Confession
Are you ready for Lent?
Friday, February 20th, 2009Every year it seems that I get my “Lenten stride” about three days before Holy Week. I always regret not doing more, sooner. Here are some resources and answers to Lenten questions to help us start Lent on the right foot: –Read Pope Benedict XVI’s Message for Lent 2009. –Read Pope Paul VI’s Apostolic Constitution [...]
Time for Confession
Tuesday, July 15th, 2008I’m frequently asked how often Catholics should go to Confession. Many people just want to know the minimum requirement. In that regard, the Church provides that all Catholics who have reached the age of discretion (approximately the age of seven) are required to confess their mortal sins once a year. In addition, if one has [...]
Taking Our Medicine
Thursday, June 26th, 2008All of us have had the experience of realizing that we have sinned. We understand that what we did was wrong, and we can readily discern the negative effects of our actions. We then sincerely ask the Lord for His mercy and we try to make things right with anyone we may have hurt. As [...]
Handling the Truth
Friday, April 11th, 2008Many of us who uphold the Church’s teachings, especially in questions of morals, have been told we’re not “compassionate.” How dare we tell couples they shouldn’t live together before marriage, or that they shouldn’t contracept, let alone abort their children, once they’re married? How dare we tell those with same-sex attractions to avoid acting upon [...]
The Miracle of Conversion
Wednesday, January 9th, 2008Back in 1984, I was a young lawyer who years before had abandoned the faith of my youth. I had largely cleaned up my act since my wild undergraduate days, but that was more a matter of expedience, not moral conviction. I felt as though I should give my life to something or Someone, but [...]
Rise and Walk
Monday, December 10th, 2007Today’s Gospel at Mass was St. Luke’s account of the healing of the paralytic. One verse from that passage has always stood out to me: “When Jesus saw their faith, he said, ‘As for you, your sins are forgiven’” (Lk. 5:20). Jesus attributes the healing–physical and spiritual–of the paralytic to the faith of his four [...]
Crunching the Confession Numbers
Monday, July 23rd, 2007For many years I’ve had the clear sense that most parishes allot an inadequate amount of time each week for Confession. In my experience, most parishes set aside one hour per week for scheduled Confessions, some set aside two hours, and very few set aside more than that. What does that all that mean in [...]