{"id":33377,"date":"2013-01-23T07:40:09","date_gmt":"2013-01-23T13:40:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.austincnm.com\/?p=33377"},"modified":"2013-01-23T07:40:19","modified_gmt":"2013-01-23T13:40:19","slug":"lance-armstrong-and-the-art-of-confession","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2013\/01\/lance-armstrong-and-the-art-of-confession\/","title":{"rendered":"Lance Armstrong and the Art of Confession"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"159018942\"<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

When is a confession not \u201cgood enough?\u201d<\/p>\n

The question itself challenges my Catholic sensibilities. \u00a0I like to think that all confession is valid for the expiation of sin. \u00a0However, after watching Lance Armstrong in the public confessional of Oprah Winfrey\u2019s couch last week, I suddenly have my doubts.<\/p>\n

Please understand, I don\u2019t believe that Oprah can administer the sacrament of reconciliation (it must be about the only thing Oprah can\u2019t do). \u00a0But, Lance Armstrong did something that we are familiar with. \u00a0He sought redemption from the failures and sins of his past by coming clean with them.<\/p>\n

Lance Armstrong owned up to years of cheating in competitive cycling. \u00a0What\u2019s more, he expressed sorrow for all of the vicious attacks he made against those who sought to expose him during the course of his career. \u00a0He was forthright and honest, as a good confessor should be.<\/p>\n

So, what\u2019s the problem? \u00a0Many believe that Lance\u2019s move was a calculated effort to get back into the good graces of the public and have his ban from participation in cycling lifted.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, none of us knows Lance Armstrong\u2019s heart and the intention behind his actions. \u00a0Perhaps we\u2019re rightly skeptical of a man who told bald face lies for years. Or, maybe, he\u2019s sincere.<\/p>\n

So, what do we do with \u00a0Mr. Armstrong? \u00a0Do we take him at his word that he’s truly sorry?<\/p>\n

Therein, lies the \u201cproblem\u201d with confession. \u00a0If not done with the right heart or intention, the validity of confession is questionable. \u00a0Does confession equal reconciliation? \u00a0No, there\u2019s a definitive difference between the two. \u00a0Reconciliation requires more than the pro forma act of confession. It requires contrition. \u00a0It is predicated on the true desire for repentance.<\/p>\n

We need more than just an admission of guilt from Mr. Armstrong. \u00a0We NEED to believe him before he can ever experience public reconciliation and redemption.<\/p>\n

This, of course, is what is required of each of us when we participate in the sacrament of reconciliation. \u00a0The sacrament isn\u2019t a \u201cpunch a ticket for free grace\u201d experience. \u00a0It\u2019s an opportunity for us to lay ourselves bare before God, letting the inexhaustible love of Christ wash over our sick and broken selves. It\u2019s our chance to turn over our failures while also resolving before God to turn away from them.<\/p>\n

At the end of each confession, we pray the Act of Contrition:<\/p>\n

O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended you, and I detest all my sins, because of Your just punishments, but most of all because they offend You, my God, who are all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Your grace, to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin.<\/em><\/p>\n

In these words we find the victory of the sacrament: a contrite but victorious heart set on the desire to \u201csin no more\u201d with the assistance and grace of God.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  When is a confession not \u201cgood enough?\u201d The question itself challenges my Catholic sensibilities. \u00a0I like to think that all confession is valid for the expiation of sin. \u00a0However, after watching Lance Armstrong in the public confessional of Oprah Winfrey\u2019s couch last week, I suddenly have my doubts. Please understand, I don\u2019t believe that… [Read More]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,90],"tags":[55,1341,476,1342,330,1339,1340,477],"class_list":["post-33377","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-blog","category-faith-blog","tag-catholic-2","tag-cheating","tag-confession","tag-contrition","tag-jesus","tag-lance-armstrong","tag-oprah","tag-reconciliation","entry","has-post-thumbnail"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":567614,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2017\/12\/important-prayer-cataclysmic-event-part-ii\/","url_meta":{"origin":33377,"position":0},"title":"The Most Important Prayer in a Cataclysmic Event (Part II)","author":"Deacon Guadalupe Rodriguez","date":"December 11, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"While the Act of Contrition prayer is the most important prayer for someone facing imminent death in a cataclysmic event, it is also the most important prayer for a survivor. 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I have had a few youth come\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Blog"","block_context":{"text":"Blog","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/category\/acnm\/blog\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.austincnm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/06\/Reconciliation-300x199.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":32995,"url":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2013\/01\/two-guys-a-girl-and-a-catholic-podcast-episode-80-k-9-drivers\/","url_meta":{"origin":33377,"position":3},"title":"Two Guys a Girl and a Catholic Podcast Episode 80: Get Crunk","author":"2GGCP","date":"January 18, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Episode 80 [powerpress] Feedback: \u00a0 Flu Feedback Communion, passing the peace and Our Father Current Events Facebook Vs. Google: Fight!! http:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/Technology\/facebook-graph-search-facebook-takes-google-long-awaited\/story?id=18221206 Manti Te\u2019o a fraud? \u00a0Lance Armstrong repents! 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