Yesterday I had a great confession. It wasn’t recounting my sins, asking for absolution and seeking appropriate penance so much as spilling my guts over the many difficulties I am facing and the moral questions they have raised.
And unlike talking to a friend or family, the conversation is protected by the seal of the confessional.
In a lot of ways, psychology has replaced the Rite of Reconciliation, and instead of receiving moral correction, patients are generally told they’re fine, it’s everyone else who is wrong. Psychiatry pretends that bad behavior can be corrected with pills of dubious effectiveness.
A lot of Catholics dread confession, and I did at first, because it is very humbling and even embarrassing to admit one’s failings. That’s part of the point. When I was practicing Easy Button Christianity, I just prayed, said I was sorry, and just kept right on sinning because of the whole “Jesus loves me so I’m fine” mentality.
I know some Protestant denominations have a form of it, often consisting of talking to the pastor or minister, but so far as I know, none of them consider it a requirement. Moreover, Protestants have very purposefully waved away much of Catholic teaching as oppressive. Remarriage after divorce is common, as is the use of artificial birth control. Indeed, sexual morality is largely “if you’re married, everything is within bounds.” Fasting, holy days of obligation, and regularly receiving the Eucharist are generally ignored.
Some of the old Mainline denominations may include these, but there is wide divergence and practice and one can (and people do) choose a church that conforms to them rather than conform themselves the Church.
The demographic shift from Mainline to Evangelical is part of this migration away from requirements to a more “personal” (and less regimented) faith, which is why Evangelicals punch well below their weight politically and talk of their becoming dominant is nonsense.
The thing of it is, confession does help one give up sin. More than once, I have been on the brink of sinning and stopped because I didn’t want to have to confess it. Indeed, one of the motivators to keep my diet and drinking in moderation is that going in again and again to say “yeah, I need to work on that” gets tedious.
In addition to spiritual rewards, my physical quality of life is much better.
Of course, moral questions are also important, and sin has a way of creeping from one area into others, spreading like a cancer through one’s soul. Recognizing wrath and the harm it does is very important. Lust of course dominates our society, with indisputably disastrous effects.
Confession therefore not only remedies mistakes, but makes us aware of sins that we have unconsciously considered normal. The examination of conscience beforehand is something everyone should be doing. Too much of society has embraced Yard Sign Calvinism and assume they are perfectly fine just the way they are. Their bumper stickers, social media posts and freely offered opinions just make them better than everyone else, so whatever harm they may do is fully justified.
At its core, confession prepares us for the final judgement, and teaches us that we are not perfect, and how to call on God to be better than we are.
Chateau Lloyd 
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