Reconciliation

What is the Sacrament of Reconciliation?

Sacrament of Reconciliation

 

The Sacrament of Reconciliation is one of the most unique and beautiful aspects of the Catholic Church.  
JESUS CHRIST, in His abundant love and mercy, established the Sacrament of Confession, so that we as sinners can obtain forgiveness for our sins and reconcile with God and the Church. The sacrament “washes us clean,” and renews us in Christ.


“Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.’ And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained’” (John 20:21-23).

Here, the Catechism of the Catholic Church explains the Sacrament of Reconciliation, its various names and the graces that flow from the sacrament:

“Those who approach the sacrament of Penance obtain pardon from God's mercy for the offense committed against him, and are, at the same time, reconciled with the Church which they have wounded by their sins and which by charity, by example, and by prayer labors for their conversion (CCC 1422).

“It is called the sacrament of conversion because it makes sacramentally present Jesus' call to conversion, the first step in returning to the Father from whom one has strayed by sin.
It is called the sacrament of Penance, since it consecrates the Christian sinner's personal and ecclesial steps of conversion, penance, and satisfaction.

“It is called the sacrament of confession, since the disclosure or confession of sins to a priest is an essential element of this sacrament. In a profound sense it is also a ‘confession’ - acknowledgment and praise - of the holiness of God and of his mercy toward sinful man.
It is called the sacrament of forgiveness, since by the priest's sacramental absolution God grants the penitent “pardon and peace.”

“It is called the sacrament of Reconciliation, because it imparts to the sinner the love of God who reconciles: ‘Be reconciled to God.’ He who lives by God's merciful love is ready to respond to the Lord's call: ‘Go; first be reconciled to your brother’” (CCC 1423).

IMPORTANT


It is a reconciliation between GOD and YOU. Not PRIEST and YOU.
You a student, youth, boy or girl never hesitate to go for confession.
Remember, The MORE you ADMIT your mistake and confess it the MORE you are becoming HOLY and get a greater chance to talk to God, and that your prayers for your exams and your life are kindly heard.

Use this opportunity wisely, frequently for Your benefit! Remember, its between YOU and GOD.






How can one prepare for Holy Confession?


Preparation for Holy Confession is a prayerful examination of feelings, thoughts, words, acts, attitudes, habits, values, priorities, goals, direction and way of life. This prayerful self-examination includes not only the personal religious life, but also family relationships, social activities, job conduct, business dealings, political commitments and even recreational pursuits, because our entire existence should be lived in under the light of the Holy Spirit is not to condemn ourselves, but to affirm our true selves in Christ who has given us access to God’s mercy and forgiveness and who has taught us to live for God’s glory.
Pray and think and your confession over several days. Ask God to help you perceive your sins and to make a thorough confession of them. Sometime before the sacrament of Holy Confession, offer selected prayers from the following Confessional Prayers, Psalm 51 or the following prayer of repentance:



PRAYER OF REPENTANCE

"O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and
I detest all my sins because of Thy just punishments,
but most of all because they offend Thee, my God,
Who art all-good and deserving of all my love.
I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasions of sin.

Amen”

Now, without justification or self-pity, make a prayerful examinations of your conscience regarding all things. As a help, reflect on your life in the light of the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes. Take pencil and paper and specify your sins so that, at the time of the sacrament, you will be able to make a thorough confession from the list, without confusion or lapse of memory.

Be A Saint

 The Pope challenged the Youth to stand up for the ideals of the Gospel.

He told them that they needed to be the saints of the times. A saint is person who is different. In the world, the corruption of sin is prevalent. Injustice and greed reign everywhere. He told them to fight for justice for every individual and for every nation in the world. Sexual licentiousness is rampant all over prevalent everywhere. He challenged them - "You need to be pure as Jesus was pure. 
"( Be perfect,therefore as your heavenly father is perfect-Matthew 5:48 ).


Consumerism is the rule of the day (Make effort to live in peace with every one and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the lord-Hebrews12:14) .

He challenged them, "Be simple in your living that you may be able to help everyone in need. "Be saints of this century! -this was the message he gave to the Youth.

This is the message of the week. 



