Confessions
Confessions are presently heard from 5:45-6:30 pm on Fridays, from 2:45-3:45 pm on Saturdays and most Mondays through Thursdays from 5:30-6:00 pm during our daily afternoon Holy Hours (whenever Father Landry is presiding over the Holy Hour, which is most days).
Father Landry is, moreover, generally available to hear confessions after the daily 7 am Mass (Monday through Thursday) for people who request it in the sacristy after Mass. He's also happy to schedule appointments for penitents to have their confessions heard.
Help in Making an Examination of Conscience
“Those those who have been far away from the Sacrament of Reconciliation and forgiving love I make this appeal: come back to this source of grace; Do not be afraid! Christ himself is waiting for you. He will heal you and you will be at peace with God.” (John Paul II, September 13, 1987, at San Antonio, Texas).
Examination of Conscience
In an examination of conscience, before the Sacrament of Penance, each individual should ask himself or herself these questions in particular:
1. What is my attitude to the Sacrament of Penance? Do I sincerely want to be set free from sin, to turn again to God, to begin a new life, and to enter into a deeper friendship with God? Or do I look on it as a burden, to be undertaken as seldom as possible?
2. Did I forget to mention, or deliberately conceal, any grave sins in past confessions?
3. Did I perform the penance I was given? Did I make reparation for any injury to others? Have I tried to put into practice the resolution to lead a better life in keeping with the Gospel?
Each individual should examine his or her life in the light of God’s word:
I. The Lord says: “You shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart.”
1. Is my heart set on God, so that I really love Him above all things and am faithful to His commandments, as a son or daughter loves his father? Or am I more concerned about the things of the world? Have I put anything ahead of God? Have I a right intention in what I do?
2. God spoke to us in His Son. Is my faith in God firm and secure? Am I wholehearted in accepting the God’s teaching through the Church he founded? Or do I only pick and choose the convenient parts of His message? Have I been careful to grow in my understanding of the faith, to hear God’s Word, to listen to instructions on the faith and to avoid dangers to faith? Have I been always strong and fearless in professing my faith in God and the Church? Or have I been ashamed at times to show my religious convictions? Have I been willing to be known as a Christian in private and public life?
3. Have I been faithful to prayer? When I pray, do I really raise my mind and heart to God, or is it a matter of words only? Do I offer God my difficulties, my joys and my sorrows? Do I turn to God in time of temptation?
4. Do I love and have reverence for God’s Name? Have I offended Him in blasphemy, swearing false oaths, or misusing or taking His name in vain? Do I try my best to fulfill the promises and resolutions which I make toward God? Have I shown disrespect for the Blessed Virgin Mary and the saints? Have I used curse words or foul language and thereby dragged down my conversations and friends?
5. Did I miss Mass on Sundays or Holy Days of Obligation? When attending, did I do all I could to take a full and active part in the Mass, with attention and devotion? Did I allow myself to be distracted during Mass, by not paying attention, looking around out of curiosity, etc? Have I arrived at Mass so late without sufficient reason that I failed to fulfill the Sunday obligation? Did I misbehave in Church, or cause others to get distracted? Do I generously help the Church in her necessities, to the extent that I am able? Have I received Holy Communion in a state of mortal sin? Did I miss the one-hour Eucharistic fast?
6. Are there false gods that I worship by giving them greater attention and deeper trust than I give to God, like money, power, sex, or superstitions?
7. Have I fulfilled my obligation to go to confession at least once a year and of going worthily to communion at least during the Easter season? Did I fail to mention some grave sin in my previous confessions?
8. Did I put my Faith in danger by reading books, pamphlets or magazines which contain errors or are contrary to Catholic faith and morals? Did I endanger my Faith by joining or attending meetings and activities of organizations contrary to the Church or to the Catholic faith? Have I committed the sin of sacrilege (profaning a sacred person, place of thing)?
II. The Lord says: “Love one another as I have loved you.”
1. Have I a genuine love for my neighbors? Or do I use them for my own ends, or do to them what I would not want done to myself? Have I given grave scandal by my words or actions?
2. In my family life, have I contributed to the well-being and happiness of the rest of the family by patience and genuine love? Have I been obedient to my parents, showing them proper respect and giving them help in their spiritual and material needs? Have I failed to appreciate the sacrifices my parents have made for me? Have I treated my parents with little affection or respect? Do I feel hurt and react proudly when I am corrected by them? Do I have a disordered desire for independence? Do I do my house chores? Do I argue with my brothers and sisters or set bad example for them?
3. Do I share my possessions with those less fortunate that I? Do I do my best to help the victims of oppression, misfortune and poverty? Or do I look down on my neighbor, especially the poor, the sick, the elderly, strangers and people of other races?
4. Does my life reflect the mission I received in the Sacrament of Confirmation? Do I share in the apostolic and charitable works of the Church and in the life of my parish and school community? Have I helped to meet the needs of the Church and of the world and prayed for the Church and those in greatest need?
5. Am I concerned for the good and prosperity of the human community in which I live, or do I spend my life caring only for myself? Do I share to the best of my ability in the work of promoting justice, morality, harmony and love in human relations? Have I done my duty as a citizen?
6. In my school and in work, am I just, hardworking and honest? Do I study and serve out of a love for others? Have I been faithful to the promises I made to others?
7. Have I obeyed legitimate authorities and given them due respect? If I am in a position of responsibility or authority, have I used this for my own advantage or for the good of others, in a spirit of loving service?
