Do you have a firm purpose of amendment? with Fr. Stephen Schumacher

Adam Wright:

When I was younger, say, in late grade school and most of high school, textbooks were a part of my morning routine because I was a procrastinator and did not do my homework the night before. I thought I was free of that until we came to this morning’s show where our next guest brought the textbook so I wouldn’t have to. Father Stephen Schumacher from the Archdiocese of St. Louis is with us. Father, good morning, and thanks for being here today.

Fr. Stephen Schumacher:

Thanks for having me, Adam.

Adam Wright:

So, often on the show, we talk about making a good confession. It’s one of those things we like to encourage. And as we say, once a month, if you do the five first Saturdays devotion, you’re going to go at least once a month, and that’s a good interval. We often talk about be contrite and don’t worry, there’s no sin so large that God cannot forgive it if you have a contrite heart. And what I often forget to mention, or maybe just mention and we don’t talk about it enough, is another thing we have to have and that’s a firm purpose of amendment. So that’s why the textbooks are here. That’s why you’re here today. Just so we’re absolutely clear, could you give our listeners just a real quick what are the basic things you have to have to make a good confession?

Fr. Stephen Schumacher:

To make a good confession, you have to have contrition, first of all. So you have to know your sins and be sorry for them. You have to be sorry for them all, even if you don’t remember them all, but kind of virtually sorry for any bad thing that you’ve done. So we call that contrition. Also included in what is necessary is to actually make confession to a priest, to accept the penance that he imposes, and then to receive the absolution that he gives. So those are the integral parts of confession. Actually, the Council of Trent defined that very clearly. He talked about the library that I have brought with me today. The Council of Trent defines contrition as “sorrow of the soul and detestation of the sin committed together with the resolve not to sin anymore.” So that contrition actually also has parts, which we’re going to go into in a little bit.

Adam Wright:

Alright. So it sounds like firm purpose of amendment is actually included in contrition.

Fr. Stephen Schumacher:

That’s right. So, firm purpose of amendment is exactly what it sounds like. It is the intention not to sin again. This is why it’s very useful to use a formal act of contrition, one that’s been created by by some kind of church authority or some saint down through history. So, you all know, I’m sure, a prayer called the Act of Contrition, and it includes all of these elements in it, which is why we ask you to say it. Now you don’t need to say that in order to be contrite, but if you say it, we presume that if you’re not lying, then you are contrite. So we ask you to say that act of contrition because it includes in it, the fact that you hate your sins, that’s part of it, the detestation of sins. It also includes the fact that you hate your sins really more because you love God than because you’re afraid of being punished or of losing Heaven, which is the best motivation for hating your sins. And then it finally says, “And I resolve not to sin again, I resolve to amend my life. I resolve to avoid the near occasions of sin.” These are ways in which we express publicly, at least to the priest, and to God, that we are intending not to commit those sins again.

Adam Wright:

I reach for my own textbook now and in my Missal that I keep with me, that Act of Contrition. “Oh my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended you, and I detest all of my sins because I dread the loss of Heaven and the pains of Hell. 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 confess my sins, to do penance, and to amend my life. Amen.” I mean, you’re right. It’s all right there.

Fr. Stephen Schumacher:

Those prayers were constructed by priests, probably, who were trying to fit the doctrine from the councils into the words that their people could use without having to carry around the library with them. So, the Act of Contrition contains these various elements of what is included in real sorrow for sins. The sorrow for sins includes this purpose of amendment. Now some people can be confused a little bit about what does the purpose of amendment mean? I mean, I say I resolve. In fact, I firmly resolve, not to sin again, and even to avoid the near occasion of sin, but many of us are also familiar with the occasion of having to go to confession and confess the exact same things you went to confession for last time. And in fact, you might even tell priest, we hear it on our side of the screen. “Father, I’m just tired of confessing the same things over and over again.” We understand that because we ourselves are sinners who go to confession ourselves.
So what does that firm purpose of amendment mean? It means that you are, at this moment, while you’re kneeling there, sitting there in the confessional, right before the priest, you are really and truly and honestly and sincerely intending not to sin again. Now, that intention might be weak so that when the occasion comes up, you might fall again. But as far as you can say right then and there, you are intending not to sin again. And that means then, of course, we can question ourselves. Do I really mean that if I fall every time I come up to this temptation? Well, maybe you don’t really have a firm purpose of amendment. So you need to strive to resist those occasions. That means making a plan. If you’ve noticed that you do fall into a particular sin with some frequency, then start making a plan. Okay. I notice that when I drive, I get angry at other drivers. Okay. Next time I get in my car, as I turn the key, I’m going to say, “Lord be with me while I’m on this drive and help me not to get angry like I usually do.” Simple little thing. You’ve made your purpose. Now, you might fail again in that moment. And then, “Okay. Well, I’m going to try again. I’m going to try again. I’m going to try again.” The firm purpose of amendment is the resolution to leave these sins behind, to resist them in the future or resist the temptations in the future.

Adam Wright:

Alright. I have some follow-up questions on this, but we’re going to take a very quick break here on Roadmap to Heaven. Don’t go anywhere.

