Bless Me, Father, for I Have Sinned: Catholics Speak out about Confession

Janet McCreadie is a Dunnville-based freelance editor and writer.

Seven hundred and forty million Catholics around the world are required to confess their sins at least once a year.

Beginning with the evolution of the sacrament, Bless Me, Father for I Have Sinned includes interviews with Catholics of all ages, from all walks of life. Priests and penitents recall their confessional experiences with joy and anger, humor and pathos, capturing the panorama of this intimate experience: priests airing their views on the sacrament; laymen and laywomen speaking out about confession; the benefits, the dreadful fears and guilt, and the struggle for faith are personalized.

The sacrament has been abused and misused over the centuries and the focus is changing as the term reconciliation is used in the church. The sacrament of confession in today’s Catholic society has many confused and uncertain, but the clarity with which the authors discuss penance clears up much of the muddle Catholics face in the confession sacrament.

This book gives both Catholics and non-Catholics an overview of thousands of years of a tradition that has caused great conflict in the world.