8. Have I been truthful and faithful, or have I injured others by lying, deceit, slander or calumny (saying false and negative things about others), detraction (saying true, negative things about others to those who don’t need to know), quick or rash judgment, or violation of a secret without just cause? Have I spread any rumors about others? Did I repair any damage which may have resulted as a consequence of this? Have I unjustly accused others? Have I been guilty of refusing to testify to the innocence of another because of selfishness? Did I insult or tease others with the intention of hurting them? Do I ask for forgiveness whenever I offend anyone?
9. Have I hated others? Have I carried out injustices against others, in word or deed? Have I encouraged others to do or say something wrong? Was I an occasion for others to sin with my conversations, dirty jokes, way of dressing, invitations to attend certain events, lending them harmful books or magazines, helping them to steal, etc? Did I try to repair the scandal done? If I have been injured or hurt, have I been ready to make peace for the love of Christ and to forgive, or do I harbor hatred and the desire for revenge?
10. Did I easily get angry or lose my temper? Was I envious or jealous of others? Did I injure or take anyone’s life? Did I desire to do it? Was I ever reckless in driving so as to put my and others’ lives in danger? Have I neglected my health? Did I ever attempt to take my own life? Did I intentionally get drunk or take prohibited drugs? Did I participate in any form of physical violence? Did I consent, recommend, advise or actively take part in an abortion?
11. Have I stolen the property or money of others? How much was it worth? Have I damaged others’ property? If I have stolen or damaged another’s property, have I made restitution and made good their loss? Have I desired another’s property unjustly and inordinately? Did I steal any object or amount of money? Did I give it back, or at least, have the intention to do so? Do I give alms according to my capacity? Am I envious of my neighbor’s property, good looks or friends? Did I neglect to pay my debts? Did I retain things found or stolen? Did I desire to steal? Have I been greedy? Do I have an excessively materialistic view of life?
12. Did I entertain impure sexual thoughts? Did I engaged in impure sexual conversations? Did I start them? Did I look for fun in forms of entertainment which put me in near occasions of sin (some types of dancing, immoral movies, the internet, books or magazines, bad company, certain clubs)? Do I realize that I may already be committing a sin by putting myself in these occasions? Did I choose to look at pornography? Did I commit impure sexual acts with myself, as in the sin of masturbation? Have I had sex with someone else who is not my spouse? Have I engaged in any type of oral sex? Have I engaged in any homosexual activity? If married, have I used my spouse for sexual pleasure? Have I used any type of contraception?
13. Do I have friendships which are habitual occasions of sin? Am I prepared to break them off? In my love life, is true love my fundamental reason for dealing with the other person? Do I live the constant and cheerful sacrifice of not putting the person I love in danger of sinning? Do I degrade human love by confusing it with selfishness or pleasure? Have I put myself or another in danger of very serious sins by means of overly erotic fondling, kissing and other types of sexual activity?
III. Christ our Lord says: “Be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect.”
1. Where is my life really leading me? Is the hope of eternal life my inspiration? Have I tried to grow in the life of the Spriit through prayer, reading the Word of God and meditating on it, receiving the Sacraments, and self-denial? Have I tried to control my vices, my bad inclinations and passions (e.g., envy, love of food and drink)? Have I been proud and boastful, thinking myself better in the sight of God and despising others as less important than myself? Have I imposed my own will on others, without respecting their freedom and rights?
2. What use have I made of time, of health and strength, of the gifts God has given me to be used like the talents in the Gospel? Do I use them to become more perfect every day? Or have I been lazy and too much given to leisure?
3. Have I been patient in accepting the sorrows and disappointments of life? Have I performed any sacrifices so as to “make up for what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ for the sake of the Church”? Have I kept the precepts of fasting and abstinence during Lent?
4. Have I kept my senses and my whole body pure and chaste as a Temple of the Holy Spirit, consecrated for resurrection and glory and as a sign of God’s faithful love for men and women, a sign that is seen most perfectly in the Sacrament of Matrimony?
5. Have I gone against my conscience out of fear or hypocrisy? Have I tried to inform my conscience with the teachings of God given through the Church, or have I equated my conscience with my opinions and tried to misuse it to justify what I know is wrong?
6. Have I always tried to act as Jesus would in my circumstances? Have I tried to act in the true freedom of the children of God according to the law of the Holy Spirit, or am I the slave of forces within me?
Going to Confession
The penitent and the priest begin with the sign of the Cross, saying:
+In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
The priest urges the penitent to have confidence in God. The priest may say:
May the Lord be in your heart and help you to confess your sins with true sorrow.
The penitent then states:
Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It has been (however many days, weeks, months or years) since my last confession.
The penitent the states his or her sins. For the confession to be valid, the penitent must confess all of the mortal sins he or she is aware of having committed since the last confession, be sorry for them, and have a firm purpose of amendment to try not to commit the same sins in the future.
After this, the priest will generally give some advice to the penitent and impose a penance. Then he will ask the penitent to make an act of contrition. The penitent may do so in his or her own words, or may say one of the following:
Act of Contrition
O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because of Thy just punishments, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, who art all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve with the help of Thy grace to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin. Amen.
or:
O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended you, and I detest all my sins because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of hell, but most of all because they offend you, my God, who are all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve with the help of your grace to confess my sins, to do penance, and to amend my life. Amen.
or:
Lord Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
After this the priest will absolve the penitent in the following words:
God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.
The penitent makes the sign of the Cross and answers: Amen
The priest will then dismiss the penitent with a short prayer and encouragement. The pentitent should then try to fulfill the penance imposed if it is something that can be done quickly.