That they might have life and have it to the full! John 10:10

 The Sacrament is seen as the fulfillment of Jesus’ commission  John 20:19 The sins you forgive are forgiven and the sins you hold bound are held bound.  In antiquity the Sacrament was understood as exomologesis, literally regeneration.  The ancient practice involved restorations to the community after a period of penance.

 If a person sinned gravely after baptism, this served as the process of reconciliation with the community.  e.g. if a person committed adultery they may have had to sit on the front steps of the church for some years and being readmitted to the community at the Easter Vigil  It seems that this prescribed period could be mitigated by some act of charity or pious work.

 The Church instinctively grew to understand the difficulty in such public penance and thus a more private form evolved to its current practice.  There was an early development of auricular (of the ear) confessions where the priest would privately hear the confession. I believed this developed in the Irish Church then spread universally.

 Confession  A person is to confess their serious sins to a priest. If the person cannot speak they many communicate them in another fashion.  Contrition  A person must truly sorry for the act and truly desire to repent and avoid the sin  Absolution  The priest prays the pray of absolution over the penitent.

 The priest may begin with a blessing something like, May God give you the grace to know your sins and may He bless you,.. In the name of the Father….  Bless me father for I have sinned, this is my first confession.. Or..my last confession was … weeks (months) (years) ago.  These are my sins …. Then conclude… I am sorry for these sins and any other sin I may have committed.  If the sins are serious you should attempt to relate the number of times the sin was committed. (the priest does not need details)  The priest will give you a penance and then pray the prayer of absolutions

 God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, + and of the Holy Spirit.

 This is a category of sins that technically can only be absolved directly by the bishop or in some cases the Holy See (the pope).  Sometimes sins incur a penalty that can be removed by the Bishop or pope, a list can be found for these penalties that can be removed by the Holy See.  The penalty for some sins are excommunication, but this penalty is only to encourage repentance.

 latae sententiae – this is a penalty that is automatically imposed by the act itself under the following conditions.  Can The following are not subject to a penalty when they have violated a law or precept:  1) a person who has not yet completed the sixteenth year of age;  2 ) a person who without negligence was ignorant that he or she violated a law or precept; inadvertence and error are equivalent to ignorance;  3 ) a person who acted due to physical force or a chance occurrence which the person could not foresee or, if foreseen, avoid;  4 ) a person who acted coerced by grave fear, even if only relatively grave, or due to necessity or grave inconvenience unless the act is intrinsically evil or tends to the harm of souls;  5 ) a person who acted with due moderation against an unjust aggressor for the sake of legitimate self defense or defense of another;  6 ) a person who lacked the use of reason, without prejudice to the prescripts of can 1324, §1, n. 2 and ? 1325;  7 ) a person who without negligence thought that one of the circumstances mentioned in nn. 4 or 5 was present.  ferendae sententiae – this is a judgment by the Church, not automatic

 Is anyone among you sick?* He should summon the presbyters of the church, and they should pray over him and anoint [him] with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven.* Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful. James 5:14-16

 If a person is seriously ill or “infirmed” one is free to ask for the sacrament.  The effects of the sacrament are the remission of all venial sins and a plenary indulgence for all temporal punishment due to sin, if the normal conditions are met (see below).  Having an awareness of the indulgence  Praying for the pope  Having no attachment to sin  Going to confession within two weeks of the act.

 The priest has an introduction, there is usually a brief penitential rite, the priest may invite the person to go to confession.  The priest then lays hands on the person in silence and usually anoints the head saying, Through this holy anointing may the Lord in His love and mercy help you with the grace of the Holy Spirit,.. The person responds.. AMEN … then anointing the hands he says.. May the Lord who frees you from sin, save you and raise you up. The person responds.. AMEN  The Our Father is said with a closing prayer and blessing.

 Periodically parishes will have anointing services and all who are seriously ill or elderly are free to receive the anointing.  After the age of 65 people are free to seek the anointing every six months or any time if there condition worsens after they have been anointed.