The Top 3 Reasons That I Became Catholic.....and Always will Be

Looking for a different way to examine your conscience? Using the Beatitudes is a wonderful tool to see how we are not living up to the Lord's standards. "Am I gentle with others or am I harsh?" "Do I truly yearn for God's Will to be done, in my life and in all things?" " Do I love purity and honesty?" These probing questions and more are in this beautiful examination.

Fr. Michael Nixon discusses the authority of priests to offer forgiveness of sins through the ministry of the Church.

Jesus gave His disciples the power to forgive sins when He breathed His Spirit on them after the Resurrection. Through apostolic succession, each priest has the same power entrusted to him. This gift was given to the Church so that the forgiveness of Christ can go out to the whole world.

Through this power and authority of Jesus, we are absolved of our sins. Reconciliation between us and God and the community is obtained.

Key Takeaways

• Christ established the Sacrament of Reconciliation to bring forgiveness to the world.
• Priests represent Christ.
• Authority to forgive sins is lived in and through the priest.
• One person's sins affect the whole body of Christ.

Questions

1. Do you believe in the authority of priests to forgive your sins?
2. Why is going to a priest to confess your sins different than just saying them to yourself?
3. What do you think of the reality that our sins harm the Body of Christ?

This is a beautiful story of Dr. Bergsma's conversion to the Catholic Church. Dr. Bergsma relates how he had a desire to go to Confession one day and pulled into the local Catholic Church. Not unusual for those who are Catholic, but for Dr Bergsma, who was a Protestant minister at the time, it was definitely out of the ordinary.

Joseph Pronechen collects stories about several people who returned to the Sacrament of Reconciliation after being away for many years. Beautiful testimonies! There is so much joy in their return to God.

It is evident in this video that Fr. Casey Cole has a great love for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. One of his disappointments is that some who come to to Confession have not been given proper formation in how to make a good Confession.

Because the confessional is not always conducive for instruction on "How to make a proper Confession", Fr. Casey has created Tik Tok videos featuring seven different common ways people can misuse the sacrament.

The videos are exaggerated scenarios where Fr. Casey plays the priest hearing Confession and the penitent individual. What is most clearly expressed in this video is Fr. Casey's deep love and respect for those coming to Confession and his hope that all who come to the sacrament can experience God's amazing love for them.

Key Takeaways

• Fr. Casey desires to "teach" and "form" individuals in the proper use of the Sacrament of Confession

Some ways people do not use the sacrament properly:

• List - Individuals can come to Confession with a long list of sins without much evidence of contrition for any of them.
• Burying the Lede - There are some who hurriedly squeeze a serious sin between two venial sins without giving an indication that there's a difference between the two.
• Confessing everything as mortal - Not all sins are serious. It is important to know the difference between the two.
• Scrupulosity - The frequent, habitual use of Confession is usually an indication of a mental health issue. The CCC #1393 and 1394 show how our sins are expiated through our reception of the Eucharist at mass. This may not be enough for those who suffer from obsessive, compulsive disorder, but it may give some comfort to them.
• Vagueness - Confessing that you have broken commandments 1, 5 and 8 is not enough information for the priest to understand what you are struggling with.
• Naming other's sins - Confession is about your relationship with God. It is not meant to be a time to discuss the faults of others.
• The Rambler - Confession is not the time to discuss theological questions or sorting out how you feel about things. It is always about confessing the ways in which you've failed to love God.
• Welcome Home - It it clearly shown how much having someone return to the Sacrament of Confession means to Fr. Casey in this last short Tik Tok video. True contrition is a joy to see.

Questions for Reflection

1. Did any of the videos make you think of the way you go to Confession?
2. Were you convicted by any of the videos?
3. Will viewing these videos help you think about how you approach the sacrament the next time you go?
4. Can you sense how Fr. Casey feels about the Sacrament of Confession?

Confession is not a place of sadness. It is one of the most joyful places in the world. First, you get to experience God's mercy and the love that God gave to us through the cross. Second, it is a place where people are striving to grow in holiness.

Fr. Mike iterates that the priest does not remember your sins. Sins are not fascinating, but PEOPLE are fascinating. Sins are boring. God is more interested in you than in the sins you have committed.

The heart of the priest is revealed in Confession. He recognizes his own failures and faults. The priest knows Christ has paid the price of the forgiveness of our sins and joins his sufferings to that of Christ for the love of the penitent. In the confessional , the priest gets to see God winning His children back.

Key Takeaways

• It is not sad for a priest to hear people's sins in Confession.
• Confession is a place to see God's Mercy in action.

In confession

• the discouraged are lifted up
• the wounded are healed
• the lost are found
• Sin is a failure. Going to Confession and saying, "I'm not giving up on a God who has not given up on me" is a victory!
• You are a part of God's masterpiece
• Priests are God's "garbage men".
• Confession is a place of Victory!

Questions for Reflection

1. Do you think of yourself as someone who is trying to love God more or someone who has failed when you go to Confession?
2. What do you think of Fr. Mike Schmitz's image of a priest being God's garbage man?
3. What part of this video had the greatest impact on you? Why?