News Scrapbook 1969-1971

What's Happened to Confession? I,· J. O Confusion .Clouds Use of Sacrament Today

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sins must be

All mortal

How this power was to be exercised seems to have been left to the judgmenI of the bishops in their territory. THEY WERE greatly in- fluenced by a document called the Shepherd Hermas which appeared in the second century and preached a "single penance" - confession once in a lifetime. The obvious result was that people pos tponed their reception of the sacrament until they neared the end of their life. By the time of St. Augustine, ecclesiastical penance was required only for mortal sins committed from malice, not from weakness or ignorance. THE PROCEDURE was standard: the excommunicated person requested and received a penance ; only after its completion could he approach the bishop and receive formal reconciliation to the Church again. But since the penances were harsh and lengthy, the recep- tion of the sacrament remained infrequent. THE MINISTER of the sacrament was a priest rather than a bishop. After the year 500, Celtic missionaries in- troduced this practice to the rest of the Roman Church. The traditional view had been that the performance of the penance was a major factor in the remission of sins, now the words of absolution became 1~ore significant. Even with confession being made easier, the sacrament was not approached very often. TO PREVENT people from receiving Communion while they were in the stale of mortal sin, laws were gradually in- troduced which required periodic confession. The earliest example of this dates from the year 760. By the nth Century the whole penitential procedure had been contracted into one act: that is, the penitent did not first per- form his assigned work and then come back for absolution. The sacrament had, in its essentials, attained the form in which it is practiced to this day. APART FROM theological speculation among the scholastics, the next develop- ment came during the Council of Trent which summarized the universal articles of Catholic faith : Penance is. truly a sacrament and distinct from baptism. The words of priestly ab- solution really bring about the remission of sin.

for obtaining forgiveness was sincere penance, prayer and works of mercy. SERIOUS SIN, however, was not a private matter between the sinner and God. Jesus expressly granted to the Church a disciplinary power over believers who fell into sin: "Amen I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound also in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed also in heaven." (Mat- thew 18 : 111.l

to confess venial sins." This two aspects of current confusion: the layman's feeling that his past training is no longer valid, and the priest's doubts con- cerning an effective pastoral approach to confession. The New Testament documents clearly foresee the possibility that a baptized person can relapse into sin. In this event the usual procedure incident mirrors

By Father Warren Rouse, OFM (Fath.er Rouse is a member of the faculties of the University of San Diego and St. Francis Sernihdl Y.J Standing in front of the church after Mass last Sunday, a bewildered mothe\' askM, "What's happened to con- fession? My daughter doesn't believe in it anymore,, and a priest told me in so many words that it is a waste of time for me

confessed. Only bishops and priests are the ministers of the sacrament. On the grass-roots level, matters remained at this stage until Vatican II which, in the Cons ti tu tion on the Sacred Liturgy, indicated a new direction when it said: "THE RITE and formulas for the sacrament of penance are to be revised so that they more clearly express both the nature and effect of the sacrament." Today we find an emphasis on the community aspect of sin and reconciliation: sin involves not only the individual but the entire Church. Naturally, this could be carried too far. How often should a Christian go to confession? KEEPING in mind the historical development of penance and its theological import - reconciliation to the Church and remission of sin - perhaps these guildelines may be applicable: First, a person should confess whenever he feels that he is in the state of mortal sin. Apart from this, every person has perfect freedom as to his frequency of approach to the sacrament according to his own call of grace. THE ' ONFESSION of devotion" - wherein venial faults rather than grave sins are involved - is a fruitful and recommended practice. Un- dertaken too frequently, however, it can possibly become habitual and mechanical. Perhaps monthly or quarterly reception of the sacrament may be more meaningful than the former widespread habit of weekly confession. In this way, two extremes are avoided. On the one hand, the em- phasis is on the establishment of a deeper relationship with the Church rather than the stock- piling of grace. ON THE OTHER hand, by confessing at regular and well- spaced intervals the con- scientious Christian does not "drift" in his spiritual life but keeps a check on his growth toward union with God. Finally, it is advisable that, where possible, the sacrament not be used principally for problem-solving. It is not a substitute for counseling or psychotherapy. Every sacrament is, essen- tially, an encounter with the redeeming Christ in His visible Church.

