Pastor’s Letter: March 22, 2026

Pastor’s Letter: March 22, 2026

20 Mar 2026 | Posted by: chadmin

Dear. St. Philomena Parish Family,

Blessings and peace to you all! Fr. Daniel and I received so many positive comments from last week’s homily where we talked through some models of Reconciliation—I’m so glad it was fruitful for many! While we certainly had some fun with a few lighthearted things, hopefully it will continue to serve as a practical reminder of the joy of this great Sacrament of Mercy.

This week, we’ll conclude our review of Reconciliation with an overview of the Order of Penance and some tips for making a fruitful Confession. As we mentioned last weekend, please don’t ever worry about saying “exactly the right words” or the exact order of the parts—we priests are always willing to help if needed. The most important part of the Sacrament is being honest about our sins and failings and receiving the wonderful mercy of our loving Lord! The classic structure is there to guide us…but always feel free to ask if you have any questions or are unsure.

Overview of the Order of Penance:

• Begin by making the sign of the cross and saying: “Bless me Father for I have sinned. It has been (how long?) since my last confession.” This helps the priest understand the context of the sins confessed…and will help him give a more fitting counsel.
• “These are my sins…” Continue by confessing your sins simply and honestly. For mortal sins, confess those in kind and number as far as possible. For example, you could say, “I took the name of God in vain 3 times…or if you aren’t sure of the exact number you can give an estimate that will help the priest understand: “I took the name of God in vain a lot, probably multiple times a week.” Feel free to confess any venial sins you have on your heart as well. You may conclude by sayings some version of: “For these and all my sins (and those I have forgotten), I am sorry.” This is a cue to the priest that you are finished, and is a nice way of including anything that you are forgetting in the moment.
• The priest may then offer some counsel and will assign you your penance.
• He will then ask you to pray an Act of Contrition. There are several different versions (I counted at least 11 versions in the Order of Penance Book!), but here is a common one:

“O my God I am heartily sorry for having offended You, and I detest all my sins because Your just punishments, but most of all because they offend You, my God, who are all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Your grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasions of sin. Amen.”

Another common (and short) one: “Lord Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. Amen.”

• The priest will then grant you Absolution (the prayer of God’s forgiveness).
• After Confession, pray or perform your penance.

Be filled with joy as your heart overflows with God’s grace and love!

A few other hints at making a good confession:

• Pray that the Holy Spirit will help you to know your sins and trust in the Lord’s mercy. Ask the Lord to help you be honest and confident in His love for you.
• Set aside time to do an Examination of Conscience. Really think about the parts of your life where you know you need/want Jesus to be at work. The trifold Guide to Confession has an excellent examination based on the 10 Commandments.
• Plan to confess your sins simply and honestly. As Fr. Daniel suggested, start with the ones that are harder to say. If it is helpful, feel free to make some notes—as we mentioned, we have in each of our Confessionals a “God’s New Beginning Box” where you can place notes when you are finished.
• Trust in the love of Jesus from the Cross and remember He is on the Cross so that your sins can be forgiven—He wants to give you that gift! Receiving a gift Jesus wants to give you will bring Him (and you) joy!

Take the challenge to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation sometime between now and Easter.

In Christ,
Father Luke