Bless me, Father

By Mary Jeppson

      …for I have sinned are the words we begin the Sacrament of Reconciliation with. Next, we say how long it has been since our last confession.  It could be a week, a month or years. What is important is you are there at that moment freeing yourself of your sins. Reconciliation can aid us in being a better person and the person God intends us to be.

      Confessing your sins is a humbling experience, not a humiliating one. It can bring a sense of liberation which helps us to look at our life and see what is holding us back or dragging us down. It then gives us the insight to realize what changes we need to make in our lives in order to become who God intends us to be.

      Too many times we find excuses not to go to confession. The priest will recognize my voice or I know I’ll probably sin again so what’s the point?  Confession gives us an opportunity to look at our faults, failings and defects and bring them to God.  He in turn gives us the gift of grace. Grace will heal our wounds, help us find moral balance, enlighten our minds and help us to love what is good and avoid what is evil. Grace has been described as “the power of God alive in us”.

      When we bring our faults and failings into the light they tend to lose their power. The priest sits in for Jesus. Bring your sins to him and feel the sense of a heavy load being lifted off your shoulders when you hear the words of absolution -“By the ministry of the Church, may God grant you pardon and peace and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

      Reconciliation is a gift from God. Accept it, embrace it and use it!