Secret of Confession , livre ebook

TAN Books - O.P. Rev. Fr. Paul O'Sullivan

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49 pages

English

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Probably the most intriguing and consoling book ever written about the Sacrament of Confession. This little gem contains a host of true stories about Confession, plus quotes from the Bible and the Saints of the early Church. Shows how even Protestants admire Confession, how it comes from Our Lord Himself, and gives renewed courage and youthfulness of spirit to the heart and soul. Says that by means of weekly Confession any sin can be conquered! Filled with warmth and love.

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Philosophie et théologie

Christian theology

Catholic Church

Christianity

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Publié par	TAN Books
Date de parution	01 mars 2010
Nombre de lectures	0
EAN13	9780895557865
Langue	English

Informations légales : prix de location à la page 0,0224€. Cette information est donnée uniquement à titre indicatif conformément à la législation en vigueur.

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BOOKS BY FATHER PAUL O’SULLIVAN, O.P.
HOW TO BE HAPPY—HOW TO BE HOLY
ALL ABOUT THE ANGELS
AN EASY WAY TO BECOME A SAINT
THE HOLY GHOST—OUR GREATEST FRIEND
READ ME OR RUE IT
HOW TO AVOID PURGATORY

CUM PERMISSU SUPERIORUM. Imprimatur: Can. Emmanuel Anaquim, V.G. Lisbon October 15, 1936
First published around 1936 by Edições do Corpo Santo, Lisbon, Portugal. Retypeset and reprinted in 1992 by TAN Books and Publishers, Inc., with permission of Saint Martin de Porres Apostolate, Dublin, Ireland. Retypeset and reprinted again in 2010 by Saint Benedict Press, TAN Books, with permission of Saint Martin de Porres Apostolate, Dublin, Ireland.
The type in this book is the property of TAN Books, and may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without written permission from the publisher.
ISBN: 978-0-89555-459-8
Library of Congress Catalog Card No.: 92-61255
Printed and bound in the United States of America.
TAN Books Charlotte, North Carolina 2010
“The writer has conferred with many experienced confessors, and all, without exception, agree that no vice is so gross, so deep-rooted, so vicious that it will not yield to frequent Confession …”
( Page 74 )
NUNCIATURE APOSTÓLIGA EM PORTUGAL
9 April 1943
Dear Father O’Sullivan,
I approve most heartily of your booklet on Confession. It supplies a need much felt, viz., a clear and practical explanation of the strength and consolation which Confession gives to the faithful.
You rightly emphasize the fact that Confession does not only pardon sin but that it efficaciously helps the greatest sinners to sin no more; it gives the weakest strength and consoles the most abandoned, if only they confess frequently.
You touch on points which are little understood, even by many Catholics, and your book will afford most interesting and useful reading, not only to Catholics, but also for those who do not be long to the Church.
Every chapter has an attractive title and grips the attention.
I have no doubt that the book will throw new light on the minds of many regarding the great Sacrament of Confession and exercise a beneficent influence even on non-Catholics.
With best wishes for the success of your book and with my cordial benediction,
P. CIRIACI, Apostolic Nuncio
Contents
Part I THE SECRET OF CONFESSION
Letter from Apostolic Nuncio, Lisbon
1. Was Confession Introduced by a Bishop?
2. Confession Was Instituted by Christ
3. What a Storm Would Have Arisen!
4. What Protestants Think of Confession
5. Facts Are Stubborn Arguments
6. Why Does God Oblige Us to Confess Our Sins to a Man?
7. “Come to Me, All You Who Labor and Are Heavily Burdened”
8. All Men Need a Friend
9. The Choice of a Confessor
Part II THE WONDERS OF CONFESSION
10. Cardinal Mermillod and the Actress
11. The Two Tribunals
12. Jesus and Sinners
How to Go to Confession
—Part I—
THE SECRET OF CONFESSION
Including
Confession Was Instituted by Christ What Protestants Think of Confession Facts Are Stubborn Arguments Why Does God Oblige Us to Confess? All Men Need a Friend The Choice of a Confessor
Chapter 1
WAS CONFESSION INTRODUCED BY A BISHOP?
At a fashionable reception in the metropolis [of Lisbon], a party of well-known Catholics was gathered together to pass a social evening.
Just as a distinguished foreigner was addressing a group of ladies and gentlemen, a friend of mine entered the room and overheard the following remark:
“Excuse me, Madam,” said the stranger, “I did not exactly say that Confession was bad or evil, nor did I wish to imply that it was useless. I merely said that it was all very well for ladies, who, doubt less, find it very consoling to be able to unburden their consciences to a priest. But we men do not require such consolations!”
The lady thus addressed quickly replied: “And pray, Sir, how can men consider themselves dispensed from a law which was established for all? Don’t men also have souls to save, and are they not, too, obliged to obey the commands of God?”
The stranger continued: “My dear Lady, the idea that Confession was instituted by God is an illusion. It was not God who instituted Confession; it is a purely human invention. Where do we find mention of it in the first ages of Christianity? If it were of divine origin, of course the obligation to confess would also fall on us. Confession was, as a matter of fact, instituted and introduced first in Germany, in the fourteenth century, by Bishop Fuller.” And the stranger supplied, with the utmost effrontery, names of places, dates, and facts entirely fantastic.
