Introduction
In the Christian faith there are many beliefs and acts for the baptized Catholic to follow, such acts consist of the sacraments, for which there are seven. Many people believe that of all the Sacraments, the Sacrament of Reconciliation is one of the most complex and difficult to understand. Those who approach the Sacrament, are able to obtain pardon from God 's mercy for the offenses committed against him, this enables them to be reconciled with the Church, which they wounded by their sins. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that it is called the Sacrament of Reconciliation because it
“imparts to the sinner the live of God who reconciles: "Be reconciled to God."7 He who lives by God 's merciful love is ready
The keys are the most common symbol for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. They are often seen in a shape of a crisscross though occasionally can be seen on top of one another. This symbol originated when Jesus said to Peter "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven,
Paul wrote to the Christians at Corinth “if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away: see, everything has become new!” The use of the Sacrament of Reconciliation enables Gods people to return to him. Jesus came to forgive our sins and to save the world, he took all our sins so we wouldn’t have to be separated from God forever. God’s love is so incredible that he doesn’t give up on us and Jesus paid the price for our sins that we can be healed, not because we deserve it but because God’s forgiveness is totally free. Jesus breathed the holy spirit over the apostles and said “Peace be with you as the father as set me, so I send you” and “received the holy spirit, whose sins you forgive and forgiven them and whose sins you retain are retained” John
US Catholic Church. Catechism of the Catholic Church. Complete Edition ed. N.p.: US. Catholic Church, n.d. Print.
Reconciliation is affirmed with this bible verse “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God”(2 Corinthians 5:18-21, ESV) , I feel this is the most important part of the FREE model and has to be tackled with good results before proceeding to the forgiveness intervention using the 4 D’s. Decision – at the step the couples will make a decision whether they want to reconcile or not , this step is very fundamental because if the couples are not ready then the forgiveness therapy cannot take place; Discussion – here the offender make confession or te couple will discuss about their wrongdoing; Detoxification – at the stage the they will talk about how to remove the poison that I the bad behavior from the offender so it will not reoccur; Devotion- The
The bread represents Christ's body and the wine represents his blood. When they take this bread and wine, Catholics believe that they are becoming one with Christ and are renewing their faith. According to the Gospels, Christ shared bread and wine with his disciples to symbolise them becoming one body. The final section of the Mass, the Concluding Rite, consists of a final prayer ( postcommunion ), the blessing ( benediction ) and the dismissal. A hymn may be sung as the clergy leave the church.
During the Great Jubilee year, John Paul II gave a relevant speech of apology on behalf of the entire Catholic Church for the serious sins committed by its members for over 2,000 years. Since John Paul II did that, he wished the Church to enter the new millennium with a clean slate, allowing it to speak to and discuss freely with the other religions of the world, including the cultures and nations from a place not only of permanency but also of moral and religious power, having acknowledged in specific ways the crimes, from time to time unbearable, committed by its human origins throughout history. These apologies were hardly accepted, and common apologies for sins committed against the Church and its members have not been imminent. “Catholics distinguish between the holiness of the inevitable sinful nature of men, including the men who serve the Church stated by Thomas E. Woods Jr.” From the Catholic observation point, the Church presents two parts: One representing its divine nature as the untarnished body of Christ, and one directing on the weaknesses of the Church's human members suffering from sin, which does not prevent it from receiving God's forgiveness through the sacraments, however troubled it may be by the sins of its members.... ...
In Christian communities, especially communities that practice adult baptism, the ritual is seen as more than just an act of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. The specific actions associated with baptism have evolved to represent Jesus’ death (the liminal stage) and resurrection (the reaggregation stage). By manipulating the symbolic actions in the ritual “so as to bring them into parallel with the pre-established non-symbolic system,” we are better able to understand the symbolism of the three stages of this rite of
· Sorry – this is when we say sorry for our sins in ways of prayer
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptiz- ing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” ( Matt. 28:19-20 NIV ). The idea of sharing in the death of Christ connects remission of sins with baptism which the death of Christ effected. ( Act 2:38; 1 Pet. 3:21). Just as physical washing cleanses our bodies from filthiness, so also baptism symbolically cleanses our spirits through participation in the death of Christ. “For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink (I Cor. 12:13 NIV). In addition, baptism connects with spiritual birth along with the Spirit’s reception. Hence, participation in Christ’s resurrection indicates that the Holy Spirit is presently in our lives. Baptism is an indication of the relationship we have with Christ and wherever we find ourselves in the world, our deportment, attitude and disposition should be in alignment with our confession of faith. Jesus’ baptism should help us realize how much we are loved by God. Jesus died to pay a debt he did not owe to release from a debt we could not pay. Baptism is a two-fold operation because we are symbolically
righteous wrath except by faith and the sacrament of the blood of Christ.”10 Calvin and Luther
Mercy and reconciliation
In Christianity, the emphasis is placed on love of God rather than on obeying his will. People must believe that God is merciful and loves them as well. As a reflection of God’s love, people must also love other people (and the whole humanity in general) and forgive their enemies.
Roman Catholics believe that through the sacrament of confession the Lord will forgive the sins that they have committed. The Priest acts as an intercessor for Christ; he hears the sins that the Catholic has committed then with the power he receives from Jesus is able to forgive the sins (catholic.org). This works when the Priest gives absolution to the repenting soul, the Catholic must truly be sorry for the sins he has committed otherwise Christ will not forgive them (jesuschristsavior.net). The Priest then makes the sign of the cross with the candidate saying, “I absolve you from your sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” (jesuschristsavior.net). The Priest will then give a penance to the candidate. The Penance is usually some type of prayer, fasting, or nice act to another person to truly show that you feel sorrow for the sins committed
Through Jesus and the new covenant, God will one day complete his act of full and complete reconciliation that he began when sin and disorder entered the world. That’s a huge piece of the big picture of the Bible. That is, God’s reconciliation in and through the work of his son Jesus in all places and at all times. Jesus accomplished what man could not for themselves and is therefore the avenue by which God reveals himself through and ultimately will bring us
Reconciliation with a priest is necessary because he allows people to be forgiven by God through them. The authority to forgive sins was given to the Apostles and has been passed down through every leading member in the Church. The Apostles Peter was the first Pope and the foundation of the Church was built upon his
Reconciliation is the sacrament of a loving encounter with a merciful God as you have rightly stated above. Wueri in his pastoral letter to the faithful in his diocese, he asserts, “We are not left to our own devices.” For the simple reason that the effect of Adam’s sin into the world, such as death, disharmony, confusion, disruption and struggle; Jesus through the sacraments restores harmony and gives us newness of life in grace (3). Just as we consult the doctor for illness, eat food when hungry, go to school to acquire knowledge, the priest in the sacrament of penance gives us instructions and absolution to renew our souls.
There is no doubt that the fundamental idea of Church, faith, and prayer lived by the early Christian, needs to be rediscovered among many contemporary Christians. The conviction that the apostles had to preach the Gospel of Jesus certainly was aided by their idea of Church, faith, and prayer. In his book “Catholicism: A Journey to the Heat of the Faith”, Father Robert Barron tries to revive the idea of Catholicism that seems to weaken and lose its real sense. With my understanding of Church, faith, and prayer, I argue that because of the lack of understanding about Catholicism that exist today in our midst, many people fall short about what Catholicism really means. However, it is not my intention to answer this question.