I do think it is funny/sad that people will pay a speaker to come tell them what anyone who takes the holy Faith seriously could tell them if asked. Admitting my daily failure to live according to the teachings of Christ, I must say that I have tried to press the importance of a few of these items in my catechism & Scripture classes, & in reply usually I just get blank stares with crickets chirping in the background.
With that intro, here’s my point-by-point take on the Seven Pillars of Catholic Spirituality, 1 or 2 points at a time…
Pillar No. 1: Confession – It is true that the world has lost its sense of sin in general, but among Christians who still have a sense of right & wrong many will say they just “take it Jesus.” Apart from setting aside Scripture on the matter of confession, being such masters of self-deception as we humans are, our desire to “just take it Jesus” quickly devolves into, “I’ll take it to Jesus as soon as I have something serious to confess, which, I mean, really isn’t that often is it? I mean, virtually never; because when I said those things to that person, they really deserved it; & when I took that stuff, I really needed it; & when I slept with so-n-so, I was just loving my neighbor like we’re supposed to; & when I did this or that, it’s because I can justify anything whatsoever to myself. Nope, I don’t really ever have anything to take to Jesus. He loves me just as I am & he forgives everything I do.”
Sure he loves you, but he is also calling you to something far greater, & refusal to seriously acknowledge one's wrong-doings is refusal to enter into the heavenly banquet (Mt 22). Did you notice that the king's open invitation to his son's wedding banquet came down rather suddenly? Remember the poor sap that was thrown out because he didn’t have his clean, white wedding garment ready? Don’t be that guy!
This is pretty easy: just on the human level we need to spend time examining our thoughts, words, & deeds, & then we have to own our sins before someone else so as to get the poison out of our system by actually saying them aloud to a confident. Think of all the money paid to psyhiatrists who ask us, "And how does that make you feel?" What people really want to hear is, "My child, your sins are forgiven. Now go & sin no more." So, on the supernatural level, the sacrament brings grace that helps us to overcome those things that plague us & restores the joy & peace proper to children of God & restores harmony with others. I assure you, Satan hates Confession. So get in the box. You’ll be glad you did.
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