Imperfect but trying

So today I’m off to the Sacrament of Reconciliation aka Confession in preparation for the Sacred Paschal Triduum (explanation for this and the Sacrament will be covered in the courses). Anyway… in preparing I tend to write down my faults, because I know when I get in there they will fly right out of my head if I don’t!

It struck me how I seem to be confessing the same sins over and over again every time I go. That may seem like I’m not making any progress on my journey, but I assure you that’s not the case. When I look at the lists I used to write a few years ago, my list looks very different now. My strategy is to find the one I repeat most often and work hard to eradicate that one, then over time move on to the next. The beauty of writing them all down and reviewing them over time is that I don’t conveniently forget something or become de-sensitised to it. So yes I am still very much an imperfect disciple, but as long as I keep persevering I am confident I will get there…. one day! So you see, you don’t have to be perfect now to be part of the church, in fact I think it was St Augustine (who was quite the rebel himself at one time) who said “The church is not a museum for saints, it is a hospital for sinners.”