“This is my body…this is my blood…shed for you and for all so that sins may be forgiven”.
These are the words we hear at the Consecration at every Mass when bread and wine become the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ. In and of themselves, these words are awesome! They also tell us why this all happened….why Christ suffered so much…why He shed so much blood…why He died such a horrific death: so that sins may be forgiven.
The night before He died, He sweat blood in the garden. Sweat blood…so that sins may be forgiven.
The next day, He was whipped over 40 times front and back….and the soldiers used metal hooks at the end of their whips that ripped off his flesh. He was a bloody mess…so that sins may be forgiven.
Then, they mocked Him, spit on Him, and gave Him a crown of thorns that pierced His skull, causing blood to go into his eyes…so that sins may be forgiven.
They gave him a cross to carry…a very heavy cross. He fell three times, one time falling face first into stone pavement and breaking his nose…so that sins may be forgiven.
Then, He hung upon the cross for at least three hours…could barely breathe…could barely speak. And when He spoke, he said, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do”. Then, He breathed his last…so that sins may be forgiven.
If you don’t have your sins forgiven, then Christ suffered and died in vain…all the blood He shed would be a waste.
I beg you, I beg you, I beg you: go to Confession….so that your sins may be forgiven.
2 comments:
How humbling that Jesus suffered so much for me and for all of us. Thank you Jesus! Confession is a terrific sacrament, but for venial sins, can't I just ask God for forgiveness directly?
Marianne,
Technically, you don't have to confess venial sins. So, you're off the hook; however, the Church highly recommends taking advantage of this Sacrament. "Without being strictly necessary, confession of everyday faults (venial sins) is nevertheless strongly recommended by the church. Indeed the regular confession of our venial sins helps us form our conscience, fight against evil tendencies, let ourselves be healed by Christ and progress in the life of the Spirit. By receiving more frequently through this sacrament the gift of the Father's mercy, we are spurred to be merciful as he is merciful (CC1458)."
The only two sacraments we can receive more than once are………Confession and Communion. God is smart - he knew what he was doing when he sent His only son for our salvation - he knows we'll mess up, often, and he knows we need His strength to help us from messing up! Christ loves each and every one of us. I'd imagine He'd love to hear your voice, and offer His grace and forgiveness through His voice here on earth. In fact, that's what Christ died for, literally - our salvation. He died so we could be with Him. So, in my humble opinion, I'd say, "Go to Confession and tell Him about your venial sins." Offer Him a "thanks for all you've done" kind of thing through confession. It is empowering and cleansing.
Lastly, I believe it's a lot harder to state your sins out loud, to a priest (Christ's conduit or persona in Christi) than it is to have a conversation between God and yourself. I'm not sure why, but for some reason, the more I confess my sins, venial and/or mortal, the more aware I become of them. Being cognizant of a behavior is the first step to either maintaining a behavior (if it is beneficial and healthy to one's self and others) or, to eradicating or changing a behavior (if it is harmful to one's self or others.)
Post a Comment