I hope this sharing of my experience is helpful, especially to my brother priests and those who prepare people for the sacrament of reconciliation.

I have been a priest for thirty-three years and a preacher of parish missions and retreats. During my first year of priestly ministry, I was sent to a small rural parish to preach a mission. On Saturday afternoon, I went to the church to "hear confessions" as we used to say back then. The church was empty, and I sat in the small, dark confessional wondering why no one was coming. I opened my breviary and began to pray. A long time passed without anyone coming into the confessional.

I was a little disappointed that no one seemed to want to "go to confession" when suddenly I heard a voice: "What are you doing here?"

The voice was so clear that I thought someone was outside my confessional talking to me. I pulled the curtain aside but found no one there. The church was completely empty. I sat back once again and the voice came a second time: "What are you doing here? You have no right to hear what you are about hear. Only I have a right to hear what is said in this place."

I suddenly realized Who was speaking to me. "They are coming to Me, not you. Only I can forgive their sins. You are given a great privilege to share in the most intimate moments between Me and My people."

Since that day, I have always loved to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation. I find that my knowledge of God deepens through being His instrument. I am amazed at the ways God uses me during the sacrament of reconciliation, and the blessing it is to those who approach the sacrament in faith and hope.