Part 111, Chapter IV(*): Charity of the Confessor

Charity of the Confessor

CHARITY is a most necessary qualification for any confessor. He should be consumed with love for sinners. He should be filled with kindness and mercy. He may thunder and fulminate in the pulpit, but in the Sacred Tribunal of Penance he must speak only words of gentleness and encouragement. One catches more flies witha spoonful of honey than with a cask of vinegar.

The priest should enter the confessional with a heart consumed only with the desire of assisting penitents, and should receive, in a spirit of graciousness and helpfulness those who present themselves. No exception should be made. Rich and poor, great and humble, adults and children, all alike should experience the same spirit of understanding.

Remember that in the confessional the penitent addresses you as "Father." Treat him, then, with paternal kindness, overlooking any shortcomings he may have, impressing upon him the seriousness of what he does, while at the same time refraining from harshness. Avoid familiarity under any guise, but seek to banish unwarranted fear lest it interfere with a frank and open confession. Be spiritually helpful. Point out that Christ died for the sinner and extends complete pardon for sin to the soul whose sorrow i s sincere and whose purpose of amendment is firm.

If you observe that the penitent is in a state of perplexity and needs help in examining his conscience, be ready to assist him. Urge him to make a complete and accurate confession of his sins, see that he avoid (*). If the reader compares this chapter to that of the original French, he will find that it has been considerably shortened. Nothing important, however, has been omitted in the translation.

long and meaningless explanations; assist him in making a succinct picture of his wrongdoing, glossing over nothing, omitting, minimizing or withholding nothing, but making a full and clear accusation of every mortal sin of which he believes himself guilty. Console the afflicted, showing them how to turn their trials and sorrows into merit. 151-