TOUCHING BASE WITH MY FAITH

THEMES FOR REFLECTION AND DISCOVERY

FRANK P. DE SIANO, CSP

Copyright © 2025 by Frank P. DeSiano, CSP. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the copyright owner.

Scripture quotations contained herein are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1993 and 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Quotations from The Catechism of the Catholic Church, abbreviated CCC, Liberia Editrice Vaticana, English Translation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church for the United States of America © 1994, United States Catholic Conference, Inc.— Liberia Editrice Vaticana.

INTRODUCTION

For years sociologists have been looking at “disaffiliation” in younger generations, particularly those people in the youngest generations, variously name Generation Z and Generation X. Their observations are nearly universal: when it comes to participation in the practices of their faith, these generations rank lower than others.

Nevertheless, that younger generations do not practice certain elements of their faith does not mean that they have no faith. Large studies, in fact, reveal a widespread acceptance of spiritual “ideas” and “ideals.” Very few people can be called atheists or agnostics. Indeed, while a large number of young people respond “none” when given a list of religious preferences, they still maintain some religious identity. This is particularly true of Roman Catholics.

How do we serve these younger generations? The pastoral response would look something like this: instead of considering people who do not regularly practice faith as virtual unbelievers, pastoral leaders can reach out to these groups, inviting them to reconsider the main elements of their faith, and how becoming active in faith can increase a sense of identity and belonging, elements that younger generations largely seek.

This little book provides a format to help people review not only some of the basic teachings of faith, particularly Catholic faith. Even more, it provides a way in which people, through conversation and sharing, can appropriate the meaning of these teachings into their own personal self-understanding. A teaching is not an abstract idea; rather more, it points to insights and meanings that can transform human experience.

Use of this booklet is self-explanatory. A theme is presented in broad terms with references to Scripture and The Catechism of the Catholic Church. Then a parish leader can use the discussion questions to invite people to explore the meaning of the teaching, ask questions, and share. Following a conversation lasting about 40 minutes or so, the leader invites participants to a time of reflection and a chance to ask questions. This leads to the offering of petitions and recitation of the Lord’s Prayer, and the groups’ recitation of the “Touching Base” prayer that ends each section. Hospitality should be provided before and after each session.

Parish leaders must appropriately show openness, compassion, and patience with the conversation. People need to work through various issues, particularly those which might seem somewhat controversial today. The goal is not to win arguments but to allow conversation to move people in desired directions in their lives.

This process is primarily an exercise in the pastoral exercise of accompaniment.

Areas of Exploration

AREA 1: Creation: All Existence Is a Gift from a Loving God

AREA 2: Brokenness: Sin, Limitations, Moral Vision

AREA 3: Revelation: God Speaks to Us through Our Lives and through Israel

AREA 4: The Gift of Salvation: Jesus and the Holy Spirit

Area 5: The Community of the Church: Where Disciples Live Out Their Faith

Area 6: Sacramental Life: Actions that Show God’s Work in Our Lives

AREA 7: Reconciliation: The Priority of Mercy and How Catholics Celebrate It

Area 8: A Vision of the Kingdom: The Fullness of Life and Love

Appendix

Common Prayers

How to Celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation

AREA 1

CREATION

All Existence Is a Gift from a Loving God

Images of creation range from something like the “Big Bang” to flashes of Adam and Eve running around like Tarzan in a beautiful garden. We do not think much about these images because the very idea of creation seems mysterious and distant. After all, we have our every-day lives so what difference does it make if something happened billions of years ago?

The religious idea of creation, however, has much relevance to people’s lives. The key point is this: God, out of love, creates all things from nothing. In other words, God causes everything to exist from God’s freedom and love. God didn’t begin with a ball of clay that got molded into the world that we know. If anything exists, it comes from God.

Look at how the conclusion of creation is presented in the Scripture:

God created mankind in his image; in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.

God blessed them and God said to them: Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, and all the living things that crawl on the earth. God also said: See, I give you every seed-bearing plant on all the earth and every tree that has seed-bearing fruit on it to be your food; and to all the wild animals, all the birds of the air, and all the living creatures that crawl on the earth, I give all the green plants for food. And so it happened. God looked at everything he had made, and found it very good. Evening came, and morning followed—the sixth day. (Genesis 1:27-31)

This fundamental teaching of Christian believers has important implications in our lives. For the last few centuries, it has become rather typical to see everything in terms of molecular components. The world has looked rather mechanical, with atoms being driven by natural laws which, somehow, explain everything. Throw on top of this ideas about evolution (“You mean our ancestors were monkeys?), and human life, not to mention the world in which we live, can look something like an accident. Molecules coming together formed what we call matter; matter eventually formed into living cells; cells, then, combined to form life and, eventually, human life.

This “molecule picture” of existence can seem pretty bleak. In the short-run, it makes things feel without warmth or color; in the long-run, it makes our lives look almost pointless. We feel like accidental animals on an insignificant planet in a rather small galaxy, one of billions of galaxies with probably billions more of planets.

Christian teaching about creation says that, whatever forces were part of God’s creation, creation itself reaches a peak in human existence because we have the capacity not only to have life, but to love and know endlessly, and to relate to ever-broader groups of people in love. On top of that, we have the ability to relate to God, and the ability to see that God relates to us.

Every single moment of existence is wrapped in divine love. Every single movement takes place in a field of infinite love, with a purpose: to move closer toward the experience of unlimited love. Every single existent resulted from God’s free, loving, creative act in order to communicate being and life to what was not God so that everything could share in God’s love and grace.

If we reflect on our own experience, we do not deal with the world on the basis of molecules and atoms. Whatever might compose our material substance, as humans we deal with the world in terms of knowing and love. We do not, for example, love our children as a collection of molecules; rather, our knowledge and love of our children creates a powerful relationship in us which shapes how we interact with our children. It is on the level of relationship that we deal with each other; on that same level, God deals with us.

Here’s how The Catechism of the Catholic Church puts it:

With creation, God does not abandon his creatures to themselves. He not only gives them being and existence, but also, and at every moment, upholds and sustains them in being, enables them to act and brings them to their final end. Recognizing this utter dependence with respect to the Creator is a source of wisdom and freedom, of joy and confidence. (CCC 301)

This Christian idea of creation, which is starting point of all our teaching about God and faith, has the ability to shape an entire, positive, attitude toward ourselves, all humankind, and all of creation, in its beauty and its vastness. Wherever believers look, whatever they discover, they see the results of infinite divine love. This can create, in believers, very distinct attitudes. Rather than living in an insecurity that makes us want to control and own everything, it invites believes to live by placing their confidence in the hands of a God of generous and endless love. Notices how Jesus says this:

If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask him (Mt. 7:11).

