Dear Parishioners and Visitors,
“I pulled the cat’s tail” is a sin that a youngster might bring into the confessional on a Saturday afternoon, but as our spirituality matures, we recognize the need to examine our lives with a more serious sense of purpose. Lent is a season of prayer and penitence when we engage in some self-reflection about our relationship with God and His Church.
While venial sins are minor offenses against God’s commandments that impede our relationship with God and His Church, mortal sins significantly rupture our relationship with God and others. For a sin to be mortal in nature, the sin committed (or omitted) must be 1) a serious violation of God’s law, 2) must have been done with sufficient knowledge of its seriousness, and 3) must have been done deliberately and with sufficient freedom of the will – i.e., “on purpose.”
As followers of Christ, we need to examine our lives and recognize any sinful thoughts, words, and behaviors that impede the life-giving connection we share with God through His son, Jesus Christ. Such an examination of conscience should be done regularly, always with trust in God’s mercy and love, and then be brought, with true contrition, to the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
With prayerful best wishes,
Fr. John Mahoney