On the Sacrament of ReconciliationIndex: On the Sacrament of ReconciliationScriptural PreludeWhen Jesus saw the crowds he went up on the mountainside.After he had sat down his disciples gathered around him, and he began to teach them: How blest are the poor in spirit: the reign of God is theirs. Blest too are the sorrowing; they shall be consoled. Blest are the lowly; they shall inherit the land. Blest are they who hunger and thirst for holiness; they shall have their fill. Blest are they who show mercy; mercy shall be theirs. Blest are the single-hearted for they shall see God. Blest too are the peacemakers; they shall be called children of God. Blest are those persecuted for holiness' sake; the reign of God is theirs. Blest are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of slander against you because of me. Be glad and rejoice, for your reward in heaven is great. (Matthew 5:1-12) On the evening of that first day of the week; even though the disciples had locked the doors of the place where they were in fear, Jesus came and stood before them. "Peace be with you," he said. When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. At the sight of the Lord the disciples rejoiced. "Peace be with you," he said again. "As the father has sent me, so I send you." And then he breathed on them and said: "Receive the Holy Spirit If you forgive people's sins, they are forgiven them; if you hold them bound, they are held bound." (John 20:19-23) Return to Index IntroductionPeace be with you.We are offering you, the reader, a general framework from within which to appreciate the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The following information is just information. We might label the following simply as instruction. We do not say the information is right or wrong (although we have intended the information to be correct in stating what it does state). The following information reflects more a Catholic Spirituality rather than a dogmatic statement. We tend to be non-dogmatic, so please do not take the following in any way to reflect the last word about the Sacrament of Reconciliation from the Catholic viewpoint. If you have any questions or need for clarifications, please contact your deacon or priest. Thank you. Peace and Joy! The White Robed Monks of St. Benedict Return to Index What is to reconcile?"To Reconcile" derives from two Latin words (re + conciliare) that together render the meaning "to unite." As we acknowledge ourselves and others as to who we truly are, we further realize Jesus's prayer: "Father, may they all be one as you and I are one that they may be one in us."To reconcile denotes:
Return to Index Process of ReconciliationIn effecting reconciliation, we befriend ourself. We cause ourself no harm. We adjust and settle the alleged diverse aspects we may have come to know about ourself. We realize that we are essentially light emanating through the prism we may have labeled our bifurcate self. As we do so, we become more and more conscious and less self-aware. We join with life, reconcile with life as it is rather than as we would have it be. We ground within or experience, "in its concrete presentness, in that vast background barely touched by conscious form (and which) has always appeared to be of superior validity when compared with any concept or institutional form."1We become like little children and live life in heaven rather than struggling to survive the drama of life in which we are simultaneously the antagonist and protagonist, the tragic victim and heroic conqueror. We are no longer imprisoned within the web of our delusions (allusions, and illusions). We simply recognize them for what they are and graciously surrender to them becoming free of them. Return to Index Paths of ReconciliationWithin the Christian tradition, there are also several other ways we can effect reconciliation with, that is, forgiveness from God. We can realize reconciliation:
The Sacrament of ReconciliationThrough the Sacrament of Reconciliation we receive God's pardon for our failure to abide by his will – by not intending to love God and our neighbor (Matthew 22:37-39) by what we do and not do. Our refusal "need not always be expressly directed against God, since there is a close connection between the relationship of a human person to God and to fellow human beings, so that essential resistance to God is enacted in the realm of human society, the very realm in which, both in the Old and New Testaments, God has made his concrete will known"3 reiterating specifically: love God, neighbor, upon these two laws is based the whole law of the prophets."Jesus Christ forgives sins THROUGH the Church with which he is united, the TOTUS CHRISTOS, in which he alone is the controlling head; the Spirit can be described by one symbolic word columba, dove. Thus it was regarded as a matter of course that in the reconciliation of the penitent sinners with the Church, which had been seriously wounded by their sins, peace was also created between sinners and God."4 Hence, "the Sacrament of Reconciliation is the effective memory of God's gracious judgment, in which the love of the Father through the Son and for the Son's sake, in the Holy Spirit, removes all human guilt."5 Therefore, we hear the priest saying when imparting absolution:
