Confession
Making the Most of a Sacred Time
Bishop David J. Bonnar Comments Off on Making the Most of a Sacred Time
The holy season of Lent is a dedicated time for personal conversion through prayer, fasting and almsgiving. This sacred time of repentance calls us to turn away from sin and grow more deeply in our relationship with Jesus Christ. How inspiring it is for us priests to witness the uptick in participation by the faithful. Read More
Widening the Road to Peace
Father Kurt Stasiak Comments Off on Widening the Road to Peace
We know a lot about hearing confessions, of course. We began learning while we were in the seminary, and we continue to learn every time we sit down with a penitent. I’ve always thought it unfortunate that, while most of us rank our ministry as confessor as one of the most important aspects of our Read More
The Evolution of Penance
D.D. Emmons Comments Off on The Evolution of Penance
For a Catholic, no words are more profound and heart-stirring than those a priest proclaims to us in the confessional: “Through the ministry of the Church, may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.” Called the Sacrament Read More
The Prodigal Confessor
Father Kenneth G. Davis Comments Off on The Prodigal Confessor
Sitting in the rectangular, wooden box of the confessional shaped and fashioned like an upright coffin, I was tempted to meditate on the dictum, “Keep death ever before you.” However, as it was the Year of Mercy, I began to pray about keeping mercy ever before me as I waited for the next fellow sinner Read More
How to be a great confessor
Father Kevin O'Neil Comments Off on How to be a great confessor
I remember the first time I walked into a confessional. I was scared. I wasn’t sure that I would know the right words to say. I wasn’t sure if I would remember the prayers. I wasn’t sure that I would be able to answer questions if I got asked. And this wasn’t when I was Read More
Caring for the Scrupulous
Father Thomas M. Santa Comments Off on Caring for the Scrupulous
Pope Francis has spoken almost effortlessly on many different occasions about the priest as a “minister of mercy.” More often than not, he makes this reference when he is speaking about the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the role of the priest. On other occasions, he also references this powerful description of the ministerial priesthood as Read More