Sacraments #7 Flashcards
Indulgences are the remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven
True The correct answer is true. As stated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church #1498: “Through indulgences the faithful can obtain the remission of temporal punishment resulting from sin for themselves and also for the souls in Purgatory.”
Confession by phone is permitted if the penitent is dying
False - the correct answer is false. Confession cannot be received over the telephone. The Pontifical Council on Social Communications on the Church and the Internet published a document in 2002 that states, “virtual reality cannot substitute for the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, nor the sacramental reality of the other sacraments, nor the worship shared in a human community of flesh and bones….Sacraments on the internet do not exist….Even religious experiences that are possible there through the grace of God are insufficient if they are separated from interaction in the real world with other persons of faith
Certain sins are not just sins but also considered canonical crimes and thus receive canonical penalties that need to be lifted. These are known as reserved cases and are for certain grave sins (e.g. physical attack of a pope, desecration of the Most Holy Eucharist, apostasy, etc).
True - The correct answer is true. Council of Trent in Canon 11 states: “If anyone says that bishops have not the right to reserve cases to themselves except such as pertain to external administration, and that therefore the reservation of cases does not hinder a priest from absolving from reserved cases, let him be anathema.” What this means is that some of the most serious sins are reserved to the bishop alone to absolve, though in practice most bishops give their priests the authority to absolve all sins, even the most heinous.
A priest in the state of mortal sin cannot lawfully and validly give absolution
False - The correct answer is false. Council of Trent, Canon 10: “If anyone says that priests who are in mortal sin have not the power of binding and loosing, or that not only priests are the ministers of absolution but that to each and all of the faithful of Christ was it said and by virtue of which words everyone can absolve from sins, from public sins by reproof only, provided the one reproved accept correction, and from secret sins by voluntary confession, let him be anathema.” All of the Sacraments work “ex opere operato” and our Lord is the one who acts through the priest. As long as the person receiving Confession has the right dispositions (true sorrow for sin, desire to amend one’s life, and confessing at a minimum all mortal sin) and so long as the priest uses the proper words of absolution, then the Confession is valid. Even a sinful priest in the state of mortal sin can confer valid absolution since Christ acts through His earthly ministers.
For the full and perfect remission of sins three acts are required on the part of the penitent
True - Explanation: The correct answer is true. Catechism of the Catholic Church #1491: “The sacrament of Penance is a whole consisting in three actions of the penitent and the priest’s absolution. The penitent’s acts are repentance, confession or disclosure of sins to the priest, and the intention to make reparation and do works of reparation.”
Confession secretly to a priest is at variance with the institution and command of Christ and is a human contrivance
False - The correct answer is false. Council of Trent in Canon 6: “If anyone denies that sacramental confession was instituted by divine law or is necessary to salvation; or says that the manner of confessing secretly to a priest alone, which the Catholic Church has always observed from the beginning and still observes, is at variance with the institution and command of Christ and is a human contrivance, let him be anathema.” What this means is that there is nothing wrong with a private confession to a priest. A person does not have to publicly state their sins in front of large groups of people. Those who claim this is required for a valid Confession commit the grave sin of heresy.
Confession was instituted at Pentecost
False - The correct answer is false. Confession was instituted not on Pentecost but when the Lord breathed on the Apostles and gave them the power to forgive sins, which occurred right before His Ascension into Heaven. This is recorded in John 20:23.
Perfect sorrow is a grief of soul for having offended God because He is infinitely good and worthy of being loved for His own sake
True - The correct answer is true. Catechism of St. Pius X #36-38, 42: “Sorrow for sin consists in grief of soul and in a sincere detestation of the offence offered to God. Sorrow is of two kinds: perfect sorrow or contrition; and imperfect sorrow or attrition. Perfect sorrow is a grief of soul for having offended God because He is infinitely good and worthy of being loved for His own sake. Imperfect sorrow or attrition is that by which we repent of having offended God because He is our Supreme Judge, that is, for fear of the chastisement deserved in this life or in the life to come, or because of the very foulness of sin itself.”
The priest gives us a penance after Confession, that we may satisfy God for the temporal punishment due to our sins
True - correct answer is true. The Baltimore Catechism #218 and 221 states: “The priest gives us a penance after Confession, that we may satisfy God for the temporal punishment due to our sins…The chief means by which we satisfy God for the temporal punishment due to sin are: Prayer, Fasting, Almsgiving, all spiritual and corporal works of mercy, and the patient suffering of the ills of life.”
Baptism and Confession are essentially the same Sacrament.
False - the correct answer is false. As stated Canon 2 of the Council of Trent: “If anyone, confounding the sacraments, says that baptism is itself the sacrament of penance, as though these two sacraments were not distinct, and that penance therefore is not rightly called a second plank after shipwreck, let him be anathema.” Confession is the Sacrament instituted by our Lord to forgive those who sin after Baptism. As stated in the Catechism of St. Pius X: “The sacrament of Penance, also called Confession, is a sacrament instituted by Jesus Christ to remit the sins committed after Baptism.”
