Reconciliation

The sacrament of Reconciliation is the sacrament that celebrates the divine power to forgive our sins and renew our love for God and people.

The sacrament of Reconciliation is also called “Confession” or “Penance”.  It has four parts:

• Contrition – we feel great sorrow for our sins
• Confession – we unburden our sins
• Absolution – we are assured of God's forgiveness
• Satisfaction – we perform an act of penance

The sacrament of Reconciliation offers the free gifts of God's mercy and forgiveness to:

• Lift the burden of sin
• Renew the grace of Baptism
• Give inner peace and a new strength of purpose

There are four steps in the Sacrament of Reconciliation:

1. We feel contrition for our sins and a conversion of heart to change our ways.
2. We confess our sins and human sinfulness to a priest.
3. We receive and accept forgiveness (absolution) and are absolved of our sins.
4. We celebrate God’s everlasting love for us and commit to live out a Christian life.

Sin hurts our relationship with God, ourselves and others. As the Catechism states:

The sinner wounds God’s honor and love, his own human dignity…and the spiritual well-being of the Church, of which each Christian ought to be a living stone. To the eyes of faith no evil is graver than sin and nothing has worse consequences for the sinners themselves, for the Church, and for the whole world. (CCC 1487, 1488)

A mature understanding of sin includes reflecting upon our thoughts, actions and omissions as well as examining the patterns of sin that may arise in our lives. With contrite hearts, we are also called to reflect upon the effects of our sins upon the wider community and how we might participate in sinful systems.

Contrition and conversion lead us to seek a forgiveness for our sins so as to repair damaged relationships with God, self, and others. We believe that only ordained priests have the faculty of absolving sins from the authority of the Church in the name of Jesus Christ (CCC 1495). Our sins are forgiven by God, through the priest.

The Spiritual effects of the Sacraments of Reconciliation include:

• reconciliation with God by which the penitent recovers grace
• reconciliation with the Church
• remission of the eternal punishment incurred by mortal sins
• remission, at least in part, of temporal punishments resulting from sin
• peace and serenity of conscience, and spiritual consolation
• an increase of spiritual strength for the Christian battle (CCC 1496)

Individual confession with a priest is the principal means of absolution and reconciliation of grave sins within the Church. The Sacrament of Reconciliation frees us from sinful patterns of behavior and calls us to complete conversion to Christ. Reconciliation heals our sins and repairs our relationships.

First Reconciliation Page
Celebration for the sacrament of Reconciliation is a two year process. This sacrament preparation begins in the First Grade with foundational faith formation and is continued in the Second Grade.

Formation for the sacrament of Reconciliation includes the following components:

• Classroom sessions in the Catholic school or Parish School of Religion
• Parent Meetings
• Para-liturgical celebrations
• Parent/child sessions in the home
• A parent/child retreat prior to the celebration of the sacrament

Any child who has completed First Grade and has not begun faith formation in a Catholic school or parish school of religion will be invited to participate in the Children's Initiation process known as the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults Adapted for Children (RCIC).