SCRAPBOOK 1',IB1\10RIES-Alcala Guild of the University of San Diego members (from left) Mmes. Frank Cooper of La Jolla, Thomas Holmes of Point Loma and William K. Buckley of La Jolla reminisce about past experiences a the guild's final meeting recently at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club. With the merger of the College for Men, the College for Women, the Law School and the Seminary the women decided to disband the guild. '£ ,.,,fi., ( I a. • J/. 10 SD Alcala. Guild holds final meeting Alcala Gulld, iver 1t f event will be presented to San Diego College or Men, Msgr. Baer to be used for the met recently for a Christ- University's S c h o la r s h i p mas luncheon honoring th e Fund. Rt. Rev. 11sgr. John E. Baer, Organized In October, 1959, president of the College for the guild is composed of I 7~.,J.. City 1 I Group I

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Page 6 THE SOUTHERN CROSS, THURSDAY, DECEMBER 3, 1970

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Sept. 5, 1970, simply states: "The office of administering Communion belongs first to priests, then to deacons and, in some cases, to acolytes. The Holy See can permit the designation of some other worthy person, to whom this office may be entrusted." But the roles currently assigned to women in the liturgical celebrations must be viewed as functions not requiring a specific "or- dination" into the clerical state. The Catholic Theological Society of America is studying the feasibility of ordaining women as deacons, and their conclusions will be presented to the bishops. Also working on the question are such groups as the Catholic Caucus, the Ecumenical Task Force on Women and Religion, and other organizations which belong to the Joint Committee of Organizations Concerned about the Status of Women in the Catholic Church. PE u WJR QUESTION: Our pastor has said that we should sing four hymns at Mass, but there is very little response on the part of the congregation. Why Is this? HR There are a number of reasons for this !amentable state of affaris. We really have not had a tradition of com- munity singing in the Catholic Church nor, for that matter, a viable style of music geared for vernacular participation. Moreover,' in our con- temporary culture we have become geared to passivity-we listen more than we sing. And in our schools music ap- preciation classes are a luxury at best. The most important problem,

QUESTION: Do women have equal rights with men in the Church? If so, is there any theological reason why they cannot be lectors or maybe even priests? WAS An understanding of history is most important in this matter. We have to realize that the Church wa s born into an already existing culture and its growth reflects, to an extent, the thought pa tterns of the day. At the time of the early Christians, the question of women in the ministry simply did not arise because it would have been so foreign to the minds of Jews. Greeks and Romans. Biblical evidence does show, however, that women were recognized as fully worthy members of the Christian community, and some a cquired a special sta nding-for example, dea conesses and widows. Limitations to their activity were based on cultural rather than theologital grounds. Ruud Bunnik concl des in his study that "Biblical schola rs are nowadays generally agreed tha t the exclusion of women fr om the ecclesiastical minis try cannot be founded clearly and decisively on Scripture." What does systematic theology have to say about the matter? Again, a nega tive conclusion: it is not of the essence of ministry that it should be exercised by men only. We see today, in point of fact, that the Church in her liturgical functions permits women to be lectors and song leaders. And the Holy See has allowed, under extraordinary cir- cumstances, nuns to distribute Communion. rhe latest Instruction, dated Acomposition by a 17th Cen- tury Czech comPQser and an original piece by Dr. Henry Kolar commissioned by the San Diego Symphony Orches- tra will be featured in a con- cert at 8:15 tonight at the Uni- versitt of San Diego Camino Ha11 'Feafer. Kolar, a member of the USD faculty, will lead the Univer- sity orchestra in a perform- ance of Pavel Vejvanovsky's "Offertur" as well as his own "Memorialis," commissioned and performed by the sym- phony in 1958 in me,morium to Robert Kurka. The program also will in- clude Schubert's Mass in G with S1lloists Berta Long, so- prano; Michael ~tephens, ten- or, and Raymond"East, bass,

YOUR on Church doctrine, morals, history, theology - any subject raised in matters of faith - are welcomed. Your question may be one that many fellow Catholics have wondered about. Questions submitted to Answer Please! are an- swered by members of the Religious Studies Depart- ment of the Yoixersjty of San Diego, Msgr. J.ohn R. Pdfiffi5h, Chairman. Questions - as short as possible please - should be addressed to: Answer Please!, The Southern Cross, Diocesan Office, Alcala Park, San Diego, 92110. Initials will be used in- stead of names as identi- fication. however, is a financial one. Brief! . we get exactly what we pay for. As long a s our choir directors, song leaders and organists are volunteers and amateurs, the sad state of Catholic Church music will continue. Goodwill is indeed admirable, but it is no sub- stitute for talent. WJR QUESTION: Now that the "Amen" has been omitted in the Lord's Prayer at Mass, should it be dropp-;d from other prayers such as the Ha il Mary? FS The word "Amen" is an ac- clamation meaning "Yes! " or "So be it!" Whether it should be appended to various prayers is a matter of custom. '!:'here is no legislation about it. WJR it necessary to change the Gloria and the Creed in the new liturgical reforms? cw It was not necessary to change tl;iese. The point was, however, to obtain the most precise translation possible by going back to the original texts. WJR QUES IONS QUESTION : Why was

