Made new in the Penitential Rite

   Toward the beginning of each Mass, we all participate in the Penitential Rite, acknowledging our sins (I confess to almighty God…) and praying for forgiveness (May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins…).  

   But do we really have to acknowledge our sins, every single time?  Yes, indeed, for unless we do, there is no conversion:  unless we claim what is limiting us in our daily life, we cannot move past it; we cannot be made new, ready to receive the Body of Christ.  As The Mass Broken Open reminds us, in the Penitential Rite, Aware of God’s presence in us and in one another, we remember the times that we have failed to share God’s presence and respond to His love for us this past week.  More important than anything is that together we return to God knowing that He is always ready to embrace us and forgive us.  

   Holding onto the conviction that we are in need of daily conversion is no mean feat, and yet it is a daily reality:  each day, we need to be renewed, to be made new in Christ.  What better way to acknowledge our sins, daily, at Mass? 

    To read The Mass Broken Open, by Fr. Patrick Michaels, Jonathan Lewis, and Michael Morison, click here.

This post is based on Fr. Pat's Scripture class.

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