Videos

Why Confess My Sins to a Priest?

Why Confess My Sins to a Priest?

Fr. Mike Schmitz discusses the authority of priests to offer forgiveness of sins through the ministry of the Church.

Why Confess My Sins to a Priest?

Fr. Mike Schmitz

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 for Reflection

  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?

Other Resources

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Videos

Why Confess My Sins to a Priest?

Fr. Mike Schmitz discusses the authority of priests to offer forgiveness of sins through the ministry of the Church.
Presenter
Publisher
Fr. Mike Schmitz
Ascension Presents

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 for Reflection

  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?
Examinations

A Guided Examination of Conscience

This Examination of Conscience is a wonderful tool that can be used every time you prepare for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. One good word of advice: Make sure you pray before you prepare.
Presenter
Publisher
Father Mark-Mary
Ascension Press

Fr Mark-Mary walks you through the Ten Commandments in a way which enables you to go deeper into your examination before going to Confession. The questions he asks are helpful to anyone who desires to more thoroughly prepare to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Church Documents

Catechism Of The Catholic Church

Presenter
Publisher
The Catholic Church
Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Excerpts from the Catechism of the Catholic Church on Confession: paragraphs 1420-1498

Videos

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

Presenter
Publisher
Dr. John Bergsma
Diocese of Harrisburg

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.

Videos

Mortal vs. Venial Sin

In this video Fr. Mike Schmitz discusses the difference between venial sin and mortal sin.
Presenter
Publisher
Fr. Mike Schmitz
Ascension Presents

Fr. Mike opens with the scripture passage from 1 John 5: 16-17. "There is such a thing as deadly sin", writes John.

There are 3 stipulations for a sin to be mortal:

  1. The offense must be serious
  2. You must know it's serious
  3. You must give full consent to committing the offense

All sin is wrongdoing and an offense against God. Venial sins harm our relationship with God, but mortal sin breaks our communion with Him. This is true in all relationships. Some offenses will weaken our friendship, but some will cause irreparable damage. We should strive to not offend anyone we're in a relationship with, particularly our Lord.

The wonderful gift is that grace is always available to us. God desires to restore our relationship with Him. No one is beyond the reach of God's grace. It's time to be forgiven.

Key Takeaways

There is a difference between mortal and venial sin.

  • There is a difference between venial and mortal sin.
  • Mortal sin is a grave action, committed in full knowledge of its gravity and with full consent.
  • Venial sin weakens us to the point where it makes committing a mortal sin easier.
  • Confession is the Sacrament of Mercy.
  • Sin is a wound in our relationship with God and others.
  • Grace is always available to us

Questions for Reflection

  1. Are you sensitive to the difference between a mortal and venial sin and realize when you have committed one or the other?
  2. Do you try to avoid venial sins and confess them regularly to avoid falling into more serious sin?
  3. Do you think it's important to examine yourself daily to see a pattern of behaviors which may be sinful or ways where you have failed to love God and others?
Articles

Examination of Conscience Using the Beatitudes

Presenter
Publisher
Clumsy Theosis

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.