Pope Leo XIV emphasized the importance of the Sacrament of Reconciliation and mourned the infrequency with which many Christians approach it.
“The fact that the Sacrament can be received repeatedly is not always matched by a willingness on the part of the baptized to make use of it: it is as though the infinite treasure of the Church’s mercy remained ‘unused,’ due to a widespread distraction among Christians who, not infrequently, remain in a state of sin for a long time, rather than approaching the confessional with simplicity of faith and heart to receive the gift of the Risen Lord,” the Pope said on March 13 to participants in an annual course on the internal forum offered by the Apostolic Penitentiary.
Pope Leo also spoke of the sacrament as a “workshop of unity,” explaining:
It restores unity with God through the forgiveness of sins and the infusion of sanctifying grace. This fosters the inner unity of the individual and unity with the Church; consequently, it also promotes peace and unity within the human family. One might well ask: do those Christians who bear grave responsibility in armed conflicts have the humility and courage to make a serious examination of conscience and to go to confession?
“This dynamism of unity with God, with the Church and within ourselves is a prerequisite for peace among people and nations: only a reconciled person is capable of living in an unarmed and disarming way,” the Pope added. “Those who lay down the weapons of pride and allow themselves to be continually renewed by God’s forgiveness become agents of reconciliation in everyday life. In him or her are fulfilled the words attributed to Saint Francis of Assisi: ‘Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.’”