The Lenten season is at hand. This Wednesday, March 2, we celebrate Ash Wednesday. This is the fruitful season of the Liturgical calendar to practice virtues in our Christian life mainly focusing on the passion, death, and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. By practicing virtues, we become closer to our Christian vocation. St Paul says, "for God didn't call us to impurity but to holiness" (1 Thessalonians 4,7).
The sacrament of Reconciliation (confession or penance) really helps us to grow in holiness. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) explains the effects of this sacrament as follows. "The spiritual effects of the sacrament of Penance are:
reconciliation with God by which the penitent recovers grace
reconciliation with the Church
remission of the eternal punishment incurred by mortal sins
remission, at least in part, of temporal punishments resulting from sin
peace and serenity of conscience, and spiritual consolation
an increase of spiritual strength for the Christian battle." (CCC 1496)
Each sacrament is an efficacious sign of grace. Through the sacrament of reconciliation, we are given the grace to regain the original holiness which we received through the sacrament of Baptism. Unfortunately, we Catholics don't understand the significance and the effects of this great Sacrament and as a result we neglect to receive this sacrament.
How often should a catholic go to confession? According to Canon Law, "after having reached the age of discretion, each member of the faithful is obliged to confess faithfully his or her grave sins at least once a year” (CIC, c. 989). At the same time the CCC teaches, "anyone conscious of grave sins must receive the sacrament of Reconciliation before coming to Communion"(CCC 1457). Basically, we are required to go to confession once per year. But if we desire to receive Holy communion on a weekly or daily basis, then we need to go to confession every time we are conscious of grave sins. It is also appreciated that we confess our venial sins too.
Confession is a beautiful sacrament of God’s mercy and should not be looked at as a “requirement,” but as an “opportunity” to receive God’s love. It gives us the ability to repair our relationship with God and with the Church, opening us up to a shower of God’s grace. We should confess because we love God, not because we “have to,” though the requirements are there to lead us along the path of eternal life.