For reflection and discussion:

1. How does the idea of creation influence the way in which you see the world?

2. Does the feeling of dependence on God feel positive or negative in your life? Why?

3. Have some of the discoveries of science made faith in God easier or more difficult?

4. What sense do you have that experience has a purpose and a direction?

Shared experience:

The leader invites participants to share their own experience of when creation seemed most beautiful or most powerful.

Concluding Reflections:

The leader sees if there are any questions participants might have. Some of these questions might be responded to in the next session if research is needed.

Prayer

The leader invites the participants to spend a few moments in silence. Then the group offers petitions of prayer for their own needs and the needs of others, and then recites the Lord’s Prayer. After this, the participants recite together the “Touching Base” prayer:

Lord God, mystery of love from which everything comes, we pray that we will be able to hear your voice in our lives. Make us sensitive to the signs of your presence. Help us see the ways you have reached into our lives through Jesus, your Son, and the Holy Spirit. May we find renewal and reconciliation in our personal experience, and may we bring hope and confidence to those around us. Increase ours sense of belonging to you and your people. We pray this in the Spirit of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Amen.

AREA 2:

BROKENNESS

Sin, Limitations, Moral Vision

Having reflected on God as creator, we have every right to ask an obvious question: If God made everything good, how come there are so many things that seem out of place and even evil?

After all, we cannot live for very long without seeing just how limited human experience is, not to mention the rest of creation. Babies are born crying; they spend a lot of their early years crying in other ways because of wants they have or things that are done to them. Children are cute; but they also have pretty nasty streaks that show themselves when playing with their friends. Junior high school produces years of life notorious for their pettiness and hastiness. Adolescence can be a nightmare for any young person seeking to discover him- or herself. Adulthood brings opportunities for people to hurt each other in ways both direct and indirect. We often look at the societies we have produced and wonder at the inequality, violence, and exploitation that accompany even the best-intentioned governments.

We have probably heard the word “sin” from our earliest days of consciousness. “You better not do that because it’s a sin.” Those of us who went to religious education classes might remember different kinds of sin like original sin, mortal sin, and venial sin. While there is much we cannot understand about sin, especially the parts that strike out at others without cause, we know sin is part of the human condition.

This gives us an opportunity to reflect, at this point in our lives, on the story of Adam and Eve in the Garden. We undoubtedly have our own mental pictures of this story, some of which we should put aside in order to realize that this story, which stands near the beginning of the Bible, is a metaphor to help us reflect about the limitations and sins of human experience. Basically, the story is saying that God creates all humans, irrespective of their gender, for happiness and joy. But human insecurity leads us to resentment and a desire to become our own gods, which produce only brokenness and broken relationships in our lives.

When God tells Adam and Eve they can enjoy the vastness of creation but reserves some trees from them, their minds immediately kick into overtime. “Why can’t we have God’s trees? What is God keeping from us? Maybe God won’t care for us, or doesn’t love us? We better take care of things for ourselves.” The image of the talking snake, probably a reference to pagan serpent worship in the tribes around the Jews, is the storyteller’s way to show how our human minds work. Insecurity, resentment, and a desire for control lead to a rupturing of relationships which end up shaping all human experience.

The chapters that follow in the Bible, up to the twelfth chapter of Genesis, detail the violence and fear, arrogance and ambition, that distort human experience. With whatever optimism greeted the coming of the twentieth-century, it ended up being a time of massive world wars and totalitarian government. Likewise, the bloom of the twenty-first-century disappeared with terrorist attacks, unstable government, and justified fears for the very survival of humankind. The more modern ingenuity allows us to be connected constantly to each other, the more it permits new images of exploitation and violence through the ubiquitous cell phones we carry around.

The story of Adam and Eve reaches a sad climax which we can see in this passage:

When they heard the sound of the Lord God walking about in the garden at the breezy time of the day, the man and his wife hid themselves from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. The Lord God then called to the man and asked him: Where are you? He answered, “I heard you in the garden; but I was afraid, because I was naked, so I hid.” Then God asked: Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I had forbidden you to eat (Gen 3:8-11)?

There are many directions in which this passage may take our minds, even to the origin of garments! But the main and most poignant point is this: humans have to hide from God and live in shame. The intimate friendship God had with humankind has now vanished because humankind resisted trusting in God and needed to become its own god. The distance between ourselves and God only grows through history because the consequences of our ruptured relationships only grow. We only have to think of how human love relationships fall apart to see this truth up close.

All this amounts to a scenario in which humans need a savior, something or someone from beyond ourselves to bring relationships into their proper order once again and to restore the promise of creation. In some way, people of all religions probably acknowledge this truth of human existence.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church puts the situation this way:

Sin is present in human history; any attempt to ignore it or give this dark reality other names would be futile. To try to understand what sin is, one must first recognize the profound relation of man to God, for only in this relationship is the evil of sin unmasked in its true identity as humanity’s rejection of God and opposition to him, even as it continues to weigh heavy on human life and history. (CCC 386)

When we think of sin, the first instinct usually is to look at personal failings and shame. But, in addition to a personal dimension to sin, there is also a social reality, which in which distorted perspectives take hold of a culture, often resorting in gross inequality, exploitation of one group by another, or patterns of death that prevail in sectors of society. We think primarily of slavery. Other examples of social sin are racism, sexism, and militarism.

For reflection and discussion:

1.What kind of sense do you think the teaching about sin makes for human life?

2. What do you think are the evils that most threaten human existence?

3. In what ways does an exaggeration of sin or a belittling of sin worry you?

4. If sin is the rupture of relationship, what might reconciliation look like?

Shared experience:

The leader invites participants to share their own experience of the brokenness of human experience and our need for salvation.

Concluding Reflections:

The leader sees if there are any questions participants might have. Some of these questions might be responded to in the next session if research is needed.

Prayer

The leader invites the participants to spend a few moments in silence. Then the group offers petitions of prayer for their own needs and the needs of others and then recites the Lord’s Prayer. After this, the participants recite together the “Touching Base” prayer:

AREA 3:

REVELATION

God Speaks to Us through Our Lives and through Israel

We saw how the Book of Genesis, in its story of Adam and Eve, depicted God directly talking to these two people who symbolically represent all of humankind. It is not difficult to envy this kind of communication between God and humankind because it feels so natural, almost like a conversation between family members. Among the many things that “being evicted from the Garden of Eden” might represent, how humankind experiences God certainly deserves mention. When relationships between humans and God were broken, so also was our human ability to hear God.

