Confession Times for St Michael Parish: Saturdays, 2:30-3:30 PM; and by appointment

"Those who approach the sacrament of Penance obtain pardon from the mercy of God for the offence committed against Him and are at the same time reconciled with the Church, which they have wounded by their sins, and which by charity, example, and prayer seeks their conversion"
                                                                                    -Second Vatican Council, "Lumen Gentium," #11

The Sacrament of Penance must be seen within the context of conversion from sin and a turning to God. Peter wept bitterly over his triple denial of Christ but received the grace of conversion and expressed it with a threefold confession of love for Jesus (cf. Lk 22:54-62; Jn 21:15-19). Paul was converted from persecuting Christians to becoming one of the greatest disciples of Christ who ever lived (cf. Acts 9:1-31). These moments of conversion were only the beginning of their lifelong commitment to living in fidelity to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Sin harms our relationship with God and damages our communion with the Church. Conversion of heart is the beginning of our journey back to God. Liturgically this happens in the Sacrament of Penance. In the history of the Church, this Sacrament has been celebrated in different ways. Beneath the changes, there have always been two essentials: the acts of the penitent and the acts of Christ through the ministry of the Church. Both go hand in hand. Conversion must involve a change of heart as well as a change of actions. Neither is possible without God's grace.
                                                                                       (From USCCB Sacrament of Penance)

Since our sins are concrete acts that we've performed in the real world, with real harmful consequences to ourselves and to the larger world we are a part of, the act of atoning for our sins likewise needs to be performed as a concrete act. When we confess our sins, we experience more personally God's forgiveness; when we perform our penance, we help in some small part to repair the damage our sins have inflicted on the Church.