Confession and a good examination of conscience

Read the Catechism in a Year

Catechism in a Year - Day 192

Part Two: How We Celebrate the Christian Mysteries
- Section Two: The Seven Sacraments of the Church
-- Chapter One: The Sacraments of Healing -- PENANCE and RECONCILIATION

Question 231: What are the two basic elements required for the forgiveness of a Christian’s sins to occur in the sacrament of Penance?  

What is required for the forgiveness of sins is the person who undergoes conversion and the priest who in God’s name gives him absolution from his sins.  

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Question 232: What must I bring to a confession? 

Essential elements of every confession are an examination of conscience, contrition, a purpose of amendment, confession, and penance.

The examination of conscience should be done thoroughly, but it can never be exhaustive. No one can be absolved from his sin without real contrition, merely on the basis of “lip-service”. Equally indispensable is the purpose of amendment, the resolution not to commit that sin again in the future. The sinner absolutely must declare the sin to the confessor and, thus, confess to it. The final essential element of confession is the atonement or penance that the confessor imposes on the sinner to make restitution for the harm done.

Dig Deeper: Corresponding CCC section (1440-1454) and other references here.

Recommended Listening: Confession by Fr. Larry Richards