End of Lent Does Not Mean End of Confession

Lent is a time of sacrifice, of prayer and preparing to rejoice in the Lord’s resurrection.

It’s also a time when many Catholics go to confession, fulfilling the requirement of the Code of Canon Law that each person is obliged to  “confess his or her grave sins at least once a year.”  

So with Lent over does one put confession on hold for another year?

Not so fast, said Father Miles Walsh, pastor at Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Baton Rouge.  

“Hopefully not; that (canon law) arose was made as a minimum,” said Father Walsh. “Confession is the very gift God gave us, the night he appeared to the disciples in the upper room.”

Father Walsh recommends going to confession monthly, rather than yearly, explaining there is something about the monthly cycle that is natural. He said that those who do go monthly are not likely to commit mortal sin because they are looking at the smaller sins they are committing that if neglected could become more serious. 

He said the greater likelihood is if one allows venial sins to continue to accumulate unchecked, one will lapse into mortal sin. He used the current societal debate questioning if smaller crimes should be ignored to focus on the bigger crimes. But he said ignoring the smaller crimes can lead to more serious crimes.

“The same is true in the spiritual life,” he said. “If we don’t examine ourselves as to what venial sins we are committing we are much more likely to lapse into mortal sins.”

Father Walsh said a person who goes to confession regularly will experience a change in their hearts. He said people often ask questions about confession, including why the urgency to receive the sacrament. 

When he is unable to convince someone that Jesus gave everyone the sacrament or that’s its necessary to confess one’s sins to a priest, he will encourage that person to commit going to confession monthly for one year.

“Then you come see me a year from now and tell me how your life has changed and how your relationship with God has changed,” he said. “You can’t always convince people experiencedly but if they really want to grow in their relationship with the Lord. I tell them to try. They come back and tell me that it makes a difference.”

Father Walsh acknowledges many Catholics have a mental obstacle regarding confession. He often hears, “I find it so humiliating.”

Yet, Jesus is always inviting his faithful to humble themselves to receive his grace, Father Walsh said.

“If we don’t examine ourselves as to what venial sins we are committing we are much more likely to lapse into mortal sins.”

Father Miles Walsh 

Pastor, Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Church

“So the very feast that is humbling is a good thing,” he said. “We constantly need that gift of new life. Confession is new life for sins after baptism. “Above all, it is the remedy for mortal sin. What happens in confession is the soul is being raised from the state of death to the state of life.”

Father Walsh used a simple analogy to underscore the importance of confession. He explained that of the seven sacraments three can be received once, those being baptism, confirmation and Holy Orders. 

Two others, marriage and anointing of the sick, are rarely received.

“But two sacraments, Eucharist and confession, are given for our daily walk with Christ,” he said. “If you are trying to walk on two legs it’s easy to do, but a lot of Catholics try to walk on one leg, mainly through the Eucharist. Invariably what happens is you fall. 

“If only going to Communion and going to Mass and never go to confession it’s like hopping on one leg. Confession is part of our spiritual nourishment. “People have told me they have not done the interior preparation they should have done. They have been distracted and just don’t feel welcome to receive the Lord.”

Confession should begin even before entering the confessional with a heartfelt examination of conscience. Father Walsh noted that preparation will be different for someone who goes monthly, as to someone who has not been in a longer period of time. 

“If you have not gone in years, you might have more work to do,” he said. “You might spend a little more time with the confessor. The analogy would be if you had not been to the doctor in a long time and now have many symptoms you will spend more time with the doctor.”

He also encourages Catholics to spend time in Eucharistic adoration to prepare for confession, saying the “Lord speaks to people in such powerful ways when you spend time (with) him before the Eucharist.”

Father Walsh noted that as people mature they might encounter trouble getting to confession. But he added if they have lived a good life, one might not need to go as frequently as they once did.

 “What older people begin to experience is a real sorrow and regret for their sins, for the foolishness of their youth,” he said. “That’s a good thing.”

He said such reflection is often fostered by the Holy Spirit, and in a sense that person is beginning their purgatory, their time of purification, on earth.

But he warned against obsessing about the sins of the past to the point where one is tempted to believe those transgressions are unforgivable.

“That is often the sign of the devil’s work,” he said. “The devil in you is telling you God can’t forgive you. That is a temptation against faith.”

“This is the great message of divine mercy,” Father Walsh added. “There is no sin that can’t be forgiven.”