When we confess our sins, we are reconciled to God and we are literally returned to the Bosom of God as His eternal child!
During Lent, my children and I try very hard to pray the Stations of the Cross on Friday evenings inside our local parish church.
We do not do this as a Lenten sacrifice, but we do it because we find it a beautiful and rich opportunity to meditate upon the sufferings of God and the sacrifice of Christ.
During the half hour or so of prayer, in our local parish, one of the priests kindly administers the Sacrament of Reconciliation for those who wish to receive it. Bearing this in mind, each week, I ask my children if they would like to receive this beautiful Sacrament, and each week they have a conversation about whether or not they should. More often than not, the children receive the Sacrament at this time. Often, though, they first ask me if there will be another opportunity to receive this Sacrament soon, and if that is the case, they often think that they should just hold off on the Sacrament, as they could go another time. And – though I do not pressure my children to attend Reconciliation – I do encourage them to do so…
You see, when we confess our sins, we are actually completely reconciled to God – it is as though we were divorced as a consequence of sin, but through the Sacrament of Reconciliation we are REMARRIED in the most joyous circumstances! And that is something very important and very profound. You see, we do not call it Reconciliation metaphorically. We are not speaking in symbols and codes. What we are saying is the LITERAL TRUTH! Reconciliation is literally what the Sacrament actually is! When we confess our sins, we are reconciled to God and we are literally returned to the Bosom of God as His eternal child! This means that our sins are literally forgiven, and we can BEGIN AGAIN! And there is such JOY in this!
Servant of God, Mother Angelica, who was a religious sister, who evangelised on American television from the 1980s to 2001, used a very simple story to explain the concept of Reconciliation…
Once, Mother Angelica was walking along the seashore and a drop of sea water splashed onto her finger. She immediately shook off the water into the sea. Then, she seemed to hear – interiorly – the voice of Christ saying, “Angelica, have you seen that drop of water?" “Yes, Lord,” she replied. “Those drops are like your sins, your weaknesses, your feebleness and your imperfections. And the ocean is like My Mercy. If you search for that drop, will you be able to find it?” She answered, “No, Lord.” “If you looked and looked, could you find it?” Our Lord said again. She replied, “No, Lord." “So, why do you keep looking?” Asked Christ…
You see, the message of the story is clear – when we are forgiven our sins we are forgiven eternally. Our sins are conquered, vanquished, defeated and dead. When we confess our sins with a contrite heart, sincerely asking God for His forgiveness, Christ takes those sins and carries them on His Cross – disposing of them for us. You see, after reconciliation our sins do not exist any more and our guilt is transformed to peace and hope and joy…
And in this, Christ – God Himself – LOOKS UP at us, just as He did to the woman who was accused of committing adultery, “Jesus looked up at her and said, ‘Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?’ She said, “No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go, and do not sin again.’” (John 8:10-11).
And it is for this reason that those who truly LOVE God do everything in their power to avoid sin and the near occasions of sin. You see, if we do not try to sin less, we are continuing in our torture of God Himself as He hangs – as a sacrifice for us – on the Cross…
And yet, even knowing our weakness – even knowing mine – my Beloved choose to offer Himself as the eternal sacrifice for my sake and for my salvation. He – God of the Universe – chooses to LOOK UP at me! And He does this so that on a Friday night during Lent, my children and I can try to work out if it would be worthwhile exercise to receive the sacrament of Reconciliation or whether we should wait…
How awesome is Our Lord and God, King of the Universe, who looks up at such a lowly one as me!
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.