Fr. Looney's Good Friday Confess-a-thon

A day late with this story, but it's worth bookmarking for next year. Kudos to Fr. Joe Looney for making the front page of the Courant's Good Friday edition:

Call it a confess-athon. The Rev. Joseph Looney of St. Margaret's Church in
Waterbury is hosting a 12-hour call for confessions today at his
parish. Frustrated with the declining number of Catholics who confess their sins
before a priest, Looney advertised a "Notice to All Sinners" in a local
newspaper this week...

The Rev. John Gatzak, director of communications for the Archdiocese of
Hartford, said the Catholic Church has seen a decline in the number of
confessions in the past two decades. Gatzak attributes the decline to society's
aversion to admitting our faults and failings."Confession is a painful
experience to look within yourself and say `what is wrong with me?'" Gatzak
said. "We would rather look at what is `right with me.'"

This is true also of certain approaches to Christianity--Catholic and otherwise--that are popular with the public right now. Good on Fathers Looney and Gatzak for reminding the whole state of a message we need to hear--especially on Good Friday. And good on the Courant for running it.