Today's Marists 2024 Volume 8, Issue 2

Reconciling the Sacrament of
Reconciliation in a Marist school
by Mike Kelly, Director of Marketing, Notre Dame Preparatory and Marist Academy, Pontiac, Michigan
Notre Dame Prep’s students bear
witness to a sacrament whose
rituals have changed considerably
since their parents and grandparents
were in a Catholic school, but the
Sacrament of Reconciliation in any
format, remains a priority for the
Pope and for the Church.
In March of 2014, a little more than a year
after his election, Pope Francis was leading
an initiative and event in Rome organized
to encourage Catholics around the world
to fulfill their obligation to go to confession
in the sacrament of Reconciliation. The
plan was for Pope Francis to join with other
priests who were stationed around the
basilica in confessionals. However, that plan
went awry as he surprised those around him
and instead entered the penitent’s side of a
confessional, blessed himself and conversed
briefly with the priest.
The Pope’s intent became obvious ultimately
as he was making himself an example
by participating in a ritual rather than
administering it as the chief pastor and
shepherd of the whole Church.
This year during the season of Lent, the Pope
again stressed the importance of confession,
underscoring that the richness of the
sacrament is seen in the Act of Contrition, a
testament to God’s mercy and love.
During the last 50 or 60 years, the Sacrament
of Reconciliation has evolved dramatically
from a somewhat rigid and foreboding
practice of cataloging sins to one that
emphasizes spiritual guidance and mercy.
Confessions are no longer only in a darkened
confessional separating the priest from the
confessor, but now are also held in a quiet,
open, peaceful room with the priest.
These changes have occurred during a
time when the number of Catholics who
regularly attend confession has declined.
In the 1950s and ‘60s, as many as 80% of all
Catholics in the U.S. went to confession at
least once a year with many going as often
as once a month. A recent survey by Real
Clear Opinion Research, a service of Real
Clear Media Group, found that around 37%
of Catholics went to confession at least once
a year, while 28% go less than annually - and
35% never go.
18 Today’s Marists Magazine