20230306 EFFECTIVENESS OF THE SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION
06 March 2023, Monday, 2nd Week of Lent
First reading | Daniel 9:4-10 © |
Yours is the integrity, Lord; ours the shame
O Lord, God great and to be feared, you keep the covenant and have kindness for those who love you and keep your commandments: we have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly, we have betrayed your commandments and your ordinances and turned away from them. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, our ancestors, and to all the people of the land. Integrity, Lord, is yours; ours the look of shame we wear today, we, the people of Judah, the citizens of Jerusalem, the whole of Israel, near and far away, in every country to which you have dispersed us because of the treason we have committed against you. To us, Lord, the look of shame belongs, to our kings, our princes, our ancestors, because we have sinned against you. To the Lord our God mercy and pardon belong, because we have betrayed him, and have not listened to the voice of the Lord our God nor followed the laws he has given us through his servants the prophets.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 78(79):8-9,11,13 © |
Do not treat us according to our sins, O Lord.
Do not hold the guilt of our fathers against us.
Let your compassion hasten to meet us;
we are left in the depths of distress.
Do not treat us according to our sins, O Lord.
O God our saviour, come to our help.
Come for the sake of the glory of your name.
O Lord our God, forgive us our sins;
rescue us for the sake of your name.
Do not treat us according to our sins, O Lord.
Let the groans of the prisoners come before you;
let your strong arm reprieve those condemned to die.
But we, your people, the flock of your pasture,
will give you thanks for ever and ever.
We will tell your praise from age to age.
Do not treat us according to our sins, O Lord.
Gospel Acclamation |
Praise and honour to you, Lord Jesus!
The seed is the word of God, Christ the sower;
whoever finds this seed will remain for ever.
Praise and honour to you, Lord Jesus!
Or: | cf.Jn6:63,68 |
Praise and honour to you, Lord Jesus!
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life;
you have the message of eternal life.
Praise and honour to you, Lord Jesus!
Gospel | Luke 6:36-38 © |
Grant pardon, and you will be pardoned
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge, and you will not be judged yourselves; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned yourselves; grant pardon, and you will be pardoned. Give, and there will be gifts for you: a full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap; because the amount you measure out is the amount you will be given back.’
EFFECTIVENESS OF THE SACRAMENT OF RECONCILIATION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Dan 9:4-10; Ps 79:8-9,11,13; Luke 6:36-38]
There are many who go for confession but do not feel forgiven or healed of their guilt and pain. As a consequence, they conclude that the Sacrament of Reconciliation is ineffective and irrelevant. They do not experience the healing mercy of God. What are the real reasons for not being able to receive the healing grace of God? There is nothing wrong with the Sacrament of Reconciliation per se, but with the way we prepare ourselves for it and the way the Sacrament is administered to us. In other words, it depends on the disposition of both the penitent and the confessor. When the right dispositions are not there, the mercy of God is compromised, and the rite loses its effectiveness.
On the part of the penitent, there must be genuine acknowledgement of his sins. This was what the Israelites did in the first reading. They confessed their sins without compromise, without excuse and without blaming anyone else. They put the blame solely on themselves and not on some scapegoats. They said, “We have sinned, we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly, we have betrayed your commandments and your ordinances and turned away from them. We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, our ancestors, and to all the people of the land.” On the contrary, often the confessor is put in a dilemma at the confessional. The penitent may have confessed his sins, but he put the blame on everyone else for what he did. He came to confession not to ask for forgiveness and find justification in Christ’s mercy but to justify himself before God. Like the Pharisee in the gospel, he leaves the confession room unjustified. Jesus remarked, “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” (Lk 18:14)
Secondly, the sinner must be ready to accept the consequences of his sins. “Integrity, Lord, is yours; ours the look of shame we wear today, we, the people of Judah, the citizens of Jerusalem, the whole of Israel, near and far away, in every country to which you have dispersed us because of the treason we have committed against you. To us, Lord, the look of shame belongs, to our kings, our princes, our ancestors, because we have sinned against you.” They were not resentful of God for being punished by their sinful behaviour. They did not blame God for their having been exiled in Babylon. On the contrary, they humbly accepted their retribution. Again, many are not healed simply because they blame God and curse Him for the sufferings brought about by their foolish and selfish acts. When we are not ready or humble enough to accept the consequences of our actions, it means that we have not really recognized that we were wrong. If that were the case, we are self-righteous and therefore angry with God who is not on our side. This also explains why the confessor is required to give “penance” to the penitent before absolving him of his sins. This is not so much a “punishment” but an expression of the humility of the penitent that he is wrong, and ready to accept the “correction” through the application of the penance given to him in humility and obedience.
