Confessing Our Brokenness

Self-righteousness...we can all have it and it can come out at various times. Many people think that Catholics are self-righteous or Christians of various nominations, those who keep and practice their faith and take it seriously perhaps are labeled as self-righteous to others from an array of backgrounds. And this can be true to an extent but it also depends on where someone is coming from. We all have pride in our lives and in our hearts and it can take away our joy because in the end God should be our pride and joy not necessarily ourselves and our achievements.

Today's Gospel reading is from John Chapter 8  verse 1-11 about the woman caught in the act of committing adultery. She is scoffed at and pointed at for sinning and threatened to be stoned. But Jesus jumps over the law so to speak and instead of focusing on the woman's sin, he asks the Pharisees if any one of them is clean and free from sin, to be the first to throw a stone at her. And they all eventually go away from her as they can admit they also have their own dealings and attachments to sin. Jesus then says to her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?..Neither do I condemn you. Go and from now on do not sin and more."

How easy it is for us to focus on other's shortcomings and downfalls instead of our own. We hide our weaknesses and sin to others and instead show our achievements and successes. When we are like the Pharisees in the Gospel, we act like we are better than others and our pride and self-righteousness gets the better of us. God is without sin and yet he doesn't condemn us like we can sometimes do to others, instead he invites us to be free from sin and turn again to him. This happens when we go to the Sacrament of Confession. We come fact to face with God through the priest and give him our sins, our failings, our shortcomings. I was able to go to Confession yesterday after wanting to go for sometime during this Lenten season. Like most people, it can be scary, intimating or a little nerve wracking before going but I have asked the saints and my guardian angel, and the Holy Spirit to be with me and guide me. Yesterday was Bl. Pier Giorgio Frassati's birthday and I was thinking and praying to him for certain intentions, as he is a wonderful example and intercessor.

Before waiting in the confession line, I read over a beautiful prayer that never gets old or boring and I feel it is especially relevant while waiting to receive the Sacrament of Confession. I will share part of it here.

"Nothing in your life is unimportant to me. I have followed you through the years, and I have always loved you- even in your wanderings. I know everyone of your problems. I know your needs and your worries. And yes, I know all your sins. But I tell you again that love you-not for what you have or haven't done- I love you for you, for the beauty and dignity my Father gave you by creating you in His own image. It is a dignity you have often forgotten, a beauty you have tarnished by sin. But I love you as you are, and I have shed My Blood to win you back. If you only ask Me with faith, My grace will touch all that needs changing in your life; and I will give you the strength to free yourself from sin and all its destructive power."

After receiving the graces of the Sacrament of Confession, I feel light. My inner being feels as light as a feather and full of peace, being lifted in God's loving mercy and grace. The beauty of Confession is acknowledging and confronting our weaknesses and sins in a humble way. God designed it this way for us to know that we need him and he meets us in our humility and desire for peace and forgiveness. I will end with a quote from Venerable Fulton J Sheen's book, Peace of Soul. "Everyone in the world is looking for certitude, peace of soul, and freedom of spirit. Everyone wants the things that only a love of God will bring to him. Anyone who turns his face toward the light will be converted; but the turning must be done of his own free will."