The church is incredibly blessed. What we pray is what we believe, and what we believe is what we pray. It is up to each and every one of us to be a symbol of God's love for us; it’s the primary ministry of the church. Every Sacrament celebrated by the church makes Jesus’ Passover sacrifice real for each of us here and now. God is timeless, and although he saved the world once and for all 2000 years ago, we make it real here and now because we are the body of Christ, his Church.
God is seen most fully in and through Jesus' Christ, who was both fully human and fully divine. Jesus is the sacrament of God and the church is the sacrament of Jesus; the Church is the sacrament of salvation. Each of us is meant to be living sacraments of salvation. Unfortunately, sin separates us from God and community, and reconciliation is meant to bring us back to God and community. Officially, sin in general is anything that damages charity (love). Mortal sins destroy charity and take us away from God, while venial sins wound charity and turn our attention away from God.
Signs tell us what to do, like stop or go, but sacraments actually do what they say, like the Baptismal gift of the Holy Spirit. The rite of reconciliation is all about the love of God. Jesus is the source, agent, and goal of the sacrament of healing or penance. Sin is committed against the community, which is us, and the priest is the representative of the community. The object of penance is grace, which comes from the idea of gratitude. It is “an offer from God that we cannot refuse”, and invitation to a loving relationship with our God. A life of grace is ultimately a union with God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is a loving relationship between us and the Triune God.
It’s important to remember that sin isn’t complicated; it’s simply choosing to do the wrong thing. Sin isn’t simple however, because it is anything that separates us from God. It’s different for everyone; money, fame, cars, or even that new TV can each contribute to our occasion of sin. Anything that turns our attention away from God is a sin, and it not only affects us personally but it affects our community, because we are the body of Christ.
Jesus gave the ritual of penance to the church in community, not to individuals. A personal confession of sin is missing the ritual component of community which is suggested in the lines, "wherever two or more are gathered in my name". Confession requires intention. An authentic celebration of penance requires a personal sense of sorrow, the communal prayer of absolution, and a personal willingness to conversion.
Public penance was practiced by the early church, during which the penitent was excluded from Eucharist for a period of time, while they performed works of penance. Private penance eventually became the norm, and may involve a spiritual director who can help us live a more conscious reflection of our baptism. Thankfully, our priests are graced with amnesia; they rarely remember the subject of another’s confession.
We the people are the "Body of Christ" and when we miss a Sunday the body of Christ is not complete. You cannot stay at home and pray with the family because it dislocates the body. It denies the ministry of the church, and you are unable to “take this bread and take this wine” as commanded in the Last Supper. We live in a “me first” world, but Christians know that it’s not about the world helping me; it's about me helping the world. Part of our ministry is to pray for our brothers and sisters,and one of the greatest heresies in our world today is the "I'm only human" excuse. To be fully human is to realize our divinity as the sons and daughters of God.
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