Catholic Definition of Penance

"Penance is a Sacrament

That Penance is a Sacrament pastors can easily show from what follows. As Baptism is a Sacrament because it blots out all sins, and especially original sin, so for the same reason Penance, which takes away all the sins of thought and deed committed after Baptism, must be regarded as a true Sacrament in the proper sense of the word.

"Moreover--and this is the principal reason--since what is exteriorly done, both by priest and penitent, signifies the inward effects that take place in the soul, who will venture to deny that Penance is invested with the nature of a proper and true Sacrament? For a Sacrament is a sign of a sacred thing. Now the sinner who repents plainly expresses by his words and actions that he has turned his heart from sin; while from the words and actions of the priest we easily recognize the mercy of God exercised in the remission of sins.

"In any event, the words of our Savior furnish a clear proof: I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatsoever thou shalt loose upon earth, shall be also loosed in heaven. The absolution announced in the words of the priest expresses the remission of sins which it accomplishes in the soul."

The Catechism of Council of Trent, 1962 edition, Baronius Press, pp. 245

How to Make a Good Confession

"426. Before entering the confessional, how should we prepare ourselves for a good confession?

Before entering the confessional, we should prepare ourselves for a good confession by taking sufficient time not only to examine our conscience but, especially, to excite in our hearts sincere sorrow for our sins and a firm purpose not to commit them again.

a) Respect for the sacrament of Penance requires serious preparation for its reception. Reverence in church, a careful examination of conscience, exciting sincere sorrow for our sins, and patience in awaiting one's turn to approach the confessional, are marks of respect for the sacrament.

427. How should we begin our confession?

We should begin our confession in this manner: Entering the confessional, we kneel, and making the sign of the cross we say to the priest: "Bless me, Father, for I have sinned"; and then we tell how long it has been since our last confession.

428. After telling the time of our last confession, what do we confess?

After telling the time of our last confession, if we have committed any mortal sins since that time, we must confess them and also any that we have forgotten in previous confessions, telling the nature and number of each; we may also confess any venial sins we wish to mention.

(. . .)

429. What should we do if we cannot remember the exact number of our mortal sins?

If we cannot remember the exact number of our mortal sins, we should tell the number as nearly as possible, or say how often we have committed the sins in a day, a week, a month, or a year.

a) If we discover, after confession, that we have unintentionally accused ourselves of more sins than were committed, there is no need to make any further mention of it.

b) If we discover, after confession, that we unintentionally omitted some mortal sins, or failed to state the exact species, or mentioned a smaller number than were actually committed, we must mention the fact in our next confession.

(. . .)"

Baltimore Catechism No. 3, The Text of the Official Revised Edition 1949, by Rev. Francis J. Connell, C.SS.R., S.T.D.

Renunciation of Errors

Taken from the FAQs page of the Saint Jude Shrine website.

Q: Do I have to make a renunciation of errors (abjuration) and/or Profession of Faith if I am coming from the Novus Ordo into the true Catholic Faith?

Because no two people who are escaping the Novus Ordo sect are alike in their faith, there is no way to enforce a litmus test of a person’s belief system before admittance to Holy Communion at Saint Jude’s. As long as someone is validly Baptized, intends to learn and grow in the true Catholic Faith, and follows the Laws of the Church, that individual should feel consoled knowing their ignorance to the crisis facing the Church today was likely not willful and should be viewed as having been the result of a massive deception, rather than an intentional participation in error--rendering a person’s moral culpability as having been diminished to the extent of the individual’s ignorance of the crisis impacting the Church.

However, if one wishes to make a renunciation of errors in the Confessional, they may do so, as this is not prohibited by any means.

Once the errors of the Vatican II sect are made known to a person, he or she should not presume that God will be merciful if they persist in knowingly following the erroneous teachings of the last six antipopes, given the notoriously heretical beliefs espoused by those papal pretenders.

Examination of Conscience/Mortal vs. Venial Sins

To perform a good examination of conscience one should look at the Ten Commandments and whether or not one has seriously trespassed any of them. A mortal sin (which must always be confessed, especially prior to Holy Communion) consists of three qualities:

1. Grave matter

2. Full intent

3. Full knowledge

If any of these three qualities are missing from an act it is not mortally sinful (unto death) but only venially sinful, and therefore must not be confessed per se. 

Act of Contrition

The priest, following the penitent's Confession, will ask him or her to say their act of contrition. At this point, the penitent ought to say, with true sincerity and the desire to not sin again:

"Oh my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of Hell, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, who art all good and deserving of all my love. Therefore I resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin. Amen."

While the penitent recites the Act of Contrition, the priest typically absolves the penitent and sends him or her on their way to perform their penance. Upon hearing, "go in peace," the penitent may leave the confessional.