.

 

[LeahInancsi]

danalves1:

His response was that he does not have anything in writing that says it is (wrong) plus the fact that other parishes are doing.

That sounds like a response I might see here.