Return to Index Compassionate Reconciliation"The pastoral strategy of the New Testament Churches seems to have been one of compassion, connection, and challenge. Mutual correction and forgiveness form part of the fabric of community life (Matthew 5:23-24, James 5:16), but compassion is balanced against an awareness of the effect of son on the life and mission of the Church itself."6 God forgives us through the sacramental life of the Church. "The Church knows what it is both to forgive and to be forgiven, mindful always of the Lord's own prayer:'And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us'"7Return to Index Paths Leading to Reconciliation(Please refer to Sacrament of Anointing for an observation origin of sin. ( Please hit "BACK" to return to this page.)Human consciousness beings fluid like water and through the human condition, usually transforms into some stone-like quality. We might now recall the fluidity if a young child and the rigidity of a lonely, crusty, old man.(Perhaps the Christmas Carol, a story of reconciliation, characters of Bob Crachett and Mr. Scrooge might come to mind.) The young child lives in a world of fluid relativity of light. The crusty old man survives in a word of hard and fast absolutes of darkness. How do we transform ourselves from children of light into children of darkness? Return to Index Light/DarknessMost of us are neither totally in light nor totally in darkness. We navigate through the phenomenal realm sometimes living, sometimes surviving in a world of shadows. We are either reacting or responding to ourselves being alive here and now. We create the obstacles to our light that cast shows on our path. In other words, we make mistakes, we err. These obstacles we idolize. We idolize by making our relative interpretations about ourselves, people, places, things, and events absolute. We concretize the natural fluidity of the phenomenal realm. The more we do this, the less able we are to listen to God speaking to us as He is wont.Our obstacles, our idols, are a stimulus for further learning and a means for reconciliation if we let them be so. As we know, we learn (best) from our own mistakes. We either admit our mistakes or try to hide them either from our own self and/or others. The more we hide or try to hide our errors, the more we lie. The more we lie, the more we let lying become a habit. The more a habit, the less aware we are of our basic lies. Eventually we slip into denial which means: don't even know I am lying. The degree to which we empower our idols and to the same degree that we become unconscious of our personal responsibility, we create evil. Evil is only a power that we either use or we allow to use us. Evil is our creation. We create evil through our idolization of our mistakes, which are our creation. We diabolize evil by judging evil as bad; we satanize evil by creating it as a good. Good/bad like right/wrong and beauty/ugliness are just matters of personal interpretation for which we can only take personal responsibility for our personal interpretation. Hence, the admonition of Christ: Judge not, lest you be judged. (Matthew 7:1) He who is without sin, let him cast the first stone. (John 8:7) Return to Index SummaryIn summary we transform ourselves from light into darkness by hiding behind false projected images we create of ourselves in our projected image we may subsume into the phrase: I am right (even though I might know otherwise). We need to maintain this projection because we compel ourselves to follow our hidden agenda. Our hidden agenda we may subsume into the phrase: I can't be wrong. If we were to admit up front with full clarity and honesty that we were wrong, we might feel we were facing a fate worse than death embodied in a fear of not being accepted, appreciated, acknowledged and/or understood. We struggle to survive perceptually in the shadow of our former selves.Over time, we further imprison ourselves. We build more stress as we react more to ourselves and the external environment: we become more and more victims of our own self-created (and self-defeating) destinies. The more stress, the further into error we lead ourself by overworking, overeating, ..... Eventually, we create for ourselves a state of psycho-physical exhaustion, loss of drive and enthusiasm, we sink into illnesses to which we may be genetically predisposed and probably end our life, commit suicide, with a good cancer or heart attack. We cannot survive life. We can only live death. We engender a lot of pain and suffering. Things just do not happen to us. Things just happen. We happen to things. How we happen to things either initiate a healing process, a reconciliation of our selves to the Light of Truth, or we further harden and become further jaded and calloused, lonely