It is only when attention is drawn to their own particular sin, to OUR own sin, that the human mind goes haywire, because it is hard to look at yourself in the mirror and say: "I am a sinner. I am corrupt. I am fallen short of the glory of God."
And yet, whether we admit it or not, we have.
And here is where I take a right turn, as it were.
As many of you know, I'm Catholic. Catholics have the Sacrament of Confession, where we enter a booth, pour out our sins, and receive penance and absolution.
Now, there's whole boatloads of Protestants who want to point and tell me that this amounts to nothing but a blank check to do evil again, because we can just go into a booth and be forgiven.
But it's not that easy.
True penance and absolution require that we, the sinners asking for forgiveness, resolve to do our best not to sin again. That's point number one. It's not a blank check to do what you want.
Point number two is this: The very act of walking into a booth and telling a priest about your sins first requires that you sit down and admit "I screwed up. I sinned. I have harmed people. My actions were evil, and this is why."
That's not easy to do, especially in this day and age where modern people are taught that evil is relative, and intentions matter more than effects of your actions. This is why modernists try to devalue the Church. This is why the Novus Ordo church does it's best to reassure people that God loves them even if they don't go to confession and everything is alright. Because looking at your actions in the harsh light of God's truth does not leave you feeling good. It doesn't leave you feeling like you're on top of the world. It makes you feel very, very small. Understanding how your actions, your sins have hurt other people is the first step in confession. Absolution and forgiveness only come after you deal with that unpleasant reality.
And dealing with that unpleasant reality is not something that the Left does well. Hell, it's not something that they do at all.
But it's something that Catholics are called to do every day. Or at least, it's something we are supposed to do every day. Stepping into that confession booth on Sunday isn't a pleasant experience at the onset, because it requires me to first look at what I've done, and then admit that I am a sinner. I am not perfect. I have done things that have harmed other people and my own soul.
Do you think either of the Clintons go to confession? Hell no. It's much easier to ignore it. It's much easier to rationalize it. Going back to Vox:
We are all potential Leftists. We are all capable of rationalizing away our own particular sins. How good I am, because I am not a glutton, says the slender whore. How good I am, because I am not a slut, says the obese woman as she stuffs her face. How good I am, because I am not a murderer, says the homosexual. How good I am, because I am not a thief, says the killer.
"Well, sure I sinned but..." That doesn't work when you truly confess your sins. And that's why so many of the Left hate the Church, even those who are inside the Church (Looking at you there, Francis!) So I'll go to confession a bit later in the day today, and I'll look at what I've done and what I've failed to do. It's not really pleasant, but it is cathartic.
The Confiteor is said three times throughout the traditional Latin Mass - once by the servers, once by the Priest, and once again by the servers prior to communion.
| Confiteor Deo omnipotenti, beatae Mariae semper Virgini, beato Michaeli Archangelo, beato Joanni Baptistae, sanctis Apostolis Petro et Paulo, omnibus Sanctis, et vobis, fratres (et tibi pater), quia peccavi nimis cogitatione, verbo et opere: mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. Ideo precor beatam Mariam semper Virginem, beatum Michaelem Archangelum, beatum Joannem Baptistam, sanctos Apostolos Petrum et Paulum, omnes Sanctos, et vos, fratres (et te, pater), orare pro me ad Dominum Deum nostrum. Amen. |
I confess to Almighty God,
to Blessed Mary ever Virgin,
to Blessed Michael the Archangel,
to Blessed John the Baptist,
to the holy Apostles Peter and Paul and to all the Saints,
(and to you, Father)that I have sinned exceedingly in thought, word and deed;
(strike your breast thrice)
through my fault, through my fault, through my most grievous fault.
Therefore I beseech Blessed Mary ever Virgin,
Blessed Michael the Archangel,
Blessed John the Baptist,
the holy Apostles Peter and Paul and all the Saints,
and you, Father,to pray for me to the Lord our God for me.
Amen.
Try it sometime.
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