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Choose a topic from Part 3 Suppl:

• Penance (Continued)
  • 1. Contrition
  • 2. The Object of Contrition
  • 3. Degrees of Contrition
  • 4. The Time or Season of Contrition
  • 5. The Effect of Contrition
  • 6. Confession
  • 7. The Nature of Confession
  • 8. The Minister of Confession
  • 9. The Quality of Confession
  • 10. The Effect of Confession
  • 11. The Seal of Confession
  • 12. Satisfaction
  • 13. Possibility of Satisfaction
  • 14. The Quality of Satisfaction
  • 15. Means of Making Satisfaction
  • 16. Those Who Have the Virtue of Penance
  • 17. The Power of the Keys
  • 18. The Effect of the Keys
  • 19. The Minister of the Keys
  • 20. Use of the Power of the Keys
  • 21. Excommunication
  • 22. Persons Concerned in Excommunication
  • 23. Dealing With Excommunicated Persons
  • 24. Absolution From Excommunication
  • 25. Indulgences
  • 26. The Granting of Indulgences
  • 27. The Gaining of Indulgences
  • 28. Public Penance
• Extreme Unction
• Order (Holy Orders)
• Matrimony
• The General Resurrection
• The Last Things
• Appendix I (The Innocents in Limbo)
• Appendix II (Two Notes on Purgatory)

16. Those Who Have the Virtue of Penance

1. As a man is curable by reason of his soundhealth, even though he never had a disease, so a man may have thevirtue of penance, even though he has never sinned actually. Thevirtue of penance is infused by God with the other supernaturalvirtues.

2. The virtue of penance is a part of justice,and justice will remain in the soul in heaven. Hence the virtue ofpenance also will remain in the soul. But in heaven the act of thevirtue of penance will not be grief for sin, but joyousthanksgiving to God for his mercy in pardoning sin.

3. There can be no virtue of penance in the angels, forthe good angels have not committed sin, nor are they capable now ofcommitting it. And the evil angels are fixed and determined intheir sinful will, and cannot be repentant.

"The greatest glory we can give to God is to do his will in everything."
St Alphonsus de Liguori

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"Whoever wants to stand alone without the support of a master and guide will be like the tree that stands alone in a field without a proprietor. No matter how much the tree bears, passers-by will pick the fruit before it ripens. "
St John of the Cross, OCD - Doctor of the Church

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"If, devout soul, it is your will to please God and live a life of serenity in this world, unite yourself always and in all things to the divine will. Reflect that all the sins of your past wicked life happened because you wandered from the path of God's will. For the future, embrace God's good pleasure and say to him in every happening: "Yea, Father, for so it hath seemed good in thy sight." "
St Alphonsus de Liguori

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