Good Ground For Hope

But though you are master of might, you judge with clemency, and with much lenience you govern us; for power, whenever you will, attends you.  And you taught your people, by these deeds, that those who are just must be kind; and you gave your children good ground for hope that you would permit repentance for their sins. 

What beautiful words in our first reading from the book of Wisdom, words that remind us that God is very merciful and always allows us to come back and ask for forgiveness.

I’ll share a story with you that will bring this to light.  Some years ago in a conversation with someone I asked, “If you were a priest and you had a penitent come to you to confession every week and repeated the same sin over and over again, each and every week. What would you do?”  He asked, “I need to know what type of sin.”  I realized then that I had a theologian in the making if front of me.  I said, “Really, it could be any sin, but for our purposes since there seems to be an unbelievable preoccupation in sexual sins in our time, let’s say the person has a sexual addiction, a serious one.”  I asked the person a second time, “What would you do?”  He responded, “I would withhold absolution until the penitent made some real effort to change, because obviously he is abusing the sacrament by using it as a way out of his sins.”

It is true a priest can withhold absolution if there is legitimate cause, i.e. the penitent was not contrite, made a mockery of the sacrament, or something to the like.  It should be rarely used, withholding absolution that is, since it turns the sacrament into power and fear, a power over the penitent and a fear of the sacrament.

God Himself judges with clemency as Scripture tells us, who is man to think he may set different standards?  The person asked me, “What would you do?”  I would grant absolution if they are contrite, it makes no difference how long the struggle has been, the penitent is fighting the good fight as St. Paul tells us the Christian life is, not a life free from sin, but a life that does not give up.

Think of how much God has been patient with us.  All of us repeat sins and all of us are allowed to ask for forgiveness, again, “you gave your children good ground for hope that you would permit repentance for their sins.”  It does not stipulate that it can only be once rather it leaves it open, the ability to ask for forgiveness, since God knows that in our weakness we fall.

It is true God desires that we never sin and we should have the same desire, to be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect, but if we fall short we have someone that intercedes on our behalf, Jesus Christ, the Eternal High Priest who forgives seventy times seven, in a word, “ALWAYS!” 

FJ