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Playat USO "Purlie Victorious" will be staged in Camino Hall atJ!!li.- versity of San Diego tonight and foiilbl!Oct at 8p.m. The Black Student Alliance of San Diego City College is sponsoring the production, with stars Jackson Hill II in the title role of the Ossie Davis play. It was presented previously at San Diego City College un- der the direction of Jack Brownlee. Others in the cast are Earnestine Howell, Mar- cus Anthony, Deborah Hous- ton, Evelyn Booker, Eddie Mayfield, Michael Johnson and Brownlee.

Men, in the Marine Room of mothers and wives of s t u- the La Jolla Beach and Ten- dents at the College for Men nis C1ub. for the purpose of promoting Mrs. Frank Cooper of La the college and recruiting Jolla was chairman of the students. luncheon. She planned c e n'. This was the club's final terpieces of miniature Christ- meeting according to Mrs. mas trees and little elves. Thomas Holmes of Point Madrigal Singers from the Loma. With the merger of USU music department per- the College for Men with the formed. College for omen, the Law Assisting Mrs. Cooper were School and Seminary under Mmes. Paul F.klund, Robert one ti1le as the University of Cihak, Clem iBerrill, Edward San Diego the club members Tagwerker an d Gordon felt they could better support Briggs. and promote I.he university Mrs. William Buckley of La through the University of San Jolla, guild president, greeted Diego Auxiliary, she said. members and their guests.

Special guests of the guild I were Rt. Rev. Msgr. I. iBrent Eagan, Msgr. Baer, Miss Bar- 1 bara Robinson and Mrs. Molly Morse Wolf. IM:rs. Wolf has been commentator for many I of the guild's fashion shows. Proceeds from this year's I

To Play

and '·PaIsm and Fugue · by contemporary composer Alan I-Iovhaness.

~1ARILYN RUE Met winner to sing

LJ ore stra chorus i11 Christmas concerts The La Jolla Civic Orches- Metropolitan Opera Reg10nal tra and Chorus will perform Competition. Simmons is di- in dual Christmas concerts rector of the choir at the Pa- at 8:30 and 8 p.m. today in cific Beach United Methodist Sherwood Hall. Church and !McClellan h as . participated in opera and Thomas_ Nee will conduct choral workshops with Roger the 60-voice chorus m two Wagner and Ro6t'M aw. with played for the first time with Br1Uen·s "Ceremony of Marilyn Rue as soloist, and Carols." ''The Christmas Story" by !Heinrich Schuetz with Miss ( CYV:Ul ) !Rue, John McClellan and Thomas Simmons as soloists. numbers: "Glona" by Doug- las Leedy of Portland, Ore., The Women's Chorus, J1 on which was commissioned b~ .Jeffers directing, will the association and will be elude the program con-

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17 century 'Offertu~ rev·v~9"·-'v What is probably the first ··Memorialis"' !To l{obcrt ~ tephens, tenor, . perlormance on the West Kurka J , which was com- and ltaymon(l East , bass both Coast ,of a work by a 17th missioned by the San Diego US ll students. ' century Czech composer will Symphony in 1958 and per- The concert will conclude open the program of the formed the same year. th e USU semester seri es. The Universit y of San Diego ··Psalm and Fugue" b~ the music programs will resume wmler concert, bee. i_§. contemporary American m ~',ebruary with a series of Dr. Henry Kolar will lead mmposer Alan Hovhaness, three Monday evening con- the USD chamber orchestra in also will be performed by the certs. There also will I.le a the per!'.orrnance ,?f the little chamber orchestra. rec,tal m March, two opera known Ol lertur, tor double workshop performances in string orchest~. by The final work on the /\pril and the annual spring Vc,1vanovsky. Th,:, annual program is Schubert's "Mass concert in J\lay. concert will be presented at In G. ·· The University Choir X: 15 p.m. in Camino Hall and the chamber orchestra Theater. will be conducted by Ur. Dr. Kolar also will conduct Kolar. Socoloists will be guest his own composition, artist Llerta Long, soprano, Soprano .Justeen Widoff , pi,mist Harold Zabrack and Lhe /\lcala Trio will perform in thl' fcbruar y series .

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