Even after receiving the gift of salvation in the Sacrament of Baptism, we still struggle with sin in our daily lives. The Sacrament of Confession gives us a path back to forgiveness for the sins we commit after Baptism.
“Water and tears: the water of Baptism and the tears of repentance.”St. Ambrose, on the two conversions · CCC 1429
A priest is available in the confessional at the following times.
All confessionals are equipped with a screen, and some offer chairs for a face-to-face celebration of the sacrament. Reconciliation is also available by appointment — please call the rectory office at 314-373-8202 for an appointment.
Confession, like every Sacrament, is a personal encounter with Jesus. You tell your sins to a priest who acts in the person of Christ, with the authority to listen, offer guidance, assign a penance, and speak the words of absolution.
Jesus gave His apostles this authority after His Resurrection. He appeared to them in a locked room and said, “Peace be with you… Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (Jn 20:19–23) Through these words, Jesus sent His apostles out to forgive sins in His name, and gave them the responsibility to hear each person’s sins directly so they could exercise that authority with care.
Luke 15 gives us the clearest picture of this mercy in the story of the Prodigal Son. A son demands his inheritance early, leaves home, and wastes everything on reckless living. When a famine strikes and his money runs out, he decides to return home and ask his father to take him back — not as a son, but as a servant. Instead, his father runs to meet him on the road:
“But while he was yet at a distance, his father saw him and had compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him… But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him… for this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’”Luke 15:20–24
God responds to our sin the way the father in this story responds to his son: with compassion, not condemnation. He invites us to come to Him for mercy, and meets us as we approach.
What a great gift this sacrament is to the sinner who seeks to become a saint! When we receive it with a truly contrite heart, we can know for certain that we are forgiven. Through the priest, Jesus Himself offers forgiveness to the penitent, as well as grace to strengthen the person against future temptations.
Prepare beforehand by starting with prayer, asking for God’s help using a traditional prayer or a prayer of your own.
Make a good examination of your conscience. You may find it helpful to use a prepared list to aid the formation of your conscience — inspired by the Ten Commandments or a list of virtues and vices.
As you enter the confessional, make the sign of the cross and pray “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” to begin the sacrament. The priest then offers a greeting and may read a short passage of Scripture.
Indicate how long it has been since your last confession.
Confess your sins in kind and number (don’t worry if you have to generalize the number of times, especially if a lot of time has passed). It is generally best to list any mortal sins first and then venial. You are not required to confess venial sins, but it is a good thing to do — especially if you would like advice about a habitual venial sin.
If it has been a while, don’t worry — the priest will help you. It may help to mention your state in life (married, single, line of work, etc.). Simply state what you did, convicting yourself and not blaming others. This is not the place for excuses; it is the place to be rid of guilt in sincerity and honesty.
When you have finished, you may indicate so by saying “I am sorry for these and all the sins of my past life” or “these are all my sins.”
The priest may ask questions to clarify anything unclear, and may offer advice on how to avoid temptation or grow in a particular virtue.
The priest will give you a penance — a prayer or action to join your sufferings to the Cross of Christ and offer reparation for the effects of your sins. (cf. Colossians 1:24)
He will then say the words of absolution, acting in the person of Christ — the words of forgiveness and reconciliation at the heart of this sacrament. At the end, answer, “Amen.”
Do the penance as soon as reasonably possible. It will diminish the temporal punishment of sins already forgiven.
During His public ministry, Jesus forgave the sins of many people (see Matthew 9:1–8; Luke 7:36–50; John 8:1–11). It was such a prominent part of His ministry that it can rightly be said He either had this ability or He was a liar. Jesus gave His apostles the authority to cast out demons and to forgive sins. In John 20:21–23 the risen Lord appeared in the locked upper room and told them: “As the Father sent Me, so I am sending you. Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” This power to pardon did not cease with the Apostles, because they consecrated bishops to continue the work of the Church until the end of time. This handing on of authority to each generation is called apostolic succession.
It is difficult to imagine how the disciples were to determine which sins were to be forgiven and which retained unless the person seeking forgiveness confessed his sins to the one charged with the power to forgive in the name of God. This understanding not only has Biblical roots, but can also be traced to some of the earliest documents written by Church fathers during the apostolic period. When a person confesses his sins to a priest and receives absolution, through the promise of Matthew 18:15–18, the repentant sinner encounters Christ Himself.
No. Due to what is called the seal of confession, the priest can never tell others about the sins he hears in the confessional, or even imply through his speech any connection between a person and any sins they confess. Throughout the history of the Church, many priests have endured prison or worse at the hands of civil authorities who tried to get them to reveal what they heard in confession, because they refused. Church law requires this of a priest, and the penalty for revealing someone’s sins heard in confession is the permanent loss of faculties.
“Given the delicacy and greatness of this ministry and the respect due to people, every confessor, without any exception and under very severe penalties, is bound to maintain ‘the sacramental seal’ which means absolute secrecy about the sins revealed to him in confession.” (Compendium of the Catechism, 309)
“The effects of the sacrament of Penance are: reconciliation with God and therefore the forgiveness of sins; reconciliation with the Church; recovery, if it has been lost, of the state of grace; remission of the eternal punishment merited by mortal sins, and remission, at least in part, of the temporal punishment which is the consequence of sin; peace, serenity of conscience and spiritual consolation; and an increase of spiritual strength for the struggle of Christian living.” (Compendium of the Catechism, 310)