Admin-SJUIT

ODDS AGAINST SIXTH COMMANDMENT- By Ev. Ladislaus Thadeus

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WHAT IS THE CATHOLIC CHARISMATIC RENEWAL ; Its history and the future

Introduction

Blessed John Paul II

The Catholic Charismatic Renewal is a movement within the Catholic Church(RC). Worship is characterized by vibrant Masses, as well as prayer meetings featuring prophecy, faith healing and "praying in tongues." This movement is based on the belief that certain charismata (a Greek word for gifts), bestowed by the Holy Spirit, such as the abilities to pray in tongues and to heal (which Christians generally believe existed in the early Church as described in the Bible) should still be practiced today.

Today, the Catholic Charismatic Renewal enjoys the strong support of the hierarchy, from the Pope to bishops of dioceses around the world, as an officially recognized ecclesial movement. Three popes have acknowledged the movement: Pope Paul VI, Pope John Paul II and Benedict XVI. Pope John Paul II stated that the movement was integral to the renewal of the entire Catholic Church. Pope John Paul II (as well as then Cardinal Ratzinger, now Pope Benedict XVI) acknowledged good aspects of the movement while urging caution, pointing out members must maintain their link to the Catholic Church.

Pope John Paul II, in particular, made a number of statements on the movement.

His Eminence the Cardinal Polycarp Pengo

In Tanzania, His Eminence the Cardinal Polycarp Pengo has blessed the movement and allowed into his apostolic territory.

The members dine in one of the retreats organized by fellowship

In St. Joseph University the Charismatic Renewal started in October of 2007 following the establishment of the Catholic Community at the college and by then there were only 46 members. The Catholic Charismatic Renewal at the university aims at preaching the gospel to the students [and staff] both biblical and also by living the gospel "Preaching and Living the gospel". This would make the students who are expected to take the political and non political posts in the country in future to be God fearing people and through that we can serve and save the church and our nation . Currently the group has multiplied in number into 70+ members and they meet on Tuesdays at 4pm at the campus and Sundays after mass at Agape centre.

The fellowship session 

At this moment in the Church's history, the Charismatic Renewal can play a significant role in promoting the much-needed defense of Christian life in societies where secularism and materialism have weakened many people's ability to respond to the Spirit and to discern God's loving call. Your contribution to the re-evangelization of society will be made in the first place by personal witness to the indwelling Spirit and by showing forth His presence through works of holiness and solidarity.

As of 2003, the Catholic Charismatic Renewal exists in over 230 countries in the world, with over 119 million members. in the Renewal participants also cooperate with non-Catholic Christians and other Catholics in providing a common witness for evangelization, as encouraged by the Catholic Church.

A dove, symbolizing the Holy Spirit, who is believed by Christians to confer various gifts.

Fellowship members pose for a photo after the Sunday session

Catholic Charismatic communities conduct

·        Healing services

·        Gospel power services

·        Outreaches

·        Evangelizations

where the presence of the Holy Spirit is felt, and healings and miracles take place. The mission of the Catholic Charismatic Renewal is to educate believers into the totality of the declaration of the gospels. This is done by a personal relationship with Jesus Christ; a one-to-one relationship with Jesus is seen as a possibility by the Charismatic. He is encouraged to talk to Jesus directly and search for what The Lord is saying so that his life will be one with Him.

The nine charismatic gifts considered extraordinary in character include (1 Corinthians 12:8-10);

·        Faith

·        Expression of knowledge and wisdom

·        Miracles

·        The gift of tongues and their interpretation

·        Prophecy

·        Discernment of spirits and healing

(Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2003). These gifts are related to the traditional seven gifts of the Holy Spirit described in Isaiah 11:1-2;

·        Wisdom

·        Understanding

·        Counsel

·        Fortitude

·        Knowledge

·        Piety

·        Fear of the Lord

(as listed in Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1831). The nine charismatic gifts in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10 are also related to the spiritual and corporal works of mercy. Other references to charisms in the Catechism of the Catholic Church include Sections 688, 768, 799-801, 890, 951, 1508 (charism of healing) and 2035.

Charismatic is rather a group but a movement in the Catholic Church importantly remind the christians about their baptism, confirmation and the faith they have claimed  in catholic church.

Before infatuation of a new catholic charismatic prayer group.

·        There should be a one - week of evangelization within there is healing deliverance and out – pouring of the Holy Spirit Preceded by deep penitential rite. This is popularly known as “WIKI YA NEEMA”

·        The after 10 – weeks of Spiritual teaching – commonly known as “Semina ya maisha ya Kristo”

When these are accomplished successful a prayer group can be formed under the guidance of the Parish Priest. Henceforth, they will have to meet once a week for praise and worship singing, teaching of the Bible and other services.