On hearing this, the listeners were aghast. Some made attempts to defend the doctrine of the Church, but none of them was sufficiently grounded in his or her religion to be able to refute with authority the falsehoods of the distinguished guest.
On the following day, the friend who had witnessed the above incident called on me and, regretfully admitting his inability to disprove the stranger’s statements, asked for full enlightenment on the matter.
Now it seems to me that many Catholics, if they found themselves in like circumstances, would experience the same difficulty. True, they have a certain vague knowledge that Confession was instituted by Our Lord and practiced from the earliest times, but were they asked for a proof, they, like the Catholics just mentioned, could not give a reason for their faith. Still less could they explain—if challenged by a Protestant or unbeliever—the sublime beauty, the divine efficacy, the splendid results and the immense consolations of Confession. And least of all could they answer the many difficulties so frequently urged against this great Sacrament.
To supply what we consider a great want, we venture to offer the public the following little work, which while showing that Confession was indeed instituted by Christ, will also show what a source of deep consolation and strength it is to those who understand it. Many Catholics never grasp the true idea of Confession, and some even find it a very painful and disagreeable duty.
Protestants, as a rule, find the idea repugnant, but strange to say, many among them, when once they hear it explained, feel a positive need of it, and it not infrequently hastens their entrance into the Catholic Church.
We flatter ourselves that both Catholics and Protestants will read our little book with keen interest and derive not a little profit from its perusal. It is popular in style and stresses several points of importance. The method is simple but attractive, and the reader becomes so engrossed that he is reluctant to put the book down until he has read the last page.
One of the special features of the little work is that it shows what an infinite source of consolation and help Confession is to the sorrowful and weak and what a powerful means it is of snatching boys and girls from the brink of some hidden danger. It also proves that, far from robbing a man of his manliness—as a distinguished Protestant statesman has rashly asserted—auricular * Confession makes a man a brave soldier, a loyal citizen and a trusty friend.
* The term “auricular” refers to Confession made privately and “heard” by a priest.— Editor, 1992.
Chapter 2
CONFESSION WAS INSTITUTED BY CHRIST
The Son of God came on earth to save man. From what? Clearly from sin and its consequences. All Christ did when on earth—the sublime les sons He taught, the admirable doctrine which He bequeathed us, the Sacraments He instituted, the miracles He worked, the law He promulgated, His precepts and counsels —all were destined for the great end of saving man from sin.
The 33 years Our Lord passed with us here below, His cruel sufferings, the Precious Blood He shed, and His death on Calvary had for their one great aim to purge the world of sin. Had He not achieved that end, His mission would have been a failure.
It was for this object that He came. He loved sinners, lived with them and called them to Him self. One of them, Peter , a weak and sinful man, He made the head of His Church. Paul , a fierce and relentless persecutor, He made the Apostle of the Gentiles and a “vessel of election.” Magdalen , an erring, sinful woman, the scandal of the city in which she lived, He chose for His special friend, made her a model for penitents, and eventually associated her with His Immaculate Mother.
If Our Lord’s acts were not sufficient to clear away doubts on the subject, let us listen to His express declaration: “I am not come to call the just, but sinners.” ( Matt. 9:13).
Now, if Christ has given to His Church the power to continue His mission for all time, and guaranteed it His fullest protection—“Behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world” ( Matt. 28:20), “The gates of Hell shall not prevail against it” ( Matt. 16:18)— it would be, indeed, a matter of surprise if He had not given to that Church an excellent and supreme remedy against sin, since He had come on earth expressly for this end, moved thereto by infinite pity, mercy, goodness and love.
Surely no one will doubt Our Lord’s power to achieve what He so ardently desired, and still less call into question His boundless love and generosity. That omnipotent Power which drew the vast universe from nothing by a single word could find no difficulty in raising up His weak ones, forgiving them and confirming them in the path of justice. That same love and generosity which led Him to lay down His life in the midst of terrible torments would surely do all it could for those for whom He had died.
The means—the remedy Our Lord left against sin—is Confession, in which the sinner is not only pardoned of his guilt, but (mark it well, Dear Reader) receives strength and power to avoid sin for the future.
He says to each penitent who goes to Him in this Sacrament what He said long ago to the sinful woman: “Thy sins are forgiven thee, go in peace and sin no more.” Not only does He bid penitents sin no more, but He gives them the