“The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan…” Mark 1:12-13
Pornography, abortion, adultery, intolerance, racism, sexism, violence, and uncontrollable anger. We’re all tempted today by the evil of the devil. Through our love of Christ and our Catholic morals, we thrive to combat these evils. I for one am ashamed to say that in my life that I have failed the test on more than one occasion. I’ve even committed the same sin repeatedly. I am a sinner.
“This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” Mark 1:15
We have been given a wonderful gift by our savior and Lord, the Rite of Reconciliation. When Jesus told the Apostles, “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained,” John 20:23. He established the system for the forgiveness of sin.
Catholic teaching is unique when it comes to the Rite of Reconciliation. We’re required to visit with a priest to obtain absolution for our sins. I meet with a group made up of all different religious backgrounds and we discuss our faith and the misconceptions others have about us. A few weeks back during a such group meeting
one of my non-Catholic, friends and I were talking about Lent. She asked me, “if God knows that you have failed and given into sin why do you need to go to a priest to confess that sin? Why can’t ask for forgiveness to God directly?”
My reply got everyone one thinking. “When you were growing up did you ever do anything your parents told you not to do? Did you assign yourself a timeout, or take away your bike for a week, or give yourself a spanking on the rear? No, your parents did that. It wasn’t really a punishment it was meant as an atonement for a misdeed. You did wrong so you had to do something to make up for it. I look at the Rite of Reconciliation like that. I gave into evil’s temptation and in atonement, I need to confess my sins through a priest to God. From God through the priest I am given a task or tasks to do for makeup for my error to show that I’m sincere in my convictions that I’m sorry for having done my misdeed and will do my best, with his guidance to avoid doing it again.
God understands that we are going to be tempted. He gave us free will and he knows we aren’t always going to make the right choices, sometimes giving into the same temptation repeatedly. We just need to repent. Ask for forgiveness, do what is asked of us to show our sincerity, and try not to do it again.
Personally, I would love to be able to say that I don’t need to frequently ask God to forgive me for my poor judgment, but I can’t honestly say that my priest doesn’t know what to expect when he hears me say “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.” God must be truly patent with me. Every time I confess the sins. I feel that burden lifted off my shoulders. I intend not to do it again. A few days later on the freeway, somebody cuts me off and I can’t help but blow a gasket. Back to the confessional I go.
The Rite of Reconciliation is a truly wonderful gift. We should not just partake in the sacrament of the Church during Lent, but we should do it anytime we need it. Anytime we have gravely sinned against God’s commandments, for your edification, you can review the process to make a good confession here.