An invitation to return

By Patricia O’Connell
CFP Correspondent

“Come Home to God’s Mercy” is an invitation to return to confession.

Bishop McManus has asked that confession be available, at every parish, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday evenings during Lent. Lent begins Ash Wednesday, Feb. 17. Tuesday night confessions begin Feb. 23.

This is typically a time when many people don’t have pressing obligations.

The bishop’s initiative also calls for intensive catechesis. Priests will speak about the sacrament of Penance from the pulpit.

This message will be reinforced throughout the Catholic schools, as well as in CCD classes.

The Catholic Free Press will also run weekly columns on why we all need to go to confession.

Will it work? Will people return to confession? Even people who’ve been away for a really long time?

“Why not?” said Bishop McManus.

Yes it will, said Susan Gibbs, director of communications for the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C.

Three years ago, Archbishop Donald Wuerl launched a similar program called “The Light is On For You.” Priests in 140 parishes throughout the nation’s capital heard confessions each Wednesday in Lent from 6:30 to 8 p.m.

That was Bishop McManus’ inspiration for the Worcester Diocese’s initiative.

“Some were skeptical,” admitted Ms. Gibbs. “One young priest brought his Breviary and books with him.”

“He didn’t use them,” she added.

Ms. Gibbs also had her doubts. Archbishop Wuerl had come up with the idea. She did the publicity. But she didn’t know what would happen.

“The first night I panicked,” she recalled. She was horrified at the prospect that every church would be open, and people would stay away.

Instead, people flocked to confession.

“Several priests said people came back after 20, 30, 40 years,” noted Ms. Gibbs.

In a Pastoral Letter on Penance, published in 2008, Archbishop Wuerl wrote, “In many parishes, each successive Wednesday brought more people to church for reconciliation, many of whom had not been to confession for decades.”

Ms. Gibbs said the Archdiocese was up-front about the fact many Catholics aren’t going to confession.

“Our goal was to try to take away the barriers to confession,” she stated. “We really worked hard to make it clear that, ‘We’ve known you’ve been away.’”

People were given an Examination of Conscience. These brochures were often brought into the confessional, said Ms. Gibbs.

“What we learned is that you just have to invite people and make them feel comfortable,” she said.

Evening confession is crucial, according to Ms. Gibbs. Mothers can leave their children at home. Fathers can do the same. Sometimes, she said, entire families go to confession.

Saturday afternoon is, traditionally, confession time. But, nowadays, people often have other commitments. “What we’re trying to get across is that people’s lives have changed,” she said.

In a survey of Archdiocesan priests, 80 percent wanted the campaign to run every Lent. And 10 percent of the pastors have permanently added Wednesday evening to the confession schedule.

“The Light is On For You” has spread far beyond Capitol Hill. Ms. Gibbs has had inquiries from all over the world. And, this year, 20 bishops around the country are doing similar initiatives, said Ms. Gibbs.

One diocese, she explained, started their own program after one of its priests took a trip to Washington, D.C. He saw an ad for “The Light is On For You,” and brought the idea home to his bishop.

This year, the Archdiocese of Washington has paired up with the neighboring Diocese of Arlington (Virginia) to share the costs of a media blitz.

Public transportation riders are heavily targeted. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority system is covered with 700 “The Light is On For You” ads. Another 45 advertisements are on the commuter rail.

There are also billboard displays and radio spots. About 450 people get weekly announcements on Twitter.

Is everyone happy with the program?

No, admitted Ms. Gibbs. Some priests didn’t want it to continue. Some parishes reported few penitents. “There were some parishes that grumbled a little bit,” she stated.

But most Archdiocesan priests are enthusiastic, she said, adding, “It really touched our priests.”

This Lent, the Archdiocese of Washington has added a new component. Parishes will offer Wednesday evening confessions, as well as Eucharistic Adoration. Everyone in the Archdiocese is encouraged to come into a parish and pray before the Blessed Sacrament.

“If churches are open, why not pray for people to return?” asked Ms. Gibbs.