On the evening of that day, the first day of the week,” Jesus showed himself to his apostles. “He breathed on them, and said to them: “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” (John 20:19, 22-23)
Catholics celebrate the sacrament of Reconciliation because we recognize that sometimes we fail to do as we ought and because we believe in God’s mercy and forgiveness. The priest can help you and you can trust the Holy Spirit to guide you.
One who desires to obtain reconciliation with God and with the Church, must confess to a priest all the unconfessed grave sins he remembers after having carefully examined his conscience. This confession of venial faults, without being necessary itself, is nevertheless strongly recommended by the Church.
The spiritual effects of the Sacrament of Penance are:
- reconciliation with God by which the penitent recovers grace;
- reconciliation with the Church;
- remission of the eternal punishment incurred by the mortal sins;
- remission, at least in part, of temporal punishments resulting from sin;
- peace and serenity of conscience, and spiritual consolation;
- an increase of spiritual strength for the Christian battle.
First Reconciliation Preparation (for children in grade 2 and up)
Late Registrations will be taken up to January 20th. Kathryn will contact all those who do not attend the first information session to find a make-up time with the family so please ensure your contact information is correct in the registration.
Thank you for your interest in our Sacramental preparation Programs at Sacred Heart. Please note that your Son or Daughter will need to have valid proof of Baptism to be accepted. There is also a $25 fee for each of the books your son/daughter will be using. (Total of $50 for both sacraments.) Books and payment can be picked up or made at the office. The deadline the register is January 16th 2021. Note: to receive Holy Communion, your son/daughter will have needed to go through Reconciliation first which is why we offer them one after the other.
There are four (4) sessions to prepare for First Reconciliation and five (5) sessions to prepare for First Communion. Parents will be expected to be guiding and teaching their children at home, especially given the current circumstances of COVID-19. You will be expected (as the guardians) to ensure your candidate is well-formed – after all, the sacraments are to provide candidates with the grace of God! There will be more information provided in the information session on January 16th. The program outline is as follows:
First Reconciliation (2021) – Saturdays @10:30 AM
Information Session: January 16th (Zoom Call)
Extra Optional Review Sessions: January 23rd and January 30th
Review Session: February 6th (Zoom Call)
Celebration: Sunday, February 7th @12PM to 3PM (Slots will be scheduled)
We will be re-evaluating how to run the First Communion Program closer to the date given restrictions. For now, these are the tentative dates and times.
First Communion (2021) – Saturdays @10:15am to 12pm unless otherwise stated
Session 1: February 20th
Session 2: February 27th
Session 3: March 6th
Session 4: March 13th
Session 5: March 27th
Celebration: (Palm) Sunday, March 28th @3PM