creations surviving in a cynical universe of greed, hate, and delusion tempered by victimization and alienation as we live out a neurotic (living life as I think it is) or psychotic (living life as I hope it is) existence. As Socrates would have it: Only the truth can make you free. Instead of hiding, justifying or denying what we may have or have not done, we simply acknowledge, answer take, take responsibility for what we, in fact, have either done or not done. As we reconcile ourselves to our Truth, we then engender further the Gifts of the Holy Spirit such as courage, discretion, tolerance, compassion, forgiveness, the notes of wisdom. When we acknowledge our own error – whatever that error may be – we reconcile ourselves with our own self. Within our acknowledgement, we awaken to our personal sorrow for what we have or have not done. We confess our error: we verbally affirm our sin of omission or commission. Within our confession we make some amends to actualize our atonement (at-one-ment) with ourselves, our community, and God. In reconciliation as we further reawaken to our selves as children of Light, we grow more quiet and relaxed amid the activities of the world. We are conscience of what Rudolph Bultman has termed "the eschatology of the moment."8 We respond naturally, knowing the direction in which our happiness and continued growth lay. Within this reconciliation we may seek formal reconciliation with God through the Church in the Sacrament of Reconciliation and further reawaken to the peace of Christ: My peace I give unto you, my peace I give unto you not as the world gives, but as I give. (John 14:27) Peace be with you. Amen. Return to Index Notes On MoralityJudgments and the Human ConditionGiven who we are, we know when we are engaging in healthy or unhealthy behavior. The historical Jesus is alleged to have said: "Judge not, lest you be judged." (Mathew 7:1) Judging involves interpretation in this context, as to whether a specific behavior is "good" or "bad" when in reality the behavior is just a behavior. (Much like a rose is a rose regardless of those who might judge it beautiful or others, ugly). And we all make judgments all the time as part of our human condition. Perhaps our Lord was inviting us to be cognizant of the fact that:
Healthy and Unhealthy BehaviorsThe paradigm of healthy or unhealthy rather than "good" or "bad," "right" or "wrong" is perhaps more apt in that we can experience both directly within our own dynamic. By healthy we mean those behaviors that promote the natural course of living-dying; unhealthy, those behaviors that impede the natural course of living-dying. By living-dying we take the living-dying process in the widest as well as narrowest of meanings. In a nutshell, if we manifest stress related disorders of body or mind or body-mind, we have given ourselves direct evidence that we are engaging in unhealthy behaviors in the psycho-physical reality of our own givenness in this space-time continuum. We have not been present to who we truly are. Perhaps, instead, we have been living in our delusion of who we think we are.Return to Index Awareness and ConsciousnessIf we were then to regain our morality, we must reconcile ourselves through healing and possibly a cure. In the process of reconciliation, we become more conscious of who we are as we loose our self-awareness. We surrender what we are to who we are. We take further note of the language forms such as: "God Consciousness," "Christ Consciousness," "Buddha Consciousness," and so forth. We also note that terms like "God Awareness," or "Christ Awareness" we do not hear that often, if at all. We realize that the more Present we are, the less aware we are of our selves and others because we have emptied ourselves of our allusions, delusions, and illusions by being present to each dynamic of our ego function as well. We are no longer trapped in the mirror, surviving in the hall of mirrors, of dreams, hopes, and desires that further breed greed, hate, and delusion.Return to Index The Basic Message"Life in a consumer society is judged by the clothes we wear, the cars we drive, the electronic 'toys' we possess. Success, pleasure, and power are some of Western culture's prevailing values. Looking out for #1 – whether the self, one's neighbor or one's country – is the basic message, which can take both subtle and not-so-subtle forms. This emphasis on the individual and individual rights pervades our contemporary society and naturally influences us." ... "In this context of conflict between Gospel (Love God, Love Neighbor) and cultural values, we make our moral decisions. But what directs those choices? The desire to succeed? The hope for pleasure? The fear of punishment? The desire for integrity? The message of Jesus? The wisdom of the Christian tradition? The desire for a deeper relationship with God? Or some personally developed compromise?"Return to Index Moral Decisions"We... make moral decisions because choices and actions have real meaning and real consequences. Our moral choices and our reflection on THE ethical meaning of those choices are important because:
