CNA\/EWTN News<\/a>).- In a speech given to priests and seminarians attending a course on the Sacrament of Confession, Pope Francis spoke about the mercy of God, stating that it is the most important aspect of their ministry.<\/p>\n\t\u201cConfession is not a court of condemnation, but an experience of forgiveness and mercy!\u201d the Pope expressed in his March 28 speech to those attending the annual Course on the Internal Forum.<\/p>\n
\tThe Internal Forum part of the Apostolic Penitentiary, which is one of the three tribunals of the Roman Curia and is responsible for issues relating to the forgiveness of sins in the Catholic Church, particularly sins involving some types of grave matter which require a special form of absolution that only certain priests can administer.<\/p>\n
\tLasting for four days, the conference is held every year in Rome and is attended by around 500 seminarians in the third year of studies as well as various priests who wish to participate. It is designed to educate attendees on the Canon law regarding Confession, as well as what the Internal Forum does.<\/p>\n
\tHighlighting how the Apostolic Penitentiary is one of the oldest offices of the Church as well as the importance of having well-formed confessors, the Pope thanked participants for their \u201cvaluable service\u201d and encouraged them \u201cto take it forward with renewed commitment.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tPope Francis also pressed attendees to build upon their \u201cexperience gained and with skilful creativity, to always help the Church and confessors to better carry out the ministry of mercy, which is so important!\u201d<\/p>\n
\tReflecting on the theme of mercy, the Pope pointed out that \u201cthe protagonist of the ministry of reconciliation is the Holy Spirit,\u201d adding that \u201cthe forgiveness that the Sacrament confers is the new life sent by the Risen Lord by means of His Spirit: \u2018Receive the Holy Spirit.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\u201cTherefore, you are called to always be \u2018men of the Holy Spirit,\u2019 witnesses and heralds, joyful and strong, of the resurrection of the Lord.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tExplaining how this witness is \u201cread on the face,\u201d the pontiff explained that it is also \u201cheard in the voice of the priest\u201d who administers the sacrament with \u201cfaith and with \u2018unction,\u2019\u201d and welcomes the penitents who come, rather than treating them \u201cwith the attitude of a judge.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tObserving how \u201cthe heart of the priest is a heart that knows how to be moved, not by sentimentality or mere emotion, but to the \u2018tender mercy\u2019 of the Lord,\u201d the Pope drew attention to the dual role of a confessor as both \u201cdoctor and judge,\u201d adding that \u201cwe must never forget that as a doctor he is called to heal and as a judge, to absolve.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tIn a second point, the pontiff noted that if the sacrament \u201ctransmits the new life of the Risen Lord and renews baptismal grace,\u201d then the task of a priest \u201cis to give it generously to others.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\u201cA priest who does not attend to this part of his ministry, both in the amount of time spent and in the spiritual quality, is like a shepherd who does not take care of the sheep that were lost; he is like a father who forgets the lost son and neglects waiting for him.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tReminding those in attendance how many persons often experience \u201cdifficulty\u201d in \u201capproaching the sacrament\u201d for various reasons, the Pope expressed the necessity \u201cto work hard on ourselves, on our humanity, never to be an obstacle but always to favor drawing near to mercy and forgiveness.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tHe also cautioned participants to guard against the two extremes \u201crigorism and laxism\u201d in administering Confession, observing that \u201cneither is good, because in reality they don\u2019t take charge of the person of the penitent.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\u201cInstead, mercy truly listens with the heart of God and wants to accompany the soul on the path of reconciliation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tBringing up a final point in his discourse, Pope Francis stated that although many know of the difficulties encountered in the Sacrament of Reconciliation, we also know that \u201cthe Lord wanted to give this immense gift to His Church, offering to the baptized the security of the Father's forgiveness.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\u201cFor this reason\u201d he said, \u201cit is very important that in every diocese and in the parish communities, particular care is taken of the celebration of this Sacrament of forgiveness and salvation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tEncouraging attendees to make clear times available for the sacrament in their parishes and to let their congregation know, the Pope emphasized that \u201cwhen there is fidelity, the fruits are seen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\tConcluding his speech, the pontiff entrusted the priestly ministry and all Christian communities to \u201cthe Virgin Mary, Mother of Mercy,\u201d praying that \u201cthat they might always grow in understanding the value of the Sacrament of Penance.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\u201cI entrust all of you to our Mother and I bless you from the heart.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n
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Vatican City, Mar 28, 2014 \/ 07:14 am (CNA\/EWTN News).- In a speech given to priests and seminarians attending a course on the Sacrament of Confession, Pope Francis spoke about the mercy of God, stating that it is the most important aspect of their min…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1031,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-vatican"],"yoast_head":"\n
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