"The beginning of good works is the confession of evil works. You do the truth and come to the light." — St. Augustine
Advent and Lent draw more people to confession than the regular Saturday afternoon sessions during the rest of the year, but many never go at all. Across the country in the past several decades, the number of Catholics who confess their sins and seek God's forgiveness — formally known as the sacrament of reconciliation, or penance — has dropped dramatically.
A Georgetown University study in 2005 found that 42 percent of Catholics didn't go to confession, a steep decline from the early 1980s, when "The Notre Dame Study of Catholic Life Since Vatican II" found that 26 percent of Catholics didn't go.
Various reasons for the slide have been offered. Some Catholic leaders and theologians say a softer stance on the sacrament since Vatican II, the 1960s reform council, convinced some Catholics that the sacrament was not necessary. Others point to the sexual abuse scandals that have tainted priests throughout the country, or to a perception that confession is perfunctory and trivial.
Connecticut priests say they've seen the decline here, but most say the main reason isn't Vatican II, abusive clergy or anything else but the loss of moral responsibility in a permissive and selfish culture that has smothered the sense of sin.
"We are last to blame ourselves and quick to blame others," said the Rev. John Gatzak, spokesman for the Hartford Archdiocese. "That's probably one of the reasons we've experienced a decrease, because human nature being what it is, we don't want to accept personal responsibility.
"The mark of a genuine Christian is to accept responsibility and admit wrongs and then move forward to build a better relationship with our God and one another," Gatzak said.
"The bottom line is pride," said the Rev. Edmund Nadolny of Sacred Heart Church in East Berlin. "It takes a lot of humility [to confess one's sins]. Pride is much stronger than faith."
Trend Is Reversing
But Gatzak, Nadolny and other Catholic leaders also see reason for hope. In February, Pope Benedict XVI told priests to make confession a top priority, and Catholic leaders around the country have pushed for a return to the sacrament. The Washington Archdiocese, for example, bought ads on the radio, buses, subway cars and a billboard inviting Catholics to come to confession during Lent."The response was strong enough that 10 parishes decided to extend the hours for confession," reported The Wall Street Journal.
"Is there any huge upsurge? No," said the Rev. Christopher Walsh of St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church in Shelton. "On the other hand, ... I think it is true that the tide is turning."
Walsh, author of a book about confession, "The Untapped Power of the Sacrament of Penance," published in 2005, said he's a bit surprised that confession is not more popular, given today's tell-all culture.
"In some ways, you would think it would be the most attractive sacrament for contemporary people," Walsh said.
There are, however, alternative outlets. Recently, the Internet has sprouted several sites where anonymous penitents confess adultery, theft and worse. Users of sites such as www.ivescrewedup.com, www.mysecret.tv and www.cavecanum.com can peruse others' confessions, and in some cases, vote on their favorites.
Here is a current favorite from cavecanum.com:
"I have this fantasy of slipping cyanide into my dinner and then hiding the bottle in my wife's lingerie drawer. When the police investigate my murder they will find the bottle and throw the [expletive] in prison for the rest of her sickening life. Just a little bye bye present from me."
Some Churches Are Exceptions
The Catholic church does not sanction electronic confessions, but that doesn't mean a church and a screened booth are necessary. Walsh noted that the sacrament is "very portable"; priests can take confession anywhere private."I've heard confessions in airports, in cars. You find a quiet corner," he said.
For the most part, Walsh said, a core group of Catholics continues to seek absolution for their sins. At some parishes, such as Sacred Heart Church in New Britain, people never lost the habit. Every Saturday afternoon, four priests hear confessions for 45 minutes, the Rev. Daniel Plocharczyk said. The church is especially busy with the sacrament at this time of year and has scheduled 11 hours to hear confessions from Dec. 19 to 22, he said.
The need to confess among the 10,000 mostly Polish American Catholics in his parish has never been doused, he said.
"People," Plocharczyk said, "know that they need the mercy of God."
"It's just the way you're brought up," McMahon said. "It makes you feel better, like a little period of calm in your life."
Asked if he runs out of sins to confess, McMahon laughed and said, "There's always something."
His adult children, however, do not go to confession regularly, despite his urging, McMahon said.
"I tell them to participate, but it's easier said than done," he said. "They do live good lives, but there's always something else that they can do. I do get them to go at Christmas. I get them to go at Easter ... but it's just not a real part of their lives."
McMahon's three children are in their 20s, but the Rev. Michael Motta, religious education director for the Hartford Archdiocese, said he has been heartened recently by the response of even younger Catholics. In October, the church's Youth Spectacular at Lake Quassapaug in Middlebury attracted about 3,300 middle and high school-aged parishioners, the largest youth rally ever sponsored by the Archdiocese.
"All of a sudden, all these kids were in line," Motta said. "I didn't know what they were in line for. At first, I thought it was for the port-a-potties."
But the line was for confession, and Motta said he and other Catholic leaders were both surprised and impressed.
"There seems to be a return to that old-time religion," said Motta, who also is pastor of St. Mark the Evangelist Church in West Hartford. "The kids were so motivated about being devout."
Suzanne Temple, 33, of Waterbury, the mother of five sons, said she has seen a resurgence in participation in all the sacraments among young people.
"I think young people are looking for something real, something meaningful, something that truly satisfies in an age that is increasingly focused on materialism, sensuality and other forms of self gratification," Temple wrote in an e-mail. "These things have a way of using people up and leaving them feeling empty."
Nadolny, a priest for 48 years and formerly director of radio and television for the Hartford Archdiocese, attributed the shift to an awakening.
"Sin is back," Nadolny said. "People are now facing the fact that they are sinners."
They are coming to see, he said, that the sacrament of reconciliation is a necessary link to God in a sinful world. In the confessional, Catholics believe the priest is a conduit between them and God.
"Like a child needs to know Mommy forgives him — he doesn't know it until he gets a sign," Nadolny said. "You have to get a sign from your parents to know you're forgiven.
"Jesus is a good psychiatrist," he continued. "He knows we need to have a sign that we are forgiven. Confession is getting a hug from God that convinces you you are forgiven."
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