Thirdly, the sinner must trust in the mercy and love of God. The people prayed, “Lord, our God great and to be feared, you keep the covenant and have kindness for those who love you and keep your commandments.” Again, they prayed, “To the Lord our God mercy and pardon belong.” It is important to claim the mercy of God and His kindness. In the gospel, Jesus affirmed God’s mercy when He said, “Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate.” Once we are confident of God’s mercy and compassion, we should not doubt whether our sins are forgiven when we have confessed our sins with all humility, sincerity and honesty. To doubt His mercy impedes reception of His forgiveness.
Insofar as the sinner is repentant and contrite, he can be assured that his sins are surely forgiven, and he will certainly be able to receive God’s healing grace and mercy. When we are contrite and repentant, God will give us peace, joy and hope. With our sins forgiven, our anger and resentment taken away, we will be able to see ourselves in a new way. We will also be able to let go of those who have hurt us, or at least perceived them as having wronged us. Recognizing our own contribution to the sin or misunderstanding, instead of apportioning blame to others, we take the first step in correcting ourselves, our own weaknesses and our part in the sinful situation. When that is done, we will find liberation from our enemies and our hurts. In fact, we will thank God instead for allowing the sin to happen because what was a disgrace has been used by Him to be a channel for grace.
However, on the part of the confessor, it is important that he manifests the compassion of the Father. Jesus said, “Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate.” The role of a judge is not very helpful in the confessional. When confessors appear and conduct themselves like judges, waiting to scold, reprimand, examine and interrogate, it robs the Sacrament of Reconciliation of the mercy of God and reduces the penitent to a condemned criminal. He will leave the confessional box hurt, humiliated, angry and probably vowing that that would be the last time he would ever go for confession. It shows a total lack of sensitivity and compassion on the part of the confessor. Of course, it is right for a priest to counsel the penitent and give spiritual direction, but we never heard Jesus scolding repentant sinners. He only reprimanded those who were hardened in their sins, like the Pharisees.
Understandably those who have been hurt and humiliated in the confessional box stop going for confession because of the trauma they underwent. For such Catholics, even though they do not go for confession again, we entrust them to the mercy of God and pray that one day they will return to confession for full healing. Deep in their hearts, they realize the need to confess their deepest sins, but they lack courage and humility to face the priest again. By not going for confession, they miss out on the powerful healing grace of God through this sacrament.
Whether it is for the confessor or penitent, the advice of Jesus about receiving what we give is an important reminder. “Give, and there will be gifts for you: a full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap; because the amount you measure out is the amount you will be given back.” When we are generous with forgiveness or with mercy, we ourselves will receive the same mercy. St James reminds us, “For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.” (Jas 2:13) For this reason, Jesus urges us, “Do not judge and you will not be judged yourselves; do not condemn, and you will not be condemned yourselves; grant pardon, and you will be pardoned.”
Those who condemn others are unaware of their own sinfulness. Those who lack compassion towards others, have no compassion towards themselves. Of course, there are some who apparently are compassionate towards themselves when they fail. They would make excuses for their mistakes, but they would apply a different measure towards others who fail. How do we explain such inconsistency of judgment? Why the double standards? It shows that they are not fully aware of their wrongs and crimes. But for those of us who are conscious of our own struggles, sinfulness, imperfections, inadequacies and failures, would we dare to condemn others? St Paul wrote, “Therefore you have no excuse, whoever you are, when you judge others; for in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, are doing the very same things.” (Rom 2:1) So let us pray for a greater self-awareness of our sinfulness so that we can be compassionate like the Father towards those who sin against us or against others. When we perfect our compassion, then we truly become sons and daughters of God. We find joy and mercy ourselves.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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