Sacramental Penance and the Triumph Over Sin: Participation in Christ's Kingship | Fr. John Riley

Summer Consortium

Following Mass in Christ the King Chapel, celebrated by former college chaplain Fr. John Riley, participants heard from Christendom’s Theology Department Chairman Dr. Owen Vyner. During his talk, titled “Sacramental Penance and the Triumph Over Sin: Participation in Christ’s Kingship,” Vyner provided a powerful look into the theology behind the nature of sin and how each person can more fully follow Christ through the Sacrament of Confession.

“Contrition, confession, and satisfaction undoes sin at its root, but more deeply, aided by grace, we are sharing in God’s own freedom,” said Vyner. “To do battle and to seek to overcome sin is to have the freedom of a king. More specifically, it is to share in Christ’s Kingship and his victory over sin on the cross. Thus to engage in this battle, through the sacrament and the virtue of penance, is to have royal freedom — the freedom of the sons and daughters of God.”