Bulletin column from February 21, 2021

Dear Friends at Saint Frances Cabrini Parish and Saint Mary’s Immaculate Conception Parish: Praised be Jesus Christ! Not only have we now officially embarked as a Church upon a new Lenten journey, but we also continue to make our way through the Year of Saint Joseph. The beginning of the Lenten season of mercy and renewal is a fitting opportunity to highlight an important component of the Year of Saint Joseph, namely the granting of an indulgence for certain acts of piety associated with this Holy Year.

Indulgences are still very much a part of Catholic life and piety, however it does require a fair amount of technical explanation to fully understand what they are and how they work. To explain the overall concept as simply and succinctly as possible, it might be helpful to compare the process of dealing with sin to the decision to get one’s body in better shape. After a stretch of time in which a person does not eat well or exercise, a body gets weaker, and a person makes the decision to get back in shape. The decision to get back in shape is a good one, and it is to the person’s credit. However, the mere decision itself does not restore a person to “fit” status because that can only happen through the acts of eating well and exercising over time. Getting in shape requires the initial decision, as well as the ongoing actions to fully come about.

Something similar can be said about dealing with sin. Sinful behavior makes us spiritually and morally “out of shape,” with self, others, and with God. Sorrow for sin, the decision to change, and the act of getting a sin absolved in sacramental Confession are good things that are essential to the restoration of our full communion with God. However, these steps alone do not fully restore us to “fit” spiritual status because that can only happen through ongoing acts of avoiding the sin in the future, as well as doing good behavior over and over again in order to fully experience the freedom of a virtuous life. Sin is “legally” removed in confession, but its effects on us remain until our nature is re-trained through new habits, or are ultimately removed in Purgatory after this life is over. This is what Purgatory is for. No one in Heaven can have any lingering effects of sin because that would be an impairment of full communion with God.

An indulgence has to do with the Church’s spiritual authority to not only legally remove the effects of sin (absolution), but also to offer official, quantifiable opportunities for us to remove its effects by the performing of some pious act in this life. An indulgence may be “partial,” meaning that the doing of the pious act removes part of the residues of a particular sin, or it may be “plenary” meaning that it removes all of the residues of a particular sin. In its own mysterious way, all of this is linked to the communion that we all share in the Church with the saints in heaven, whose abundant holiness becomes a means to help us become holy ourselves since they now possess in fullness all that we still lack in holiness in this life.

Long story short, the Church regularly attaches indulgences to specific activities that are good for us to do. It is an extra encouragement to do them. There are conditions that are attached to the attainment of an indulgence, especially a plenary indulgence. One must have a sin in mind, one must go to confession for that sin, one must intend to obtain an indulgence for it. Then, one must do the specific act the Church has proposed. One must be detached from the sin (no more desire to do it again), one must receive the Eucharist within a short time frame of doing the indulgenced act, and in the same time frame one must pray for the pope’s intentions (which may be done generically without knowing what they specifically are).

There are several very beautiful acts of piety for the Year of Saint Joseph that have an indulgence attached to them. They are outlined on the Vatican News Website which may be found here: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2020-12/apostolic-penitentiary-plenary-indulgence-year-st-joseph.html. Or, probably easier, in Google, type in “Year of Saint Joseph indulgence.” The acts have to do with simple works of mercy, with meditation, with the rosary as a family, among other things. I recommend them to anyone who wishes to grow in their love of this special Saint, and in the love of the Lord.