Day 41: 2/10/13- Confess in a Confessional Booth, Attend Solemn High Mass at Smokey Mary's & Kara NYC Fun

Day 41: 2/10/13- Confess in a Confessional Booth, Attend Solemn High Mass at Smokey Mary's & Kara NYC Fun
New Thing- Confess in a Confessional Booth, Attend Solemn High Mass at Smokey Mary's, & Kara NYC Fun 
Inspiration: The need to be reconciled, DMin, Kara         
Time: All day (only 20ish minuets for Reconciliation)                        
Bottom Line: Reconciled!

Reflection: As I mentioned before (see the post here), I have been preparing to make a private confession which, in the Episcopal Tradition is called "The Reconciliation of a Penitent" and today was the day. Reconciliation happens to be the topic of my doctoral thesis, but this exercise was not a "fact-finding" mission for me. I went, not as a student, but as a sinner in need of repentance.

Now, I have made a private one-on-one confession before, but it has been years since my last one and never in an actual confessional booth (I did try in a RC church once but was sent away since I am not of that tradition). Most Episcopal Churches do not have them (nor do most Episcopal Churches hear many private confessions for that matter) so I went into NYC to The Church of Saint Mary the Virgin (also known as "Smokey Mary's" because of its high Anglo-Catholic tradition of a smells-and-bells style liturgy) to experience what it would be like to make a confession in this manner.

The beautiful sanctuary of St. Mary's

I took the train in and used the time to look over my prayer book and the notes I had made two days ago. Mostly I just prayed and spent some time with my thoughts until I arrived at Penn Station and walked over to Times Square to the church. When I arrived, I found an usher to let the priest know I had arrived and took my place on my knees in the booth while I waited.

While I certainly wont go into the details of what I confessed (sorry!), I will say that there were tears of both pain (towards the beginning) and joy (towards the end). I received my first ever penitence and actually welcomed it as a service I could offer as a mark of a grateful heart. And grateful it was. Grateful, joyful, and re-adjusted back on the path that glorifies God rather than myself. In fact, I felt like I had just had a spiritual chiropractic appointment. After that, I went to Solemn High Mass and felt very warm.

After that, I joined up with one of my all-time best friends, Kara, to have lunch and hang out in Times Square for a bit. We even went over to Toys-r-Us and rode the Farris wheel! The ride home after that amazing day was completely different, and this deep feeling of thankfulness to God who loves me no matter what continues to abide.