Contrition, is confession necessary?
What is contrition, according to Catherina of Siena and Teresa of Avila? Imperfect contrition is our fear of hell. Perfect contrition is suffering because we have offended God, and this brings sorrow and pain to us, accepting our inabilities and weaknesses (for example, Peter's denial of Jesus and later contrition compared to Judas's desperation).
Book: The Way of Perfection by Avila, St. Teresa of
The Israel "Pilgrimage" book (by James Martin) makes valid points in that Jesus' love makes Saint Peter jump into the water to greet Him after his denial (at the BBQ, Sea of Galilee) because he knew Jesus' unconditional love. The rich man turning away (in the Gospel) and Jesus saying: "Because I love you... I tell you to leave your riches". All of these are examples of unconditional love . The video of the unbaptized person in surgery best describes God's love. Even mystics' hearts would expand to accommodate God's love, physically (saint Gemma's account in her book). He'll forgive our sins, but we must also forgive our neighbor's trespasses, trespasses that will keep hurting even after being forgiven, when remembered (Sylvain Lavoie books are excellent at understanding unforgiveness and its relationship to addictions).
Book: Walk a New Path: Forgiveness, Grieving, and the Twelve Steps by Sylvain Lavoie OMI;
Book: Jesus: A Pilgrimage by Martin, James
Confession, perfect contrition, and satisfaction together; for proper expiation of our sins. The life of Saint Catherine of Genoa(1447-1510) may clarify 'satisfaction' for us,
After this [St. Catherine] made her general confession with such contrition and compunction, that her soul was at once cleansed of its sins, for God had pardoned them all, consuming them in the flames of love, with which he had already wounded her heart; yet, to satisfy justice he led her through the way of satisfaction, permitting that this contrition and self-knowledge should continue for nearly fourteen months; and when she had made satisfaction, relieved her of the sight of her sins so entirely that she never beheld again the least of them, no more than if they had all been cast into the depths of the sea.
Book: Life and Doctrine of Saint Catherine of Genoa by St. Catherine of Genoa
Confession takes a load off your shoulders. Forgiving your neighbor's trespasses takes another load off, allowing wounds to heal. The Eucharist strengthens your heart by grace. Sacraments are your tools to become more loving to others so that when we pass away, our soul is more inclined to choose heaven. The seven sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Confession, Anointing the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony are available and effective only in the Roman Catholic Church for our own salvation. Saint Thomas Aquinas in 1250 said,
As the Pope is the head of the whole Church, viz. during the time of his Pontificate, and with reference to a determined state, inasmuch as they are in the state of wayfarers. Secondly, because Christ is the Head of the Church by His own power and authority; while others are called heads, as taking Christ's place, according to 2 Cor. 2:10, "For what I have pardoned, if I have pardoned anything, for your sakes I have done it in the person of Christ," and 2 Cor. 5:20, "For Christ therefore we are ambassadors, God, as it were, exhorting by us."
Book: Drumming From Within: Tales of Hope and Faith from Canada's North by Sylvain Lavoie
Book: How to Make a Good Confession: A Pocket Guide to Reconciliation with God by Kane, John A
Book: 7 Secrets of Confession by Flynn, Vinny
Book: Spirit of Penance, Path to God: How Acts of Penance Will Make Your Life Holier and Your Days Happier by Hubert Van Zeller
Book: Manual for Conquering Deadly Sin by Fr Dennis Kolinski S J C
Lasting sorrow comes from recognizing that we have inflicted a wound on someone who is our God. A deeper knowledge that we have wounded him does not fade easily but, rather, begins to occupy our soul and draw tears of recognition within our soul. Perhaps it is God who does not allow a release from this remembrance that we have caused pain to him by our sin. For a time this sorrow can be like an extended illness even after the soul has been restored to grace. But as it turns gradually into a wound of love and is no longer felt as a debility limiting God's love, it begins to bless the soul. It is not disfiguring, even as it is recalled. It is not oppressive and discouraging, even as it cuts to the heart. Perhaps without this wound searing the soul in a quiet manner, we would never advance far in love.
Book: Conversion: Spiritual Insights Into an Essential Encounter with God by Fr. Donald Haggerty
Prophetic revelations made to Venerable Mother Mariana de Jesus(1618-1645) by Our Lady Mary:
In the 20th Century... the Sacrament of Extreme Unction will be little esteemed... people will die without receiving it - either because of the negligence of their families or their false sentimentality that tries to protect the sick from seeing the gravity of their situations, or because they will rebel against the spirit of the Catholic Church, impelled by the malice of the devil... many souls will be deprived of innumerable graces, consolations and the strength they need to make that great leap from time to eternity.