The Christian doctrine of revelation asserts that God continues to speak to us in various ways. Certainly, God speaks to us through creation and our human experience, at least insofar as we can infer aspects of God through our very lives. Most people, for example, have a sense of outright evil, such as when we see children being tortured or innocent people being blamed. “This cannot be what God is like,” we instinctually say to ourselves.

Similarly, the beauty of creation can sometimes feel overwhelming. We see the order of creation, how things fit together, and get a sense of the order and brilliance of God. Often our sun rises and sunsets startle us with beauty. This leads us to reflect on how beautiful God must be. Even in our own experience of seeking truth or finding love, we come to see not only that truth and love are basic human categories; these must also be qualities of God which were communicated to creation.

Beyond these natural perceptions, religions have sought language to express the mystery of human existence and, often, a divine being which created such experience. Religious people search these scriptures to better intuit the mystery behind our lives; often, classes of people such as monks and nuns dedicate their whole lives to putting these experiences at the center of their personal lives. For people to spend their whole lives contemplating the mystery of God or of existence and finding the mystery grow certainly is widespread among different cultures.

While several religious traditions date thousand of years earlier, the revelation that came to the Jewish people starting about fifteen-hundred years BC has been enormously influential to religion in the Western World. We commonly refer to this revelation, both to the Jewish People and the early Christians, as the “Bible.”

One natural, but erroneous, assumption of the Bible is that it can be read like any other book, like a novel or a book of history, in which things are told is a straightforward line, as written by one author. The Bible has a very different quality. The very word “Bible” in many languages is plural, meaning that the Bible is not one book but a collection of books. As scholars study the original languages of the Bible, t diversity becomes clearer. Not only do different books make up the Bible, as the various names of the books suggest; even more, how the Bible was composed, edited, and re-edited over time, speaks of even greater diversity.

A very helpful metaphor of what we are dealing with in the Bible can be to imagine a box of photos and newspaper clippings put together over time. Imagine pulling out different things that might pertain to a grandmother—photos, some letters she wrote to friends in High School, recipes, love letters to her husband, a copy of a house mortgage, etc. This would form a fairly comprehensive picture of one’s grandmother, although each item might involve a different kind of story.

The Old Testament, what Christians call the Hebrew Scriptures which they inherited (in the Greek version) from the Jewish people, contains many different kinds of literature, from poems, to genealogies, to legendary stories, to court histories, to lists of laws from one or another era. What we call the Old Testament is fundamentally the material that Jewish priests put together after the Jews escaped from Babylon about 500 years before Christ, plus later collections of saying and stories which we call “Wisdom literature.”

As a result, a modern reader receives important help interpreting various parts of the Bible from scholarly commentaries that put incidents into their historical context and elaborate on the use of certain words. The New American Study Bible, and The NRSV Study Bible are examples of these resources; The Jewish Study Bible is a wonderful resource on how modern Jewish scholars look at different passages.

Needless to say, the Christian testimony, which we call “The New Testament” is far less complex because it covers many less years than The Old Testament, and also because the literary traditions are simpler: Gospels, letters, historical testimony (in the book of Acts), wisdom reflection in the Letter to the Hebrews, and a collection of apocalyptic testimony in the book of Revelation. Nevertheless, learning the history of different settings and contexts of writing helps the modern reader understand what is meant (and avoid misunderstanding what is meant).

We know how important the Hebrew Scriptures were to early Christians from a statement from St. Paul’s second letter to Timothy:

All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work (2 Tim 3:16-17).

This passage shows us how the early Churched the Jewish Scriptures to elaborate on their teaching about Jesus, to point out errors, and to guide people in their moral lives and in their ministry to others. Remember the word “scripture” has to refer to Jewish writings because the Christian Bible as we know it was not completely accepted by all the church communities until after two-hundred years.

Nevertheless, the Scriptures that we have in the Bible provide precious moments of encounter with God, prayer, psalms and other Jewish songs, and their attempt to live faithfully to God. Several important concepts come from the Scriptures, notably creation, covenant, exile, commandment, salvation, kingdom, and God’s faithfulness to God’s promises. These ideas provide the context which the early Christians used to describe the work of Jesus, the salvation he won for us, and the way of life that followers of Jesus try to lead.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church has this to say:

In Sacred Scripture, the Church constantly finds her nourishment and her strength, for she welcomes it not as a human word, “but as what it really is, the word of God (1 Thes 2:13).” “In the sacred books the Father who is in heaven comes lovingly to meet his children and talks with them (Dei Verbum, 21).”

Today, faithful disciples of Jesus read the Scriptures to gain deeper insight into God’s love, and read the Scripture out loud to grasp what it means to follow God. Both personal Bible reading and that provided in the liturgies of the Church remain powerful sources of Christian teaching and personal growth.

For reflection and discussion:

1. How do you find the Scriptures most useful in your life?

2. Which parts of the Bible do you find easiest to read? Can you say why?

3. When Catholics go to Church on Sunday, they hear key parts of the Bible over three years. How helpful has this been to you?

4. Why do you feel Catholics frequently seem intimidated when it comes to the Bible?

Shared experience:

The leader invites participants to share their own experience of how revelation has been an experience and a help in their lives.

Concluding Reflections:

The leader sees if there are any questions participants might have. Some of these questions might be responded to in the next session if research is needed.

Prayer

AREA 4

THE GIFT OF SALVATION

Jesus and the Holy Spirit

Christians obviously put Jesus at the center of their thought and faith. They see Jesus as the fulfillment of revelation: in Jesus God does not merely teach us things. In Jesus, God comes into our human history through the unity of the Son of God with the human person of Jesus Christ.

Certainly, Christians saw the Hebrew Scriptures as antecedents to Jesus. They read the words of Moses and the prophets from their own experience of Jesus. In this way, Jesus stands in continuity with all of Jewish tradition. At the same time, Jesus brings Jewish tradition to a fulfilment that seemed to turn Jewish understanding on its head.

What is clear about Jesus is that he is a Jew, proclaiming the Kingdom of God in the first century. Jews had been taken into captivity by Babylon; after sixty years, Cyrus, the king of Babylon, let them return home about 500 BC. But their homeland, promised to them since the time of Abraham, seemed always in the grip of some foreign empire, whether Persia, Greece or Rome. At the time of Jesus, Romans regularly exacted taxes from the occupants of Palestine; these taxes were taken by “publicans,” tax-collectors who were Jews who funneled Jewish money to Rome through taxation.