Return to Index The What of Moral Decisions"Even when we admit the utmost importance of our moral decisions, we still may feel confused by what we should do. Whether in the headline issues or our ordinary lives, many options are presented to US AS the 'right one,' even within Christianity itself. For example, we my be faced with deciding what kind of treatment is morally right for a dying patient. Society offers us choices that range from euthanasia to keeping the person alive at all costs. While our religious tradition is quite clear on this matter (only ethically ordinary means bust be used), it often gets interpreted in vary different ways. What are we to do?Return to Index What Ought I to be?"Our search for the WHAT of the moral life really implies a dual search: at the immediate level, the content of a specific moral choice (e.g., the kind of treatment for my dying parent); at the foundation level, the kind of person I wish to become (e.g., one embodying compassion, justice and love). The search at the first level asks: What ought I do? The search at the second level asks: What ought I BE?"We have already noted that our culture gives us many - and conflicting – answers to these questions. Again we need to recognize how influenced we are by these responses. Because our goal ('to be') will shape our means ('to do'), let's first consider what Christianity says about What I/we ought to be? The Christian tradition helps us answer the question, 'What ought I be?', by returning us to our religious roots, the scriptures, to discern What authentic human life is, to reveal the kind of people God calls us to be. "While we might include a number of elements, there are several essential aspects:
Basic Human Characteristics"Creation, covenant, incarnation, discipleship, resurrection – these aspects of Christian life form the basis for understanding What it means by be truly human. The thought of Karl Rahner, S.J., further develops this understanding. (Rahner, "The Dignity and Freedom of Man," in Theological Investigations, Vol. II, pp. 235-264). Based on his careful study, Rahner concludes that all humans share some basic characteristics.
Return to Index What Ought I To Do?"Moral choices are those that promote authentic human existence and the flourishing of all creation. Indeed, we say yes or no to 'being' through our actions. Perhaps a brief example here will show the relationship between the 'to be' and the 'to do' question, that is, how reality (the givenness of our lives and actions) is the basis of morality. If 'to be' human necessarily implies being body people, then we have an obligation to care for our health. Our choice to smoke and drink, eat excessively or exercise too little have detrimental effects on our bodies.The 'to do' of abusing our health conflicts with our 'to be' of being body people."...Christian ethics, then, helps us to remember that both character ('to be') and specific actions ('to do') are significant. ... Return to Index The How of Moral Decisison-Making"We have looked at the WHY (intention) and the WHAT (content) of Christian ethics. Our third area is method, HOW do we go about making moral decisions? Most major moral decisions are made by using one of the three following approaches:Three Methods
The Work of Conscience"Conscience plays a central role in the discernment process. Conscience is not a little voice or some inner police officer. It is simply the person trying to making sound judgments about moral questions. Our conscience does not suddenly appear, fully formed. It needs to be developed — a process traditionally called 'the formation of conscience.'"In Principles for A Catholic Morality (pp109-114), Timothy O'Connell summarizes the tradition and presents a very concise and helpful picture of conscience, describing (conscience) as three different dimensions of a person.
Return to Index Prime DirectiveIn summary, as a possible moral imperative following the historical Jesus' only two commandments: Love God, Love neighbor, one might state: Do no harm. In a situation where there are two or more healthy options, the question might be posed: Which behavior will engender the greater health. If there are two situations, and if an action must by empirical necessity be engaged, then Which will engender the greatest amount of health?.Peace and Joy! Return to Index Footnotes:1. Nolan P. Jacobson. The Heart of Buddhist Philosophy. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1988; p. 18.2. Herbert Vorgrimler. Sacramental Theology. Collegeville: The Liturgical Press, 1992; p. 203ff. 3. Vorgrimler, p. 201. 4. Vorgrimler, p. 208. 5. Vorgrimler, p. 220. 6. Richard F. McBrien. Catholicism. New York: Harper Collins, 1994; p. 837. 7. McBrien, p. 842. 8. Jacobson, p. 13. 9. Kenneth Overberg, S.J., "Christian Ethics and the Spiritual Director" in PRESENCE: The Journal of Spiritual Directors International Vol 3, No 2, May, 1997, pp. 47-55. Return to Index |