Can I go to Confession again?

[Ziggamafu]

So my last trip to Confession yielded a penence that could stretch out for a year. The priest told me to go to Adoration for 30 minutes on three different occassions throughout the next year. Cool penance, if you ask me. But I like to go to frequent Confession and it's doubtful (if not impossible) that I'll be able to make it to Adoration on these three occassions before my soul next demands some Confessional council / absolution.

...I'll go, regardless. Just want to know oppinions, here. A similar thing happened when I went to Confession last July. I was told to do five things for penance. The first four I did as quickly as possible (before my next regular Confession). But the fifth would be at least uncomfortable for me and seemingly lacking in justice toward the offended party involved. At most, it could indirectly (yet gravely) harm uninvolved persons -- at least right now. I decided that it would be best to wait a few years to complete the penance I was assigned.

So I guess there are two issues involved, here:

1.) Do you think that your previously assigned penance has to be completed before going to your next regular session of Confession?

2.) Do you think that it's mortally sinful (i.e. I've chosen to go to Hell) to post-pone penance?

P.S. My priest and I both forgot the Act of Contrition -- he just absolved me; was my last Confession valid?

[phatcatholic]

[quote name='Ziggamafu' date='Oct 2 2005, 06:35 PM']1.) Do you think that your previously assigned penance has to be completed before going to your next regular session of Confession?[/quote]
no, its not absolutely necessary. some penances are time-sensitive and just take a while to complete. as long as you are committed to completing them and that you eventually do complete them, you are fine.


[quote]2.) Do you think that it's mortally sinful (i.e. I've chosen to go to Hell) to post-pone penance?[/quote]
well, technically, you are the best judge of what is mortally sinful, b/c you know better than i would the level of knowledge and consent that is involved. i can really only help you determine what is a grave sin, or a sin that is serious in nature. now, as for whether or not postponing penance is gravely sinful, it depends on why you are postponing it. there are just reasons for doing so, as well as unjust ones. i didn't get a very clear picture of your situation from what you shared in your post, so i can't really say if your reasons are just or not. i guess its something you take on a case-by-case basis.


[quote]P.S. My priest and I both forgot the Act of Contrition -- he just absolved me; was my last Confession valid?[right][snapback]743990[/snapback][/right][/quote]
yes, it was valid. you are forgiven.

i hope that helps

pax christi,
phatcatholic

[Ziggamafu]

So is it a "grave matter" to postpone penence, then? I'm trying to figure out if there are any canon laws or anything that suggest whether it's venial or grave...

without going into detail, here's the deal: i screwed over a family member pretty bad around ten years ago (i know, i was young; but what i did was pretty bad). my penence was to tell that person what i did, that i think it was wrong, that i'm sorry, etc. the problem is that there are some very delicate family matters going on right now (involving courts and everything; my dad passed away last october and one of my sisters took pretty much everything he left for my mom) that could stretch out for years to come. anyway, i don't want what i did a long time ago to be brought up somehow that it might indirectly harm my mom's case. plus, the person that i hurt (for reasons i won't get into) probably wouldn't even understand the significance of what i did, at the moment. it's complicated, but this whole thing involves a confused network of really, really, BAD family history and relations...

i'm kind of overly scrupulous usually and i wish i wouldn't have even been given this as a part of my penence because now, until it's completed, i'm going to be stressed out. i want to complete it, but i also want it to mean something and not indirectly harm people not involved. it's confusing, but i'm pretty sure my intentions are more good than selfish.
[/quote]

Edited October 8, 2005 by Ziggamafu

[tojo]

Zig, could you possibly mention the difficulty of the penance to a preist (preferably the one who assigned it to you) and ask him some of these things? Perhaps he could somehow exempt you from the penance until your family situation is straightened out. I don't know, it's worth finding out about though, right?

[phatcatholic]

yes, i think that talking to the priest who gave you the penance is a good idea.

[Ziggamafu]

well, the problem with that is this particular confession was during my 1 year anniversary vacation - a long ways away.

= (

[phatcatholic]

haha, this is like a soap opera!!

[tojo]

Well, ask a different preist about this and see what he says!!!!

[Ziggamafu]

can penences be dispenced/changed by a different priest?

[tojo]

[quote name='Ziggamafu' date='Oct 15 2005, 11:25 AM']can penences be dispenced/changed by a different priest?
[right][snapback]759323[/snapback][/right]
[/quote]

Idk, ask a priest...

[Sarah_JC]

Hey, on this topic.

I had a confession once, right before mass (I was unsure if I was in a state of grace) and the priest gave me a pennance of having a talk with the person involved in the mortal? sin. Then, 15 min later, it was time for mass. As the person was not there, I went to mass, and recieved communion without completeing my pennance.

Was that... uh... "kosher"?

[phatcatholic]

[quote name='Sarah_JC' date='Oct 19 2005, 01:36 PM']Was that... uh... "kosher"?
[right][snapback]763841[/snapback][/right]
[/quote]
yes.

[Aloysius]

in confession the absolution is the forgiveness. the penance is more classified under the category of indulgence, it does not earn you your forgiveness as it were, it helps to heal the damage caused to your soul by sin. forgiveness and healing are two distinct things. once one is forgiven, he has the all-clear in God's eyes. however, the soul is still damaged and penance helps to heal that. so once you're absolved, you can do anything any other Catholic in a state of grace can do regardless of whether you've done your penance yet.

they only way a penance could have any effect on your forgiveness is if you receive absolution with the INTENT not to do the penance. otherwise, penance is not essential to the forgiveness you receive in the sacrament, though it would be the sin of disobedience not to do it.