But Jesus seemed to skirt this main political situation of Israel. He did not start a political revolution and did not raise an army to drive the Romans out of Israel. Rather, he proclaimed a kingdom which took most of its vision from the long-dead prophet Isaiah. According to Luke, Jesus begins his ministry this way:

He came to Nazareth, where he had grown up, and went according to his custom into the synagogue on the sabbath day. He stood up to read and was handed a scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written:
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,[i]
because he has anointed me
to bring glad tidings to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives
and recovery of sight to the blind,
to let the oppressed go free,
and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord. Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, “Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing.” Luke 4:16-20)

Jesus’ home town had very mixed feelings about his message, but Jesus put this basic message, that the scriptures are coming about before their eyes, into action by his teaching, healings, and astonishing actions that showed that the forces of evil had now met their match. Quite clearly, Jesus h\ad the words of the prophets in the back of his head; quite clearly, Jesus was acting in the name of God to bring something new to his fellow Jews.

While Jesus’ actions gain him applause among simple people, various leaders feel at least threatened by Jesus. When he goes to the Temple after years of ministry to declare the Temple is to be a house of prayer and not a way to raise money, certain leaders seem to have had enough. After his arrest, he is brought to Pilate, the Roman delegate; there Pilate is urged to condemn Jesus to death. Crucifixion, a uniquely Roman practice, was designed to create maximal pain and humiliation.

But Jesus’ death would hardly be the end of him. Rather, Jesus is raised, as he predicted, on the third day after his death. His Resurrection is a turning point of history because Jesus has broken through the two basic limitations of human life: he died as a victim of sin; in his rising, he has broken the barrier of death. Jesus has begun the reversal of those traits that led humankind to break relationship with God and with each other. He has fulfilled the promises of God to Israel through his death and resurrection.

Raised from the dead, Jesus now bestows upon humankind his Risen Spirit, that dimension of God which Christians call “the third Person of the Trinity,” to be a dynamic in human life and salvation. Believers experience the Risen Christ directly (see 1 Corinthians 15:1-11) or through the witness of the preaching of the disciples who form communities of faith that begin a new way of life through their belief in the Risen Christ, their gathering around the Eucharist, and their ministry to others by preaching and caring for the poor. “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35-37).

Christians understand their life as disciples as the working of the Risen Christ in their lives. Worship, prayer, service, growth in knowledge, and faithfulness to following Jesus are the working of the Holy Spirit that Jesus sends upon us. This lived experience of faith has produced, in Christians, the belief that God is a Trinity, three divine persons who live for each other as one God, whose life has been given to us by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. This is why one observes Catholics making the “sign of the cross” when they pray; they say, “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”

Redemption is coming to share God’s life, in our immediate experience as disciples of Jesus who live, pray, and serve in Jesus’ name, and ultimately in the Resurrection of the Dead, when God bestows the fullness of life an love upon all those who have opened themselves in faith and love to the mystery of God. This Christian life, then, is not just a social gathering among people who think alike; it is a share in God’s life through the Holy Spirit that brings union with God in Jesus. The Holy Spirit joins us to each other as brothers and sisters in Christ.

Christians see the coming of Jesus as the pivotal event in all of human history. God has been revealed through creation and through revelation. This revelation has reached its highest point in Jesus Christ who brings about reconciliation with God in his death and resurrection, and who offers humankind participation in that death and resurrection through discipleship. Christ’s victory belongs to all who come to faith in him. Christian life, powered by the Holy Spirit, becomes the way redemption is experienced by believers. “If, then, we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him (Rom. 6:8)”

Christians understand that many people who are not explicit followers of Jesus may, nonetheless, be following the path and love of God through the traditions they have inherited. In other words, Christians believe they have the most explicit path to salvation, but that path is not restricted only to them. Today, all religions seek to understand and work with each other to advance human dignity and reduce violence and prejudice that extreme forms of religion might foster. As St. Paul wrote: “This is good and pleasing to God our savior, who wills everyone to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth (1 Tim 2:3-4).” This divine will for salvation touches every human heart who seeks the good.

For reflection and discussion:

1. How would you describe the human hope for salvation? What would salvation look like in your view?

2. How would you say that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus was a highpoint of revelation?

3. In what ways can people show that they are sharing in the risen life of Jesus in the Holy Spirit?

4. How do you see the Holy Spirit active in the lives of people today?

Shared experience:

The leader invites participants to share their own experience of when the power of salvation seemed clearest in their lives.

Concluding Reflections:

The leader sees if there are any questions participants might have. Some of these questions might be responded to in the next session if research is needed.

Prayer

AREA 5

THE COMMUNITY OF THE CHURCH

Where Disciples Live Out Their Faith

One of the aspects of the redemption of Jesus is that his presence in the world would change after his resurrection. Having endured the most humiliating of deaths, having been raised in a whole new state of existence, Jesus could not fulfill his mission of bringing the Kingdom to all people if he remained with the limitations of the kind of bodies that humans experience. Jesus’ resurrection made him available to all human experience. His risen body is free from the limits we experience. Christians have various ways of expressing this. One way is through the words of the Creed which say that “[Jesus[ ascended into heaven,” and another way is through the ongoing work of the Holy Spirit in the world.

The experience of the early Christian taught them a powerful lesson: that Jesus was present in the communities of believers that not only accepted him but also made him the center of their moral vision and their worship. Perhaps one of the most striking examples of this insight comes in the conversion of St. Paul who, as a rigorous and faithful Jew, persecuted the early believers in Jesus. On his way to Damascus, in Syria, to arrest Christians, Paul has an astonishing experience:

On his journey, as he was nearing Damascus, a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? He said, “Who are you, sir?” The reply came, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. Now get up and go into the city and you will be told what you must do.” The men who were traveling with him stood speechless, for they heard the voice but could see no one. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing; so they led him by the hand and brought him to Damascus. for three days he was unable to see, and he neither ate nor drank (Acts 9:3-9).

Paul is addressed by Jesus (who uses Paul’s Jewish name, Saul) in a way that shows Jesus is present in his followers. As Paul was persecuting the early followers of Jesus, so also he was persecuting Jesus himself. After this extraordinary encounter with the risen Christ, Paul is left speechless and blind, stunned and totally confused. At this point, Jesus sends Ananias, one of the followers of Jesus in Damascus, to be with Paul and, in effect, to bring him into the Christian community of believers. Paul’s blindness is overcome by faith; his hunger is overcome by sharing in the Bread and Wine of Communion with the followers of Jesus.

