Are you one of those Catholics or Christians who have not confessed your sins for years, or even decades? Well you're not alone. I too was one of you but now I am able to go regularly! Woohooo!
For me, after high school (Catholic) I did not really think about confession anymore. It's not like we were told to confess monthly or quarterly or yearly. Looking back, perhaps someone did but I don't think the importance was ingrained in us.
Actually an elementary classmate once said she would not go take holy communion for a certain reason. Perhaps if she did not confess or something... Apparently I already forgot what she said exactly since I started going to confession regularly again. 😅 Weird right? That was in my head for years and now that I've returned to God, my brain discarded the information. 😆
Anyway so I just wanna share why people make the devil happy whenever we stop going to confession. As Christians we must confess those dirty, evil sins that have been "kept" or "forgotten" for years. Even those many little sins (venial) we think aren't really bad but actually are (based on the 10 Commandments and 7 Deadly Sins) should be reflected upon with contrition.
Disclaimer: I am not an expert in Catholicism but I was born, raised and live as a Catholic. Also, I went to a Catholic school for 4 yrs. This post is based on a combination of my opinion, what I've been taught, learned online/offline and/or experienced.
This is the problem: People are still unaware that mortal sins must be confessed first before communion... (image source)
🤔❓ What is Confession and Why is it Important like our Basic Human Needs?
As humans, it is not only our bodies that have needs.
We all know that our physical parts need to be taken cared of everyday. There's the 7 basic needs for that. We need air, food, water, shelter, clothing, safety/security and sleep to stay alive. But what about our mind and soul how will we take care of it? That's where spirituality and religion comes in. 😉
Of course we humans are not just physical creatures. We all have a soul or a spirit or what New Agers call "energy" or the Feng Shui term qi.
It is important to take care of our soul too in order to be an upstanding citizen in a happy society. Doing so will also help clear our hearts and minds. This prevents disasters and problems when dealing with each other after the 7 physical/survival needs are met.
Just like the laws we have in our own countries, it is important to also follow God's laws. We did not just appear out of nothing because we humans wanted to. Something made us and that is God, an Almighty Being, Creator or whatever some people like to call it.
If we look at the Genesis story from the Bible, that's how we will know about our creation. We also read about how the serpent (devil) caused the fall of man. Next in the Old Testament is when we also learn about the 10 Commandments. Actually Judaism gave us those life rules since the Jews are the chosen people of God.
The Confession by Giuseppe Molteni, 1838 source
Enter Jesus and then the New Testament and voila: Roman Catholicism (RC). So now we Catholics follow many practices passed down from Jesus' time and the many centuries since he ascended and returned to Heaven. Of course eventually religious splits or schisms happened so now we have many Christian denominations worldwide.
Let's look at one of the 7 Sacraments in RC: Confession. (Apparently many other Christians still have this practice, with the exception of a few ones. Definitely good to know!)
After Baptism and Confirmation you will then do your first Confession. From then on one must regularly confess one's sins. Why? Because the penalty for sin is death. But thank God for His overflowing mercy, Jesus died for everyone so all can be saved from that. However we still need to ask God's mercy and forgiveness for any sin committed and be absolved from it. (Perhaps this notion comes with maturity too.)
☝️ Our souls are part of what makes us humans and needs "regular maintenance" like our bodies.
Being alive means not just eating and working to live the life we want. It also means we have to prepare ourselves for the afterlife. Unfortunately such a mindset is not prevalent in some cultures.
As St. Ignatius said in the First Principle and Foundation translated by David Fleming, "The goal of our life is to live with God forever."
I admit, I have never thought like that before. Even if I learned about heaven and hell as a kid it was never really in my mind even until the pandemic happened. Yes, death was a topic a lot of people were suddenly thinking about in 2020. So many of us came face to face with reality. We have definitely realized we can die anytime even if we don't think about it often.
For me, the thought of truly preparing oneself to go to Heaven only surfaced when I experienced what I will call "spiritual renewal". I wrote about that in 3 posts which you can read on my profile. It was a long overdue "return back to God" situation around Lent this year.
Juan García Martínez, The Penitent, 1884 source
And so because human beings are not just organic matter, we must prepare our souls for the journey back to our Creator. When we die of course we will go somewhere, or specifically, our soul/spirit will leave our bodies. What happens to us then will depend on what we've done while still alive.
As a Catholic (or Christian), one of the things we must do to prepare for our return to God is regularly availing of the sacrament of confession. Confessing our sins to a priest (or pastor for some Christians) will cleanse our souls and help us grow spiritually. If we regularly have a clean spirit via frequent confession, it will be harder for the devil to use our sins against us. Meaning God can protect us from evil and give us graces to become better functioning people of society.
All that sounds easy and simple but it's hard to do when we are full of pride. (If you didn't know, pride is the reason why Lucifer became a devil and also caused mankind's fall.) That is the number 1 reason many do not care to confess to a priest.
There are people who think that direct confession to God is enough when in fact no absolution can happen if one does that. To experience the cleansed feeling after coming out of the confessional and doing our penance is way better.
One problem we face daily is stopping ourselves from sinning. It can really be a challenge in today's world! 😂 Especially if you've developed automatic bad habits over the years before turning your life around, oh my goodness. But don't fret! Watch or listen to this video to know what helps the most:
The saint Padre Pio also mentions that "Confession is the soul's bath." He actually urges us to go weekly. Any priest will tell you that regular confession is important to overcome the sins you are confessing.
👉 Regular examination of conscience and confession keeps the need for exorcisms away!
Catholic exorcist priests say that one confession is better than a hundred or a thousand exorcism. When someone is possessed by demons, it means their soul is already at the worst state here on Earth. Meaning, before that even happens, make sure to go to your earliest confessional schedule after a thorough examination of conscience. Do it ASAP before it's too late!
Oh but wait... Yeah I know, I hear you. Some may think "What's even the worst that can happen before demonic possession?" Why should you even confess your sins to a human being at all? Oh sure, the devil and demons become happy with those kinds of questions. The short answer is, all sorts of things!
There are many situations that happen that you might not even think are from any malevolent source. (Do your research. 😉) For sure you already have an idea but might think you are just not aware at all. If so, you can read some of my blog posts several months ago since Lent 2023. I've already written much about my personal experience, etc., so go ahead and read them.
Related: The Only Life Hack You'll Need Against Bad Luck, the Devil and Demons!
I suggest to also watch videos about spiritual warfare according to Catholic exorcist priests to know more. Or here is part of what Jesus directly said to St. Faustina herself. Know of course that this may be quite an advanced level because I consider her already on the way to sainthood at the time:
For those who are and were unaware of many Catholic things mentioned here, I know you may have more questions. All of those can be easily answered by doing a quick search on YouTube or online. There are many reputable Catholic or Christian resources in the world wide web. Use your time online wisely by learning more about God and Jesus' teachings. (Beware of falling into the devil's traps though.)
Just remember, you make the devil happy to grab your soul when you believe confessing to a priest is useless. If you believe the evil lies in this world then you're free to search for the truth and even earnestly ask God/Jesus directly.
Again, God forgives us thru Jesus Christ via priests during Confession.
So anyway, what's stopping you from going to confession after learning more about it today? 😁
XOXO,
@artgirl
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