Catechism of the Catholic Church

872

Glossary

and which produce an inclination to sin (1264, 1426, 2515). CONFESSION: An essential element of the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation, which consists in telling one’s sins to the priestly minister. By extension, the word confession is used to refer to the Sacrament of Penance itself (1455). CONFIRMATION: One of the ensemble of the Sacraments of Initiation into the Church, together with Baptism and Eucharist. Confirmation completes the grace of Baptism by a special outpouring of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, which seal or “confirm” the baptized in union with Christ and equip them for active participation in the worship and apostolic life of the Church (1285). CONSCIENCE: The interior voice of a human being, within whose heart the inner law of God is inscribed. Moral conscience is a judgment of practical reason about the moral quality of a human action. It moves a person at the appropriate moment to do good and to avoid evil (1777 1778). An examination of conscience is recommended as a preparation for the reception of the Sacrament of Penance (1454). CONSECRATED LIFE: A permanent state of life recognized by the Church, entered freely in response to the call of Christ to perfection, and characterized by the profession of the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience (914). See Vow. CONSECRATED VIRGINS: Women who have decided with the Church’s approval to cling only to the Lord and to live in

a state of virginity “for the sake of the kingdom of heaven” and are consecrated in that state by a solemn rite (922-924). CONSECRATION: The dedication of a thing or person to divine service by a prayer or blessing. The consecration at Mass is that part of the Eucharistic Prayer during which the Lord’s words of institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper are recited by the priestly minister, making Christ’s Body and Blood—his sacrifice offered on the cross once for all—sacramentally present under the species of bread and wine (1352, 1353). CONTEMPLATION: A form of wordless prayer in which mind and heart focus on God’s greatness and goodness in affective, loving adoration; to look on Jesus and the mysteries of his life with faith and love (2628, 2715). mechanical, chemical, or medical procedures to prevent conception from taking place as a result of sexual intercourse; contraception offends against the openness to procreation required of marriage and also the inner truth of conjugal love (2370). CONTRITION: Sorrow of the soul and hatred for the sin committed, together with a resolution not to sin again. Contrition is the most important act of the penitent, and is necessary for the reception of the Sacrament of Penance (1451). CONTRACEPTION, ARTIFICIAL: The use of