Many easily think of St. Paul as a “lone ranger” missionary, roaming the roads, going from place to place, and hardly stopping. But Paul is a fine example of the importance of community in the experience of redemption. Paul wrote many letters, which we often call “epistles,” and all of them were to communities of believers whom Paul was helping to grow in faith. He not only reviews important teachings, such as the Resurrection of Jesus, or the Last Supper; he also responds to questions, pleads with them to love and serve each other, and connects their lives as Christians to the work of the Holy Spirit. In Paul we get a solid vision of the importance of Church in Christian experience.

To many modern people who move from thing to thing because of their needs or preferences, the idea of community can seem remote. Many hear the word “church” and think of a building where certain members go. Others feel the word “church” communicates a lot of rules and an organization overly concerned with money. Younger generations, in particular, often think of “church” as something associated with their immigrant grandparents.

To think of “church” as the community of those who have committed themselves to following Jesus as disciples, however, probably is t most important for people today. Because “community” means that people belong to each other and depend on each other of many levels; “disciples” means that one’s sense of belonging is personal, a commitment that organizes one’s life. The more we can see “church” as a community of people in relationship with each other because of a relationship with Jesus in the Holy Spirit, the more we can see the “church” as a community to which we can relate personally.

Many people think of the church in organizational terms which emphasize the visible aspects of church. So, the usual experience of church is in parishes which are mostly neighborhood communities of believers. Parishes, usually under the care of a priest, belong to dioceses, which are collections of parishes under the care of a bishop. Dioceses, in turn, belong to a world-wide community of believers; Catholics understand this world-wide community as most visible in the church of Rome under the leadership of a bishop who is called the “Pope.”

In parishes Catholics experience church most directly through the basic operations of a parish: forming people in faith, particularly children and young people; celebrating various rituals, with the Eucharist as the most important of these; and serving the needs of people through various kinds of ministries and charities. Becoming connected to the Church means being able to participate in these rites and services so that one can continue to grow in discipleship. This is why the regularly, weekly, celebration of the Eucharist through Sunday worship is so important or Catholics. Through this act of worship, Catholics gather together, hear the Word of God through Scriptures, offer resources to further the work of the Church, join in the Eucharistic prayer which unites us with Jesus, receive Holy Communion, and are sent out to be of services to others. All of these aspects deepen the sense of what it means to follow Jesus.

But there is a whole broader dimension to “church” which is also important for Catholic understanding: the church as the “sacrament of the world,” that is, the community of people which reveals what God is doing for humankind. The Church embodies the hopes and dreams of all humans because it upholds the vision of God who desires a human community bound together in faith and love. In this sense, the church is not just the building of people down the street. The church, rather, is God’s way gathering humankind together into a community of the redeemed. It is God’s way of abiding in human history and guiding it toward the Kingdom of God.

Look at how the Scriptures describe the Church in the Letter to the Colossians:

[Jesus] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth,
the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things were created through him and for him.
He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
He is the head of the body, the church. ]
He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
that in all things he himself might be preeminent.
For in him all the fullness[ was pleased to dwell,
and through him to reconcile all things for him,
making peace by the blood of his cross[k]
[through him], whether those on earth or those in heaven.

This remarkable passage, probably a hymn that was sung in various Christian communities at the time of Paul, ties together many dimensions of human existence, from creation, through salvation, to the Church, to the “fullness” of all things which dwells in Christ. In Christ all creation comes together in the experience of salvation and unity.

From this perspective, the Church is not just any organization. Rather, it is a community desired by God from the beginning, coming into place through the resurrection of Jesus and the Holy Spirit, and encompassing all human hopes and dreams. The Church is the community in which Christ dwells, through which the Scriptures are remembered and celebrated, and which extends across present and future time to tie all of humankind together. In this way, the Church is the forefront of human history, the way by which humankind can come to the fulfillment of its purpose.

Sometimes Catholics get a glimpse of this, particularly through the ministry of the Bishop of Rome, the Pope. When a pope visits one or another continent, tens of thousands of believers come together. Often, they will fill large stadiums or fields, revealing the breadth of Catholic community. In song and through processions, they represent a vast swath of humankind finding unity and community in the Catholic Church. That many others, who do not belong to the Catholic Church, also participate in these events only amplifies the meaning believers find in these experiences of Church. This provides insight into what makes the Catholic church distinct: it is not a community for this or that group of people. The Catholic Church gathers all people, whatever their language or social status, into one living community.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church puts it this way:

To reunite all his children, scattered ands led astray by sin, te Father willed to call the whole of humanity together into his Son’s Church. The Church is the place where humanity must rediscover its unity and salvation. The Church is “the world reconciled” (CCC, 848).

To be part of the Church means, ultimately, that one is part of the movement of the Holy Spirit bringing humankind together and bringing it forward towards its destiny in God. What happens to believers in their immediate experience as disciples in the Church reflects what God is doing for the world’s salvation and destiny.

For reflection and discussion:

1. When you think of “church” was comes to mind most of the time?

2. What have been your experience of Christian community in the parish?

3. How might you see the Church as furthering the deepest hopes of humankind?

4. What does the word “Catholic” mean to you?

Shared experience:

The leader invites participants to share their own experience of the Christian community.

Concluding Reflections:

The leader sees if there are any questions participants might have. Some of these questions might be responded to in the next session if research is needed.

Prayer

AREA 6

SACRAMENTAL LIFE

Actions that Show God’s Work in Our Lives

Many Catholics define their lives by the sacraments they have received. “I was baptized in the church of my grandmother.” Or, “I made my First Holy Communion when I was seven.” Weddings, funerals, and Confirmations are also events that tend to stick in the memory of people who participate in them. Every time May comes around, one can expect on social media hundreds of photos of people receiving one or another sacrament.

These celebrations of sacraments are often so powerful in the lives of Catholics that they, and their friends, remember them for decades. Of course, few Catholics, often baptized as babies, remember their baptism. But they do not forget who their godmother or godfather was, and they are often treated to photos of their baptism on family visits. Many young people recall celebrating Confirmation. Not only distinct dress with red ties or red robes help these memories; frequently this sacrament marks a point in taking one’s faith more seriously. Almost everyone remembers receiving First Holy Communion because of the attention paid to the youngster and the following celebration. Perhaps more than any sacrament, people do not forget weddings because of the huge consequences they have in the human community and the excess we relish on these ceremonies and receptions.

