One of our most vital tasks as catechumenate ministers is forming seekers in living a penitential life. “Penance” and “penitential” have a lot of meanings in Catholic teaching. We sometimes use the words “reconciliation” and “confession” interchangeably with “penance,” especially when we are talking about the sacrament of penance. My goal in this article is […]
More than just confession: Principles for living a penitential life
Q: For the first time we have only Candidates and no Catechumens preparing for the sacraments at the Easter Vigil. Can we/do we celebrate the Scutinies as prescribed, and do we use the Year A readings for RCIA even if we have no Catechumens? A: It is a little confusing as to where to find
Q&A: Can you celebrate the Scrutinies with baptized candidates if you have no catechumens?
Q: Should an unbaptized catechumen celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation prior to Easter Vigil? A: An unbaptized person cannot celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation—or any sacrament—until they have been baptized. See the Catechism of the Catholic Church, #1213: Holy Baptism is the basis of the whole Christian life, the gateway to life in the Spirit
Q&A: Reconciliation (confession) before Baptism?
Sacramental reconciliation has a complicated history. Understanding a little history can sometimes help with understanding current practice. Baptism—the original sacrament of reconciliation The first thing to know is that the early church didn’t have any kind of ritual celebration that we would recognize as reconciliation. Baptism washed away all sin, and that was at first
A simple history of reconciliation for RCIA catechists
When I was a kid, confession was easy to understand. I did something wrong. I went to confession. End of story. Today, it’s more complex than that. Pope John Paul II even said so. “The term and the very concept of penance are very complex,” he said. So if even the pope thinks it’s complex,
Teach catechumens the real meaning of penance
A year or two after I realized that Santa was really my mom, I also realized she didn’t go out to buy and wrap gifts on Christmas eve. The gifts had to have been acquired well before and therefore had to be hidden somewhere in our house! One day I went snooping to find them.
What stealing from my cousin taught me about sin
