There has been a most unfortunate decline in the use of the sacrament of penance in recent years. This may in part may be due to what Pope Pius XII called the "sin of the century." "The sin of the century," the Holy Father told a catechetical congress meeting in the United States in 1946, "is the loss of the sense of sin" (Pius XII, Radio Address to the United States Catechetical Congress held in Boston [26 Oct., 1946: AAS Discorsi e Radiomessaggi, VIII (1946), 288] ).

A balance between the horror of sin and the infinite mercy of God must be struck, of course. God's mercy far surpasses any sin, all sin; however, in order to be a recipient of God's mercy there is an essential prerequisite: repentance for the sin committed, which includes a firm purpose of amendment. Recalling the admonition of the apostle St. John: "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us" (1 Jn 1:8), we all have the need of God's mercy for we are all sinners. It is not a negative thing to recall that we have a Savior, and that He calls us all to be free in Him. Freedom from sin and its ultimate consequence: death, is the reason Jesus suffered and died and rose again for us.

As the Catechism teaches us: "Sin is before all else an offense against God, a rupture of communion with him. At the same time it damages communion with the Church. For this reason conversion entails both God's forgiveness and reconciliation with the Church, which are expressed and accomplished liturgically by the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation" (#1440). It is truly a great thing to be reconciled with God, with the church at large, with each member of the church, and, indeed, within our own selves. This is not a negative thing, rather a highly positive one.

Jesus Christ himself instituted the sacrament of penance; it is divine in origin, not merely human. It is not something that men in the church did later, it is something that Jesus himself did while on earth. There are two Gospel texts that are usually cited for the proof of the divine institution of the sacrament: Matthew 16:19 and John 20:22-23. The church's sacred tradition and magisterial teaching throughout the ages has interpreted these passages consistently as referring to the sacrament of penance.

Sacramental confession remains the only ordinary means of the forgiveness of serious (mortal) sins after baptism (God can at times, certainly, work through extraordinary means such as perfect contrition expressed through an Act of Contrition in an emergency). There are quite simply two sides to the process: What we do, and what God does. The "acts of the penitent" express our responsibility. First, we must have contrition. Contrition is "sorrow of the soul and detestation of the sin committed, together with the resolution not to sin again" (#1451). Contrition is perfect when it arises from that true love by which God is loved above all else (especially love for the sins we're attached to). This perfect contrition remits venial sins and also obtains forgiveness of mortal sins if it includes the firm resolution to have recourse to sacramental confession as soon as possible (#1452).

Imperfect contrition is also a gift from God which is born of the realization of the ugliness of sin and fear of eternal damnation. This kind of contrition, as the name implies, is imperfect, however it suffices when elicited in the context of sacramental confession. Outside of the sacrament, however, it is not sufficient to obtain the forgiveness of mortal or grave sin (# 1453).

It is necessary for the penitent to confess to a priest all serious or mortal sins which come to consciousness after a good examination of conscience. As the Council of Trent taught, and the Catechism reaffirms: "All mortal sins of which the penitents after a diligent self-examination are conscious must be recounted by them in confession, even if they are most secret..." (# 1456). To willfully and knowingly fail to confess all mortal sins can render the entire confession invalid as it results in lack of an integral confession. Quite simply, don't hold back on God. He already knows them, and He wants us to be set free from the weight of their guilt. Some sins, especially of a sexual nature, can be embarrassing to confess. Don't hold back. As the Nike commercial says: "Just do it!" Get it over with. What a blessing to be freed by God's loving mercy from that which keeps us from full communion with Him.

Only God can forgive sin, and He wills to do so through His ministerial priest, who acts in the person of Christ in the administration of the great sacrament of God's mercy. Confession to a priest is an essential part of the sacrament of penance or confession (#1456).

Contrary to what a few theologians have held in recent years, it is entirely possible to commit a mortal sin in one act. There are three traditional elements that constitute a mortal sin: serious matter (the sin in itself), knowledge that it is a sin, and full consent of the will in the light of this knowledge. There at times can be mitigating factors such as duress, psychological problems, etc.

Absolution takes away sin, but it does not remedy all of the wounds and disorders it causes. We must make satisfaction for sin, atone or expiate for the damage we have done through sin. This begins with the penance we are to be given by the priest. It should be salutary, meaning health-giving and restorative to the soul itself, and to the church or anyone in particular who has been hurt.

Finally, the absolution itself, which can be imparted only by a validly ordained priest, must be received by the penitent. What a great blessing for both the priest and the penitent to be part of the infinite mercy of God. How loving is our Father to have given us His Son. No matter how serious or long-standing your sins, know that God's mercy is more than enough. "Though your sins be as scarlet they can be made whiter than snow, washed in the Blood of the Lamb."