While the particular celebration of a sacrament receives attention, Catholics see sacraments against the background of a whole life of following Jesus. The sacraments help to relate believers to a new level of faith or a new way of life. In this sense, sacraments need to be put into the context of discipleship. The meaning of a sacrament contains not only the celebration itself, but the preparation and the consequences which attend the sacramental event.

In this way, sacraments mark ways of life which disciples undertake because of a deepening relationship with Christ and the Church. Nothing makes this clearer than the sacraments that form part of the way an adult becomes a member of the Church. Preparation for these sacraments of initiation, as they are called, takes a considerable amount of time. The Church has a process of initiation which brings people through distinct phases of growth: inquiry, catechetical study, deepening faith leading to enlightenment—these phases lead to the celebration of baptism, confirmation and Holy Communion. The entire process can take several years for some people, and at least many months for most.

After initiation, these newly baptized live different lives focused on the depth of their newfound faith, on Scripture reading, on various kinds of prayer, on serving others through the parish or some charity, and worshipping God on Sunday in the Eucharist. Often these sacraments are part of someone’s plan to marry, so the conversion leads to new life often with a Catholic spouse in which a shared Catholic faith augments the growth that takes place as people commit themselves to each other.

As new Catholics enter the Church, they help the members of the whole congregation see their faith in different perspectives. The entry of someone into the Church leads Catholics to renew their own commitment to being part of the people of God as a disciple. The enthusiasm of new Catholics renews the enthusiasm of many other Catholics. After all, these converts begin to sit regularly in the pews next to their Catholic brothers and sisters; if they have experienced conversion, haven’t we all?

Some sacraments have the particular emphasis on healing and pardon. We celebrate the sacrament of the sick, for example, when a person is aged, chronically ill, or critically ill. We accompany a person in the weakness of their lives and pray, with profound confidence, for healing. Blessed oil, placed on the foreheads of the sick, assures the consoling presence of the Holy Spirit; ministers lay hands on the head of the sick just as Jesus told his disciples to do (e.g., Mark 16:18).

Catholics recognize seven sacraments, that is, seven acts of worship and prayer which structure our lives as believers. In addition to the three sacraments of initiation (baptism, confirmation, Holy Communion), there are two sacraments of service (holy orders and matrimony) and two sacraments of healing and renewal (anointing of the sick and reconciliation).

The Catechism of the Catholic Church speaks of sacraments this way:

Jesus’ words and actions during his hidden life and public ministry were already salvific, for they anticipated the power of his Paschal mystery. They announced and prepared what he was going to give the Church when all was accomplished. The mysteries of Christ’s life are the foundation of what he would henceforth dispense in the sacraments, through the ministers of his Church, for “what was visible in our Savior has now passed over into his mysteries” (St. Leo the Great, Sermon 71). (CCC.1113)

Ultimately, Catholics see the sacraments as carrying on Christ’s saving work. They are continuous with his actions of healing and forgiveness. When the Church celebrates a sacrament, Christ actually accomplishes the reality through the Holy Spirit. To be part of a sacramental Church is to be part of a community that is sustained by Christ’s presence and saving power.

For reflection and discussion:

1. Which sacrament stands out most in your experience? Why do you remember it so well?

2. Not all Christian communities celebrate the sacraments as Catholics do. Do you see any benefits to their place in our lives?

3. The most important, and most frequently celebrated, sacrament is the Eucharist, or the Mass or Holy Communion. What does this say about our Catholic lives?

4. In what ways do you see the sacraments at work in our daily lives (think of Holy Communion, baptism, matrimony, and reconciliation, for example)?

Shared experience:

The leader invites participants to share their own experience of the Catholic sacraments or of worship.

Concluding Reflections:

The leader sees if there are any questions participants might have. Some of these questions might be responded to in the next session if research is needed.

Prayer

AREA 7

RECONCILIATION

The Priority of Mercy and How Catholics Celebrate It

The evening when Jesus rose from the dead, he appeared to his Apostles although they had locked themselves into a room because of their fear. When Jesus appears, the first thing he says is: “Peace be with you.” Only after that does he show them the wounds of crucifixion, the nail marks in his hands and the opening in his side. One would think he would have a different greeting, or at least show them his wounds so they would know it was him. But Jesus begins his risen life offering forgiveness.

The apostles were probably hungering for these words from Jesus. After all, right after the meal in which he gave them Bread and Wine as his Body and Blood, right after they had sung psalms to God, almost all of them ran away. Call it the instinct for self-preservation; that sounds nice than “they were saving their own skin.” Yet it could be that showing them mercy and forgiveness was as great a showing of who he was than the wounds he carried. Was not mercy the first thing Jesus wanted to show people who were distant from God?

Here is an incident from the Gospel of Matthew:

As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at the customs post. He said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. While he was at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners came and sat with Jesus and his disciples. The Pharisees saw this and said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” He heard this and said, “Those who are well do not need a physician, but the sick do. Go and learn the meaning of the words, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ I did not come to call the righteous but sinners” (Matt 9:1-13).

This incident shows the mercy of Jesus on two points: first, he invites someone reviled by the broader Jewish population because he collects taxes for the Romans; secondly, he forces the religious leaders of his time to see that God’s first and most powerful attitude toward us is mercy. Everyone is sick because of sin; some of the sickest are those who think they are not. Because those who think they need no mercy have not really understood who they are and who God is. Jesus has come for those who know they are hurting and can therefore receive God’s mercy.

So fundamental is this concept to the God that Jesus was revealing, he places it in the heart of the prayer he taught his disciples and all Christians have prayed, the Our Father. “Forgive us our trespasses as forgive those who trespass against us.” Our experience of God’s mercy is tied up with our experience of showing mercy to others. Until we show mercy, we cannot understand and accept God’s mercy.

It is, on one level, natural for God’s first quality toward humankind to be “mercy” because humankind desperately needs mercy and because mercy is the beginning of our spiritual healing. Mercy is not some hidden and difficult quality of God; God’s mercy extends to us even in our sinfulness because God offers healing as soon as brokenness shows itself.

Reconciliation is, of course, a huge term that can be applied to society. When we look at the divisions, inequality, selfishness, and greed that saturates so much of modern life, we know the problem extends way beyond our own particular situation; it extends to the wide range of society itself. Just as we all contribute to this societal brokenness, we all can lessen the pervasiveness of sin by changing our own lives.