We are back. And if you’re just joining us, we’re talking with Father Stephen Schumacher about the elements of a good confession, specifically today that contrition and that firm purpose of amendment. And before the break Father, you were talking about those who struggle with habitual sin. I think as a parent, most parents, I’m willing to wager, at least myself, find ourselves saying, “I don’t want to lose my patience with my children.” But the reality is I have five children and they give me an occasion to grow in that resolve by sometimes doing things and then I lose my patience. And immediately, usually, I regret it and then go to confession, make a good confession, and as we’ve said, trying to put that plan in place so that next time when my kids start pushing my buttons, what’s going to be different this time?
I know one of the lies that we’ve talked about when I worked with the high school youth back in my youth ministry days was that lie that the devil likes to tell us: “Well, you’ve already committed the sin. So you’ve already done this. Why not do it some more? You might as well enjoy it before, and even if you’re going to go to confession, why not enjoy it some more before you go see Father?” But really, even if you fall, and you commit that sin, you can start over with your firm purpose of amendment right there, and then get to confession, but you don’t have to wait to get to confession. I guess that’s my question.

Fr. Stephen Schumacher:

Yes. That’s exactly right. I think many of us are familiar with this phenomenon as well, of the devil is a false friend. He entices us, and then as soon as we go along with him, he makes fun of us. He shames us, and then he discourages us, as you’ve just described of, “Well, why not just do it again? It’s too late.” Right? But every sin is another offense against God, which is why we should avoid them, including after we’ve already committed a sin. You can actually, bring it right back to your example as a parent, if your child does something wrong. Let’s say they say a bad word. You hear them, and instead of coming to tell you, they just say, “Well, I already said the bad word. I’m going to keep saying a bunch of bad words.” That punishment’s going to be worse than if-

Adam Wright:

Speaking from experience as the child, you know, I’m just gonna say that.

Fr. Stephen Schumacher:

Yes. So the punishment, truly, is going to be worse if we keep committing sins. We ought to detest each one of our sins. In fact, this is why we have to confess mortal sins in kind and number. Because we have to be able to say, “I detest that one, and that one, and that one, and that one,” even though they’re all the same one just done four times. So, we ought to be resolved immediately upon recognizing a sin, we ought to make an act of contrition, at least interiorly, to tell God I’m sorry, and make a resolution not to commit that sin again. To get to confession when we’re able to and to bring this sin to the tribunal of the confessional.
What I like to tell people about is this habitual contrition. This is why a very good thing to do in the evenings as part of your daily prayer is to pray an act of contrition, do an examination of conscience, pray an act of contrition, because you want to have this habitual, “I’m just always sorry for my sins. Yes, I committed one and I immediately elicit this sorrow for my sins.” One thing that this is very useful for is if you practice this, it will, one: help you not to commit those sins because it will give you a stronger motivation not to commit them when the occasion arises. But also imagine toward the end of your life, as you reach your elder, infirm years, and maybe you are less and less able to go to confession. Maybe you’re less and less able to say your prayers out loud. I go to visit people as a priest who can’t even speak anymore. They can’t make a confession out loud anymore. But if they have lived a habitually contrite life, if they practice this virtue of being sorry for my sins all the time, then I don’t worry about them, because of course they’re sorry for their sins. And when I bring them the sacrament of anointing, it works. So, we ought to practice this virtue of habitual contrition.

Adam Wright:

Alright. One final question here before we run out of time. We’ve been talking a lot about what I do in the sacrament. We know as the priest, you are acting in the person of Christ, and every now and then, Father will ask you some questions. I know you mentioned this. Let me ask you a question about that. I think of one time in my life where there was a habitual sin I was struggling with. And Father said, “You know, you mentioned that, but it’s been a while. Was there a particular reason it’s been a while since you haven’t come to confession? Because it sounds like you make a pretty regular confession.” And I said, “I was ashamed.” And he said, “That’s a lie from the devil. I don’t care if you commit this sin tonight after you leave the confessional today. You come back tomorrow. Don’t let pride hold you back.” And you mentioned that when we live habitual contrition, it helps us to avoid sin, but sometimes I think we fall into that trap of thinking of it as weight training or exercise, that if I keep doing this I will get stronger. But that discounts the effect of grace as well, that if we’re making a good confession regularly, if we are praying that act of contrition daily, it’s not just what I’m doing, then it opens us up to what God is doing.

Fr. Stephen Schumacher:

That’s right. As we heard earlier in Lent, the gospel was: “Unless your righteousness surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, is you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” What he’s saying is that it is not by human righteousness that we enter Heaven. It’s by God’s grace. He’s saying, “Look, you have to do better even than the scribes and Pharisees, who are so particular about observing every last detail of the law.” So you need to receive God’s grace in order to enter Heaven. It’s not about what I do in order to make God forgive me. It’s about God wanting to forgive us, coming to us with this offer of forgiveness and saying, if you will accept this, which acceptance, involves, implies our own effort in the matter, right? You’ve got to try. But if you’ll accept this, then you can be forgiven. And that’s the order of things. God is first, I am responding to His grace.

Adam Wright:

I firmly resolve with the help of your grace. Not on my own. Father, this has been a wonderful conversation we’ve been able to have today. Could I ask you to lead us in a prayer for our listeners?

Fr. Stephen Schumacher:

Let’s pray. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, amen. I’m going to pray the Act of Hope. Oh Lord, my God, I firmly hope for the remission of all my sins, and at the end of this life to come through to joys which know no end, because you yourself have promised, you are infinitely powerful, kind, good, and merciful. In this hope I intend to live and to die, amen.

Adam Wright:

Amen. Father Stephen Schumacher, thank you so much for being with us on Roadmap to Heaven. We’re going to take a break here. There’ll be more of the show after this.