Confession

 

Celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation

Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday 7:30-7:55 a.m.

Wednesday 6:00 – 6:45 pm

Saturday-5:00-5:45 p.m. & by appointment

Advent 2014

Penance Service  /  Servicio de Reconciliación
December 15, 7:00 pm
English & Spanish

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6 STEPS FOR A GOOD CONFESSION

Examine your conscience – what sins have you committed since your last good confession.

  • Be sincerely sorry for your sins.
  • Confess your sins to the priest.
  • Make certain that you confess all your mortal sins and the number of them.
  • After your confession, do the penance the priest gives to you.
  • Pray daily for the strength to avoid the occasion of sin, especially for those sins you were just absolved from.

FIRST COMMANDMENT

“I am the Lord your God. You shall not have strange gods before Me.” (Ex 20:2,3)

  • Did I deny that God exists?
  • Did I refuse to believe what God has revealed to us?
  • Did I put my faith in fortune telling, horoscopes, dreams, the occult, good-luck charms, tarot cards, palmistry, Ouija boards, seances, or reincarnation?
  • Did I deny that I was Catholic or leave the Catholic faith?
  • Did I give time to God each day in prayer?
  • Did I love God with my whole heart?
  • Did I despair of or presume on God’s mercy?
  • Did I have false gods in my life that I gave greater attention to than God, like money, profession, drugs, TV, fame, pleasure, property, etc.?

SECOND COMMANDMENT
“You shall not take the Name of the Lord your God in vain.” (Ex 20:7)

  • Did I blaspheme or insult God?
  • Did I take God’s name carelessly or uselessly?
  • Did I curse, or break an oath or vow?
  • Do I hate or resent the Lord?

THIRD COMMANDMENT
“Remember that you keep holy the Sabbath Day.” (Ex 20:8)

  • Did I miss Mass Sunday or a Holy Day of Obligation without a grave reason?
  • Do I regularly come to Mass on late and leave early?
  • Did I do substantial work on Sunday that was not necessary?
  • Did I set aside Sunday as a day of rest and a family day?
  • Did I show reverence in the presence of Jesus in the Most Blessed Sacrament?

FOURTH COMMANDMENT
“Honor your father and your mother.” (Ex 20:12)

  • Did I disobey or disrespect my parents or legitimate superiors?
  • Did I neglect my duties to my husband, wife, children or parents?
  • Did I neglect to give good religious example to my family?
  • Did I fail to actively take an interest in the religious education and formation of my children?
  • Did I fail to educate myself on the true teachings of the Church?
  • Did I give scandal by what I said or did, especially to the young?
  • Did I cause anyone to leave the faith?
  • Did I cause tension and fights in my family?
  • Did I care for my aged and infirm relatives?
  • Did I give a full day’s work for a full day’s pay?
  • Did I give a fair wage to my employees?

FIFTH COMMANDMENT
“You shall not kill.” (Ex 20:13)

  • Did I kill or physically injure anyone?
  • Did I have an abortion, or advise someone else to have an abortion?
  • Did I contemplate or attempt suicide? If so, have I reached out for help?
  • Did I take part in or approve of “mercy killing” (euthanasia)?
  • Did I get impatient, envious, unkind, proud, revengeful, jealous, hateful towards another?  Have I insulted others or discriminated against others because of their race, religion, or sexual orientation?
  • Did I give bad example by drug abuse, drinking alcohol to excess, fighting, quarreling?
  • Did I abuse my children?

SIXTH COMMANDMENT
“You shall not commit adultery.” (Ex 20:14) “You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife.” (Ex 20:17)

  • Did I willfully entertain unchaste thoughts or desires?
  • Did I have sex before or outside of marriage?
  • Do I view pornographic material?
  • Did I commit impure acts by myself ?
  • Have I not avoided the occasions of sin (persons or places, for example immodest movies, adult books stores, clubs) which would tempt me to be unfaithful to my spouse or to my responsibility to live a chaste life ?
  • Did I practice artificial birth control? Have I or my spouse been sterilized?
    (Have I tried to learn the Gospel principles of love and life in sexuality: http://www.nfpandmore.org ?)
  • Have I upheld the Gospel’s teaching on marriage between one man and one woman?
  • Did I respect all members of the opposite sex, or have I thought of other people as objects?

SEVENTH & TENTH COMMANDMENTS
“You shall not steal.” (Ex 20:15) “You shall not covet your neighbor’s goods.” (Ex 20:17)

  • Did I steal, cheat, help or encourage others to steal or keep stolen goods? Have I made restitution for stolen goods?
  • Did I fulfill my contracts; give or accept bribes; pay my bills; rashly gamble or speculate; deprive my family of the necessities of life?
  • Did I waste substantial time at my work or school?
  • Did I envy other people’s possessions? Do I give to those in need?
  • Did I make material possessions the purpose of my life? Do I do my best to uplift the poor, the marginalized, and the overlooked in our community?
  • Have I defrauded workers of their wages?
  • Have I unjustly or without grave reason terminated or dismissed an employee from his job?

EIGHTH COMMANDMENT
“You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” (Ex 20:16)

  • Did I lie?
  • Did I deliberately deceive others, or injure others by lies?
  • Did I commit perjury?
  • Did I gossip or reveal others’ faults or sins?
  • Did I make up stories about others or spread false, hurtful information about my neighbor?
  • Did I fail to keep secret what should be confidential?

OTHER

  • Did I fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday?
  • Did I eat meat on the Fridays of Lent or Ash Wednesday?
  • Did I fail to receive Holy Communion during Eastertime?
  • Did I go to Holy Communion in a state of mortal sin? Without fasting (water and medicine permitted) for one hour from food and drink?
  • Did I make a bad confession?
  • Did I fail to contribute to the support of the Church?

“O God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” (Lk 18:13)

“Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven…” (Jn 20:23)

“Though your sins be like scarlet, they shall become white as snow. Though they be red like crimson, they shall become white as wool.” (Is 1:18)

“If we confess our sins, He who is upright can be depended upon to forgive sins, and to cleanse us from every wrong.” (1 Jn 1:9)

“Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing.” (Lk 23:24)

“Forgive us our sins, for we too forgive all who do us wrong.” (Lk 11:4)

ACT OF CONTRITION

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.