Yet Catholics celebrate the mercy of God in a sacrament called Reconciliation. It was, in prior years, called the sacrament of Confession; indeed. that was often the emphasis of our approach to the sacrament. We confessed our sins as a list. While we still confess sin, the emphasis of the sacrament is primarily on mercy. We are celebrating the mercy we have experienced in the healing that has come into our lives. This is perfectly clear in the words the priest says in the sacrament: “God, the Father of mercy, through the death and resurrection of his Son, has reconciled the world to himself.”

Reconciliation has already been offered; our task as followers of Jesus is to accept that mercy and show it to others. This is the purpose of the sacrament of Reconciliation: to commit ourselves to the renewal God offers us through the mercy he has shown us in Jesus. For this reason, the emphasis of the sacrament is not on our shame or feeling of guilt; the emphasis, rather, is what God does in our lives to free us from those evils that trap us.

Another key point is that we confess our sins to the priest as a sign that we recognize our sins are not only personal failings; they also hurt and weaken the community of believers, the Church. All sin does this, not only the public and scandalous actions that people do. As a result, when God’s mercy begins working in our lives leading us to repentance, we approach a priest as a representative of the entire believing community, asking for reconciliation and peace.

Catholic teaching holds that when we are conscious of having committed a grave sin, we approach the sacrament of Reconciliation before receiving Holy Communion. Another way to say this is: when we have done a sin that breaks our relationship with the community of faith, we approach that community seeking reconciliation with it before we receive the sacrament that unites us with our brothers and sisters and with God. Neither sin nor reconciliation are primarily private.

In the Appendix of this booklet one can find about how to celebrate Reconciliation (i.e., how to go to Confession). Participants can use this to review the practice and bring up any questions.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church says this about Reconciliation:

Sin is before all else an offense against God, a rupture of communion with him. At the same time it damages communion with the Church. For this reason conversion entails both forgiveness and reconciliation with the Church which are expressed and accomplished liturgically by the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation.

For reflection and discussion:

1. What feelings do you have about the sacrament of Reconciliation?

2. What do you think are the attitudes people have toward mercy? Do you think people see God as merciful?

3. Do you have any examples of how showing forgiveness helped someone understand forgiveness? Or, perhaps the opposite, how being unable to forgive prevented someone from accepting forgiveness?

4. What might help Catholics celebrate reconciliation more frequently?

Shared experience:

The leader invites participants to share their own experience of reconciliation or the sacrament of Reconciliation. Make sure the boundaries of privacy are preserved.

Concluding Reflections:

The leader sees if there are any questions participants might have. Some of these questions might be responded to in the next session if research is needed.

Prayer

Area 8

A VISION OF THE KINGDOM

The Fullness of Life and Love

“Don’t you want to go to heaven?”

This was a frequent way of speaking for centuries in the Church. The idea centered on a binary alternative: either one burned forever in hell or one was happy in heaven. In this way, believers viewed heaven as a place to which one went after death, a place of happiness that was “somewhere up there.” The old Jewish concept of creation as entailing a dome to keep the water above it from flooding the earth equated the ideas of “heaven” and “sky.” “Our Father who art in heaven” could easily mean “Our Father, who are in the sky.”

Another aspect of “heaven” was the fuzziness about what happened there. We had images of angels singing, of choirs of martyrs singing, all in praise of an almighty God. Hierarchical ranks of angels responded to the divine being endlessly. The notion of “praising God” easily slipped into the idea of “contemplating God” in accord with the practice of the monks. Of course, humans still living in time and space tried to picture these images concretely, and without much success. Elusive images of souls sitting on clouds held little promise of making heaven real or even attractive.

At the very least, the idea of heaven is saying that existence has a direction; it is going somewhere forward, in a better direction, and creation will have some state of completion in accord with God’s love for all God has made. Ultimately, this is a compelling idea because every human has felt a sense of incompleteness with life, either in terms of its length or in terms of its quality. If we have minds that endlessly seek to know, and hearts that endlessly seek to love, heaven should be responsive to these built-in human dynamics.

Not all of these ideas easily line up with Jesus’ language about the kingdom of God. His language spoke not only of some future state but, enticingly, of present human existence. While Jesus connects the kingdom to the future, he also speaks about its powerful presence even in the lives of his contemporaries. The kingdom was going to change human existence, not primarily in the sense of some future state of happiness, but in the present sense of conquering evil, sin, and death.

In a powerful set of sentences from the Gospel of Luke, we read he following:

And if Satan is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that it is by Beelzebul that I drive out demons. If I, then, drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own people drive them out? Therefore they will be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. When a strong man fully armed guards his palace, his possessions are safe. But when one stronger than he attacks and overcomes him, he takes away the armor on which he relied and distributes the spoils. Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters (Luke 11:18-23).

Jesus’ words stir us: “The kingdom of God has come upon you”! The context of this passage increases the drama of Jesus’ words. He has been driving out demons, an ancient practice which demonstrated the defeat of the power of evil. Instead of being congratulated by the leaders of his time, Jesus is attacked. “He must be driving out demons by the power of evil itself.” This allows Jesus to introduce a very powerful metaphor about conflict. If Satan is fighting Satan, then Satan is defeated. Once someone has true power, as Jesus does, he can defeat the enemy. This is the power to which Jesus was inviting his listeners.

Perhaps we can think of the “kingdom” as “the fullness of life and love,” just as we can think of evil as the diminishment of life and love. This fullness has begun with the ministry and victory of Jesus; it is imparted to us by the Holy Spirit, the greatest Easter gift of Jesus to humankind. Salvation, then, is to experience this growth of life and love whether in a future life or now; condemnation, on the other hand, is to experience the diminishment of life and love.

This means that there is a striking continuity between present experience and whatever future God wills for us. In another passage from scripture, we hear the punchline: “For as you judge, so will you be judged, and the measure with which you measure will be measured out to you” (Mt 7:12). The kind of spiritual visions with which we live now will be the spiritual vision that we will posses in the kingdom. For those who have discovered love, mercy, trust, and peace, that will constitute their eternal life; those who have rejected love, mercy, trust, and peace, that will be their fate in eternal life.

Our centuries-long discussion about heaven and hell, our attempt to visualize something that has not yet come into complete existence, are pointing to the ultimate truth about our lives. The death and resurrection of Jesus, with the subsequent gift of the Holy Spirit, is precisely to impart a new vision to humankind, a vision which Christians have sustained for twenty-one centuries. It helps us see heaven and hell not as places to which we “go,” but as states in which we live, both now and eternally.

