This talk on sin and penance is the thirty second in a series of lectures on the Catholic Catechism recorded in 1965 by Archbishop Fulton J Sheen in the privacy of his own study and first broadcast under the title 'Life is Worth Living'. A master communicator, Fulton Sheen recorded this insightful overview of the teachings of the Holy Catholic Church.
Every sin divides a person from himself, his neighbor, and God. Mortal sin is the death of divine life, but through sacramental confession we can regain the merits lost. A venial sin wounds divine life but does not kill it. Three conditions for mortal sin are: serious matter, sufficient reflection, and full consent of the will. Our Lord instituted the sacrament of Penance so we may atone for our sins. He gave Peter and the Apostles the power to forgive sins as His instrument. Without confession there is no test of sorrow.