CONFESIÓN / RECONCILIATION 

• Confessions: at Holy Family Thursdays from 5 p.m. to 7:00 pm and Saturdays from 4pm to 6:00pm

• Examination of Conscience for Adults and Teens

The Ten Commandments

I. I am the Lord Thy God. Thou shall not have strange gods before Me.

II. Thou shall not take the Name of the Lord thy God in vain.

III. Remember to keep holy the Lord’s Day.

IV. Honor thy father and thy mother.

V. Thou shall not kill.

VI. Thou shall not commit adultery.

VII. Thou shall not steal.

VIII. Thou shall not bear false witness.

IX. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor’s wife.

X. Thou shall not covet thy neighbor’s goods.

The Precepts of the Church

1. You shall attend Mass on Sundays and on Holy Days of Obligation and rest from servile labor.

2. You shall confess your sins at least once a year.

3. You shall receive the Sacrament of the Eucharist at least during the Easter Season.

4. You shall observe the days of fasting and abstinence established by the Church

5. You shall help to provide for the needs of the Church.

Prayer Before Confession

Come, Holy Spirit, enlighten my mind that I may clearly know my sins. Move my heart that I may be sincerely sorry for them, honestly confess them and firmly resolve to amend my life. Spirit of Wisdom, grant me to see the malice of sin and my ingratitude toward You, the all-loving God. Spirit of Fortitude, help me to make whatever sacrifice is needed to avoid sin in the future. Amen

Act of Contrition

O 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. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to confess my sins, to do penance and to amend my life. Amen.

How to go to Confession

1. The priest will greet you.

2. The penitent says: “Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.” You then say how long it has been since your last Confession.

3. The penitent tells the priest his sins and briefly answers any relevant questions.

4. The priest will give you some advice and will assign you a penance.

5. The penitent will next pray the Act of Contrition (see prayer below).

6. The priest then gives the penitent absolution.

7. The priest will then say: “Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good.”

8. The penitent responds: “His mercy endures forever.” The priest will then dismiss you.

Prayer After Confession

Almighty and Merciful God, whose mercy is boundless and everlasting and of Whose goodness the riches are infinite, I thank You because You have so graciously pardoned all my sins and restored Your Heavenly favor. I am awed by Your divine compassion and the incomprehensible love of Your Son, which has led Him to institute so gentle and powerful a remedy for sins. In union with all the gratitude that has ever ascended to You from truly penitent hearts, I proclaim Your merciful praises on behalf of all in Heaven, on earth and in purgatory, for ever and ever. Amen.