Benedict XVI calls for renewed appreciation of the value of confession

On October 9, receiving around twenty bishops from the Canadian West for their Ad limina visit, the pope spoke of his regret at “the loss of the sense of sin”, noting that “the temptation to exercise one’s freedom, while keeping one’s distance with regard to God” was “frequent”. He also noted that when freedom is sought apart from God, the result is negative: loss of personal dignity, moral confusion and social disintegration.”
“When manifestations of sin abound – greed and corruption, betrayed relationships and human exploitation – acknowledgement of culpability grows weaker,” he explained. “Where God is excluded in the public place, the sense of offense against God – the true sense of sin – disappears.” Likewise, “when the value of moral standards is relativised, the categories of good and evil disappear.”
The Sovereign Pontiff then recalled “the responsibility of the bishop: to point out the destructive presence of sin” to the faithful. He also asked the Canadian prelates to promote the sacrament of Penance. For him, “a rediscovery of this sacrament will confirm that time spent in the confessional enables the good to be extracted from the evil and reveals the compassionate face of our Father.” “When the necessity of seeking forgiveness and the promptitude of pardon are forgotten, in their place springs up a worrying culture of blame and a spirit of contention,” he said.