‘We should not Fear Confession … The Lord wants to love us into Holiness.’ Bishop Gruss Teaches on the Sacrament of Penance

SAGINAW — “How many of you want to be more holy?” That’s the question Bishop Robert Gruss asked toward the beginning of his most recent First Friday presentation at the Cathedral on January 3.

With his own hands raised high, Bishop Gruss continued, “Our relationship with Jesus will grow to the extent we put time into it. If we don’t, then you’ll be no different a year from now than you are today. The Lord wants to draw us deeper into His life, His love, His mercy … deeper into His Holy Spirit, but we have to say, ‘yes’ to that.”

Bishop Gruss candidly shared with those gathered that many years ago, he did not approach confession the way he should have – preferring to rush through the sacrament, rather than embrace it as a personal encounter with the Lord. He said penance is an opportunity to lay down our burdens before Jesus.

Love and Mercy

“That’s what sin is … it’s a burden. If we’re serious about a relationship with Jesus, then we’ll be serious about the Sacrament of Penance. The more we come to him with repentant hearts, the more he will shower his love and mercy on us. We should not fear confession … the Lord wants to love us into holiness.”

Challenging those present to get in touch with what is inside their own hearts, Bishop Gruss asked, “How many go to confession and confess the same sins time after time after time? How many of us would like to make it the last time? It is possible. Everything is possible in the name of Jesus.”

So, how do we transition away from habitual unloving, uncharitable and unhealthy behaviors? Bishop Gruss said that in prayer we should ask the Lord Jesus to reveal what is causing us to act in such ways.

“He can’t heal it until we come to know what it is … because we can’t own it. We can’t give anything away that we don’t own. If you want to stop committing the acts, find out what’s causing them. It’s a brokenness in our own hearts, something in our hearts that is not receiving the love of God, and the Lord came to heal the brokenhearted.”

This healing, he said, takes time. In much the same way a deep wound takes time to heal from the inside out.   

Jesus Came to Save, Not to Condemn

“Don’t condemn yourself, because Jesus doesn’t condemn you. He said, ‘I didn’t come into the world to condemn it, I came to save it.’

“So, if I’m feeling condemnation, it’s either my own self condemnation -  which is not of God - or it’s a condemnation of the Evil One - which is not of God. Any sense of condemnation is not from the Holy Spirit, so we have to stand against that and don’t believe it.

“Our sins don’t define us … they don’t. Our sins and our sinful habits, those do not define who we are. You have been baptized in Jesus Christ. He defines who you are … and you are a child of God."

'Whatever is in my heart, for better or for worse, will come out in my actions'

“And, as children of God, we need to allow the Lord Jesus to minister to and transform our hearts to make them more like His.

"Whatever is in my heart, for better or for worse, will come out in my actions- my thoughts, words and deeds … if envy/jealousy is there, it's ‘gonna’ come out...

“If joy and love is in us … it’s ‘gonna’ come out.

“Don't you want the love of God in you to come out? The peace of God in you to come out, the joy of God in you to come out, the very presence of Jesus himself in you to come out?

“Then invite Him in so He can bring all of that love and peace and joy, all of it … not only the gifts but the fruits of the Holy Spirit … and when those begin to rest in our hearts, then they will come out and people will be amazed [they will want to know] 'What happened to you?'"



Many of our parishes offer confession each week. Click here for a listing of confession times, locations and days.


More homilies and presentations by Bishop Gruss