Catholics teach that all people have existence in God; it teaches that even the condemned will continue to live. This is because human life is not primarily our relationship with God as it is God’s relationship with us. God relates to us with an eternal love that sustains our existence now and forever. God’s gift of freedom means we have the choice of either living in that love or resisting that love. Either way, God’s love never ends.

This can help us visualize the judgment we face, both immediately after death and when creation is fulfilled in the resurrection of the dead. Judgment basically means acknowledging how much we have opened our hearts to God, or, on the other hand, how much we have resisted divine love and grace. “For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God. . . (Rom 14:10)

We can think of heaven and hell, then, not merely as possible future places. We can think of these as states of life which describe how our response to God’s love has unfolded. The Church does not teach that anyone definitely is “in hell.” But the Church continues to preach “heaven” as the result of our openness to God’s love and grace. God’s grace is a gift we are free to accept or reject.

Catholics also teach that after death, in our relationship with God, it is possible to grow in accepting God’s love once we have become fundamentally open to that love. One traditional word for this ongoing transformation of our lives is “purgatory.” We do not need all the medieval images that have contributed to popular ideas about “purgatory.” We only need to see that growth may be necessary as we receive the fullness of life and love.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church says this about future life:

At the end of time, the Kingdom of God will come in its fullness. After the universal judgment, he righteous will reign for ever with Christ, glorified in body and soul. The universe itself will be renewed. (CCC 1042)

For reflection and discussion:

1.What images do you have in your mind about heaven? How do those images make you feel?

2. How important is the idea of salvation in your spiritual life?

3. In what ways do you see a connection between our present life and the life to come?

4. What do you most look forward to in the future?

Shared experience:

The leader invites participants to share their own various images of heaven, hell, purgatory, and the afterlife.

Concluding Reflections:

The leader sees if there are any questions participants might have. Some of these questions might get a response via email or a personal visit in the future.

Prayer

Appendix

Common Prayers

The Our Father

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

The Hail Mary

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb. Jesus. Holy Mary, mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Glory Be

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Prayer to the Holy Spirit

Come Holy Spirit, Fill the Hearts of your faithful.

And enkindle in them the fire of your love.

Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created.

And you shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray: O God, who by the light of the Holy Spirit, instructed the hearts of your faithful. Grant by that same Spirit we too may know what is right and always rejoice in his consolation. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Hail, Holy Queen

Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy, our life, our sweetness, and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve; to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.

Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us and after this our exile show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. Pray for us, O Holy Mother of God... that we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.

Act of Faith

O my God, I firmly believe that you are on God in three Divine Persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit; I believe that your divine Son became man and died for our sins, and that he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe these and all the truths which the holy

Catholic Church teaches, because you revealed them, who can neither deceive nor be deceived.

Act of Hope

O my God, relying on you infinite goodness and promises, I hope to obtain pardon of my sins, the help of your grace, and life everlasting, through the merits of Jesus Christ, my Lord and Redeemer. Amen.

Act of Love

O my God, I love you above all things, with all my heart and soul, because you are all-good and worthy of all love. I love my neighbor as myself for the love of you. I forgive all who have injured me, and ask pardon of all whom I have injured. Amen.

Act of Contrition

My God, I am sorry for my sins with all my heart. In choosing to do wrong, and failing to do good, I have sinned against you, whom I should love above all things. I firmly intend, with your help, to do penance, to sin no more, and to avoid whatever leads me to sin. Our Savior Jesus Christ suffered and died for us. In his name, my God, have mercy. Amen.

Celebrating Reconciliation

When a person discerns that she/he should celebrate Reconciliation, these are the steps:

1. EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE

Spend time reflecting on your life since your last confession. Ask yourself what are the relationships with God that have been strained or broken; ask what relationships with others have been seriously violated. Also reflect on the way God has been guiding you in your life, providing signs of mercy and grace. An important part of this examination is the determination not to get involved in this sin again.

2. FIND A TIME TO CELEBRATE RECONCILIATION WITH A PRIEST

Parishes often have regular times when priests are available.

People can also contact a priest and ask for an appointment. Reconciliation is not a sacrament that is celebrated “long distance” over a phone or video session. People celebrate this sacrament in person.

3. DECIDE WHETHER TO CELEBRATE FACE-TO-FACE OR BEHIND A SCREEN THAT PRESERVES ANONYMITY

A Catholic has the right to speak to the priest either face-to-face or behind a screen. Decide which is the most comfortable way for you. If it has been some time since you last celebrated Reconciliation, face-to-face might be the more preferable way simply to make it easier to talk and explore while you see the priest’s face.

4. ENTER THE CONFESSIONAL OR ROOM WHERE RECONCILIATION WILL BE CELEBRATED. GET COMFORTABLE. Then begin by saying:

1) When was the last time you celebrated Reconciliation.

2) A simple narration of the areas for which you want God’s mercy.

So one might begin, “Father, bless me, it has been ______ since my last confession.” Fill in the blank with the time, i.e., one month, six months, one year, several years, etc. This information only helps the priest get a sense of your situation.

Say your serious sins simply, giving the number of times when that is relevant. The priest is not looking for a long recitation of circumstances or excuses. Brevity is very helpful to keep you from overfocusing on your list of sins. Sometimes the number of times is not relevant (“Father, I got angry at other drivers 2,000 times.” Just say “often.”) Sometimes the number of times is very relevant. (“Father, I have committed adultery? How often is very important.) When you have finished simply say, “These are my sins.”

Listen as the priest speaks to you, trying to help you see patterns in your sins and understand God’s grace in your life. If you have questions, you may ask them. Sometimes the priest has questions to help clarify things for the penitent.

4) The conversation will end by the priest giving you some prayers or actions to do AFTER the sacrament is done. These are to help you grow stronger in your resolve to follow Christ.

5) Praying the prayer of contrition. Often these prayers are printed for the penitent to use. One can also make up a sincere prayer of repentance: Father, forgive me for my sins. I love you and promise, with your grace, never to sin again.

6) Listen to the prayer of Reconciliation that the priest says.

7) When the priest says “Go in peace,” say “Thank you, Father,” and leave.

8) You say the prayers or do the actions the priest has offered you as soon as it is convenient after the sacrament of over.

5 BECOME A PERSON WHO SHOWS MERCY TO OTHERS

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