Recon

We are preparing the boy for his First Reconciliation and I am trying to help him see the beauty in this sacrament as I struggle with my own understanding of it. This is a tricky business.

Feeling bad about something is a natural feeling and, like pain, helps us understand some of what is good and bad for us. This is not the same as teaching young ones or anyone to be unduly scrupulous or a slave to shame. Mostly we are trying to get the boy to see that reconciliation is meant to bring us all closer to God because many things can happen that drive us away from him.


Me: We are human. We make mistakes. We make bad decisions, I’ve made some whoppers. Knowing when I do things that make me far away from God, and being sorry for those things helps me be a better person. I want to do God’s will and choose the right things or at least try my best. And when I do the wrong things, I am further away from God. He gives me free will and hopes I choose the good, but when I choose bad that is also on me.

Alex: Like when you say the ‘D’ word.

Me: Yes.

Alex: And the ‘S’ word.

Me: Yes.

Alex: Or the ‘G-D’ word and the ‘A’ word…

Me: Yes, yes…

Alex: ...and then you start dropping F-bombs because Nutty (Peanut Tillman) got a stupid penalty against the Pirates (he meant Buccaneers, but you gotta applaud his memory)

Me: Maybe you better go first on Saturday, cuz Daddy could be in there for a loooong time.

Alex laughed

Me: The point is that when we go in and say we are sorry, God invites us to be close to him again. He wants to get rid of anything between us and him and the divine love we all share. Boy, when you leave that confessional on Saturday, you are going to be free and feel like a saint.

Alex: But only for a little while.