FREQUENT CONFESSION presents convincing and strong evidence for the benefits of frequent reception of the sacrament of Penance for the health and growth of the spiritual life of all the faithful.

The practice of frequent confession has been neglected in certain places, but remains a concrete and visible expression of a true Christian outlook on human life as “the personal encounter with the forgiving Jesus in the sacrament of Reconciliation is a divine means that keeps alive in our hearts and in our communities a conciousness of sin in its perennial and tragic reality, and that actuality brings forth, by the action of Jesus and the power of the Spirit, fruits of conversion in justice and holiness of life, by this sacrament we are renewed in favour, strengthened in our resolves, and buoyed by divine encouragement” (John Paul II, address to American Bishops, 1979).

The book is divided into two parts. The first shows the purposes and practice of confession from the aspect of confessor and penitent. The second examines the many areas where confession applies.