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PENANCE
Penance is the Sacrament in which the sins committed after Baptism are
forgiven. Jesus instituted the Sacrament of Penance on the day of
His Resurrection, when He said to His Apostles: “Receive ye the Holy Ghost.
Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you
shall retain, they are retained.” (John 20:22, 23).
The power to forgive sins, like all the other powers which Jesus conferred
upon His Apostles, passed down to their successors, because He founded
the Church for all men and all times. “As the Father hath sent Me, I also
send you.” (John 20:21; Matt. 28:18, 20).
Jesus forgave sins. He forgave the sins of the man sick of the
palsy, and the sins of Mary Magdalene. (Matt. 9; Luke 7).
The Sacrament of Penance forgives:
All mortal sins
All venial sins which we are sorry
for and confess.
Contrition
Contrition is supernatural sorrow for our sins. We must hate sin
more than any other evil.
There are two kinds of Contrition:
Perfect Contrition
Imperfect Contrition, also called
Attrition.
Our Contrition is Perfect:
When we are sorry because we have
offended God, Who is the supreme Good and worthy of all love.
“And going forth he (Peter) wept bitterly.” (Matt 26:75).
Our Contrition is Imperfect when we are sorry for our sins out of fear
of Hell and loss of Heaven.
We should especially try to make an act of Perfect Contrition when we
are in danger of death; and if we have committed a mortal sin.
We should be truly sorry for our sins:
Because sin is the greatest evil
in the world
Because it is an act of disobedience
against God, our Creator and Redeemer.
"For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to
destruction, and many there are who enter that way. How narrow the
gate and close the way that leadsto life! And few there are who find
it." (Matt 7, 13-14)
THE PURPOSE OF AMENDMENT
The Purpose of Amendment is a firm promise:
To sin no more
To avoid the occasions of sin
To perform the penance
To repair all injuries. |
