We have all spent time washing and waxing our car only to have it rain later that same day. No sooner do we get it clean and shiny, when inevitably we hit a big puddle in the road. A clean car doesn’t stay clean long. The same can be true with our soul. When was the last time you went to a soul wash?
While I was in seminary, one of the things our rector, Bishop Robert Barron, instilled in us with absolute clarity was this: After you are ordained a Catholic priest, when someone asks you for confession, the answer is yes. Period. I consider it to be a foundational rule in my life as a priest, and as it turns out, it has proven practical.