Book: The Saints and Servants of God; The Life of the Blessed Mary Ann of Jesus, de Paredes y Flores: An American Virgin Called the Lily of Quito by Giuseppe Boero
Albert Einstein's God letter says: "The word God is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weaknesses, the Bible a collection of honorable, but still primitive, legends which are nevertheless pretty childish...For me, the Jewish religion like all others is an incarnation of the most childish superstitions. And the Jewish people to whom I gladly belong and with whose mentality I have a deep affinity have no different quality for me than all other people". Corinthians 1:27 replies to his comment: "But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong". God chooses humble saints like Saint Bernadette Soubirous, with a learning disability, to represent Him for a reason. Learning natural laws and their equations seems to build pride in people. Just because a few may understand its complexities after arduous practice, training, and research, does not mean the discoverer is the creator of the thing discovered. That is why only a selected few have revelations, as heavenly visions would build pride in most, believing to be interiorly gifted and more so than other religious people. Pride is the most offensive mortal sin in the Catholic religion, satan was cast down into Hell by God because of it. It elicits rage and envy. Saint Thomas Aquinas in 1250 said about original sin,
Now man was so appointed in the state of innocence, that there was no rebellion of the flesh against the spirit. Wherefore it was not possible for the first inordinateness in the human appetite to result from his coveting a sensible good, to which the concupiscence of the flesh tends against the order of reason. It remains therefore that the first inordinateness of the human appetite resulted from his coveting inordinately some spiritual good... coveting some spiritual good above his measure: and this pertains to pride. Therefore it is evident that man's first sin was pride... the devil is head of all the wicked. For, as is written (Job 41:25): "He is king over all the children of pride."
The natural will of most wicked people can be good, but their deliberate will, having the power to be inclined by their affections, remains perverse because they continue to love the cause of their inordinate obsession. An obstinate will can never be inclined except to evil. Envy, jealousy, pride, anger, and vengeance are spiritual sins. Lust and gluttony are corporeal sins. Because the soul will separate from the body at death, spiritual sins are considered graver sins than flesh sins. But in this life, flesh sins are the most damaging, distancing us from anything spiritual.
Jesus explained to a Benedict Monk in 2012:
Loneliness is a consequence of sin, for all sin alienates men from their true selves, from their Creator and their God, and from one another. Loneliness is, I repeat, the consequence of sin, by which the perfection of My plan for human happiness is fractured and rendered unintelligible. Sin causes man to see himself distorted as in a broken mirror.
After reading John 14:27 and Matthew 10:34-39, Fr Jeffrey Kirby (STD) may add,
Jesus is distinguishing true peace from the peace of this world. The peace offered by the Lord is a tranquility of order that requires truth, strong virtue, and a love of goodness. The peace of this world is a false peace based on appeasement, compromise, and a "culture of nice" where everything and anything is acceptable. In such an enclosed world, reality is eclipsed and words such as tolerance are redefined and misunderstood. Disorder of sin is then normalized, and we begin to accept evil, even champion it. Key human concepts like love, freedom, and mercy are defined to mean whatever anyone wants them to mean... at the expense of overlooking sin.
Book: Kingdom of Happiness: Living the Beatitudes in Everyday Life by REV Fr Jeffrey Kirby
Before Jesus' crucifixion, a male lamb without blemish was sacrificed in the Jewish Temple at Jerusalem for repentance and atonement of sins. Its blood represents the human covenant with God. A pre-event in the use of Jesus' sinless blood for expiation of our sins in the Church confessional.
Are some sins too awful to be forgiven? Pope Francis said: "Our sins do not disgust the Lord." Let saint Mechtilde of the Blessed Sacrament (1614-1698) clarify,
Draw in God a fund of trust and ask him forgiveness for the outrage you show him by mistrusting his kindness. He is less offended by a crime than by distrust in his mercy... beware of mistrust. God is your Father and your Savior... regard him in these qualities and not as a tyrant. It is an insufferable insult to Him to distrust his kindness.
Book: The Mystery of Incomprehensible Love: The Eucharistic Message of Mother Mectilde of the Blessed Sacrament by Mother Mectilde de Bar
But let an exorcised demon further clarify confession. Advice from a series of compiled exorcisms from 1975 to 1978,
It should be proclaimed from the height of all pulpits that the return of true Confession is required. A penitential ceremony is a mass demonstration; it is a kind of stage setting which gives the illusion that everything is forgiven and pardoned... such a way of seeing things is very harmful for men, the more respect disappears, the more we [demons] celebrate... Each Confession gives, contains, incalculable graces which you will be able to understand only in eternity.
Book: Warnings from the Hereafter to the Contemporary Church: Confessions of Hell, literal text of revelations made by demons during exorcisms by Jean Marty
[Jesus speaks:] When there is fire in a house, a venthole is needed to let out the smoke and allow the inhabitant to enjoy the heat. Likewise, for anyone who desires to keep my spirit and my grace, habitual confession is useful in order to let out the smoke of sin. Although my divine spirit is in itself unchangeable, nevertheless it quickly withdraws from the heart that is not protected by the humility of confession...What awaits you, therefore, is the torment and company of demons, because you turn your back on me, you trample underfoot the signs of my humility, and you do not consider how I stood on the cross in your sight and for your sake... Hardness of heart is nothing other than the withdrawal of my divine grace, which is withdrawn when people do not give me, their God, their free possession, namely, their will [Saint Bridget, 1360]