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<\/a><\/div>\nSo I ducked out of the office for an early lunch break and found a parking space a few blocks away from the cathedral. I’d been there before for confession; sometimes I’ve encountered a long line, and other times I’ve walked right in. The good news is, they always seem to have two priests hearing confession.<\/p>\n
Now, the bad news. When I walked into the cathedral, there was a sign near the confession booths that said because there was only one priest available that week, he’d have to stop hearing confessions at 11:55 a.m. to prepare for midday Mass.<\/p>\n
It was 11:30 a.m., and there were more than a dozen people ahead of me in line. I thought, “Oh no! I’ll never make it.” But like a roller coaster, the speed of a confession line is often unpredictable. Some people are in and out in a flash, while others settle in for the long haul.<\/p>\n
The line was moving slowly. I kept glancing at the clock and realizing with every passing minute that time was going to run out. I was on edge and impatient. Preparing for reconciliation is nerve-racking enough. Trying to beat the clock like a contestant on a game show just adds to the pressure. Oh, and being angry because there was a long line was sinful. So I added that to my list.<\/p>\n
Sure enough, I was about three or four people back in line when the clock struck 11:55 a.m., and the priest bolted from confessional and headed off to prepare for Mass. There I was at the top of the roller coaster when suddenly I was denied the wild rush of absolution.<\/p>\n
As I hiked back to my car, I looked up in prayer and thought, “Okay God, what is it that you’re trying to tell me?”<\/p>\n
If your favorite roller coaster is out of order, perhaps you’d head back to the amusement park and try it again as soon as possible. So on Tuesday I went back to the cathedral. I left work a little earlier and got in line at 11:25 a.m. The news was better that day, or so I thought. There weren’t as many people ahead of me. I was sure I’d get my turn this time.<\/p>\n
Not so fast. Everyone in front of me was taking forever (I added even more impatience to my list of sins). I wasn’t mad at them personally because it’s a blessing that so many people were confessing their sins. But I was getting worried and angry that time might run out on me again.<\/p>\n
I took a quick glance at the clock. It was 11:50 a.m. Five minutes left and I was second in line. Suddenly the man in front of me went into the confession booth. “Yes,” I thought. “I’m on deck. I hope this guy is quick.”<\/p>\n
He wasn’t. When he was finally done, the priest popped out and headed into the main church for Mass. Everyone behind me in line quickly dispersed. But I stood there shocked and stunned for a few seconds longer and then stepped outside to do the unabsolved walk of shame back to my car for the second day in a row.<\/p>\n
This time I chuckled a little bit as I gazed skyward and thought, “Okay, God, you really got me now. Clearly you are trying to send me a message. And by the way, if I’m hit by a car and killed today, you do know that I made a good faith effort to go to confession two days in a row, don’t you?”<\/p>\n
All I can figure is that God’s message to me was this: Avoiding sin in the first place is far more convenient than having to go back and confess later. Making me think about my sins for a few extra days must have been part of God’s plan. Or maybe he just wanted me to get some extra exercise by walking back and forth to the cathedral.<\/p>\n
I was too busy at work to leave at lunchtime the next day. But on Thursday after work, I made it to confession at my own parish and finally experienced the overdue rush of absolution. This was better than any roller coaster ride.<\/p>\n
And yes, I did have to confess the impatience and frustration that I felt earlier in the week. Really, there’s no way to justify being frustrated about a long confession line, is there? Shouldn’t the line for confession be longer than the line for communion?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
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The Catholic sacrament of reconciliation evokes a wild ride of emotions. Waiting in a long line outside the confessional feels like a roller coaster slowly creeping up a steep incline. You’re nervous and perhaps a little scared about what’s about to happen. But suddenly when you’re absolved of your sins you get that exhilarating rush… [Read More]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":171,"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,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","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":[90],"tags":[476,330,477,177,698],"class_list":["post-51543","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-faith-blog","tag-confession","tag-jesus","tag-reconciliation","tag-sacrament","tag-sin","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t