A Pastor's Lenten Advice on Sin & Confession

"Every slip, every fall from grace, is serious, even though we distinguish between mortal and venial sins.  And even venial sins, those lesser matters that we do thoughtlessly and without an intention of breaking our unity with God, accumulate in the soul and alienate us from our loving Father.  

Sin is so serious that to free us from it the very Son of God ‘was made sin for us’ ... we must never presume upon the mercy of God and never imagine that he must be pleased with us because we are so sincere and well-intentioned.

Let there be true repentance and real examination of conscience that includes facing areas where you may have dissented from the doctrinal or moral content of the faith.

Let there be lines for confession comparable to the lines for ashes.  Much has been lost in the decades when people came every week or few weeks to Confession.  And what has been lost is a both a critical piece of an intact Catholic culture and lively sense of our need for grace."

- Father Leonard Klein