Very good. A snippet.
Most Catholics in our culture have about a second-grade level of their faith. I mean that not as an insult — that’s a description. Ask them: “What are the Ten Commandments?” The vast majority can’t name the Ten Commandments.Read more: http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/the-confessional-is-a-place-of-victory/#.VQJPPFtLwQY.twitter#ixzz3UHUB9Yk7
So the examination of conscience is still a second-grade exam — “Did I pull my sister’s hair or disobey my parents?” It should be: “How am I treating my co-workers? Do I tell white lies on a daily basis? Have I harbored grudges or forgiven people? How do I treat my wife?”
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Were you ever shocked by a penance a priest gave you personally?
At the time after college, in my heart I had been away from the Church and finally went to confession. It was a missionary priest. He gave me a penance of one Hail Mary. I said, “Isn’t there more than that?!”
He said to me, “There is, but I’m going to be fasting for you for the next month.” It was incredible to realize that’s what he did. It was a really powerful reality for me to know that. I didn’t realize that priests are required to do penance for the people who go to confession to them. It was striking.
Photo: Aquitaine Rose
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