Reconciliation
One
Today we meditate on the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
We begin with a true account of an exorcism that took place in Earling, Iowa in 1928.
After all the psychological and psychiatric testing was completed, it was determined there indeed was a case of demonic possession and an Exorcist was called in. Men of the parish were asked to assist because when the exorcism began, the possessed person became very violent and had to be restrained. However, the devil took a new strategy and fought back in a very surprising way, by revealing the deepest darkest sins of those present in the room, making them so embarrassed that they fled for shame.
After many instances of this, one person blurted out to the demon, “Why do you say nothing of the Priest?”
To which the devil responded, “What has been confessed, I do not know.”
You see, Scripture calls the devil the Accuser, “Who accuses us day and night before the throne of God.”
However, Satan apparently only knows the sins we have not confessed. What has been confessed is out of the devil’s reach and he cannot use it against us. The Exorcist made a practice of regular Confession, therefore the devil had no ammunition to use against him. But when we don’t go to confession, the guilt piles up and the devil uses it against us.
The devil accuses us to discourage us. He uses discouragement to drive us away from God. Confession dispels the dark cloud of discouragement. It removes the sin and guilt. It gives us a clean start and it brings the light, grace, and healing of Christ.
Two
The CCC 1441 teaches that only God forgives sin. So Why do we go to a priest to have our sins forgiven?
Jesus set it up this way.
How do we know? In John 20:19-23, on the evening of Easter Sunday Jesus came to the Apostles locked in fear in the upper room. He said to them, " Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you." And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."
CCC 1442 teaches us Jesus entrusted the power to forgive sins to His Apostles. They in turn hand this sacred power on to their successors, the bishops and priests who are their co-workers.
However, Jesus did not give the Apostles the power to read souls. Therefore, they will need to hear the sins confessed before they can determine whether to forgive or to retain.
Three
If you struggle with telling your sins to a priest, you are not alone. Even great saints like Faustyna wrestled with this.
In response Jesus said to her (Diary 1602) “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 entirely 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.”
To calm her fears, Jesus told Faustyna that in Confession He was waiting there for her. He was only hidden by the priest, but it was Jesus who acted in her soul.
Four
In 1 John 5:16-17 Scripture tells us there are two main categories of sin: mortal and venial.
All sin harms our relationship with God, it harms others, and it is self-destructive.
Mortal sin kills our relationship with God by turning away from him, rejecting his life within through grave sin. Mortal sin causes spiritual death. Only God could give us His divine life through the sacrament of Baptism. After Baptism, if we lose His life, then only God can restore it. He has chosen to do so in another sacrament – Reconciliation.
CCC 1857, For a sin to be mortal, three conditions must together be met:
Sufficient knowledge/reflection. You have to know that what you’re doing is a serious violation of God’s law.
Sufficient freedom, meaning – deliberate consent of the will
The act of the sin is Grave Matter
CCC 1458 Without being strictly necessary, confession of everyday faults (venial sins) is nevertheless strongly recommended by the Church.
Indeed, the regular confession of our venial sins helps us form our conscience, fight against evil tendencies, let ourselves be healed by Christ and progress in the life of the Spirit. By receiving more frequently through this sacrament the gift of the Father's mercy, we are spurred to be merciful as he is merciful
Five
1858 Grave matter means that it is a violation of one of the Ten Commandments.
If you want to know what sins are grave, then I suggest you read Part III of the Catechism on the Ten Commandments. You will be very surprised.
Let’s look at a few areas that are of particular relevance to our society. Missing Mass on Sunday is a direct violation of the third Commandment. Drunkenness and illegal drug use is a grave sin. There are sins against the good of marriage and sexuality like divorce, adultery, contraception, sterilization for contraceptive purposes, IVF and reproductive techniques that separate the creation of new life from the marital act. Sins that fall under the deadly sin of lust should not be mentioned here for the sake of the young children praying with us but you will find them paragraphs 2351-2359 of the CCC.
(CCC 1861) Mortal sin is a radical possibility of human freedom. It results in the loss of charity and the state of grace. If it is not redeemed by repentance and God’s forgiveness it causes self-exclusion from Christ’s kingdom and the eternal death of hell.