From midnight tonight to midnight 2 August, you can gain the “Portinuncula” Indulgence. This Year of Mercy brings many opportunities to gain plenary indulgences, but this one is special: it seems to have been granted directly by Christ Himself in an appearance to St. Francis. The Lord them told Francis to go to Pope Honorius III, who, as Vicar of Christ, who wielded the keys, would decree it.
St. Francis, as you know, repaired three chapels. The third was popularly called the Portiuncula or the Little Portion, dedicated to St. Mary of the Angels. It is now enclosed in a sanctuary at Assisi.
The friars came to live at the Little Portion in early 1211. It became the “motherhouse” of the Franciscans. This is where St. Clare came to the friars to make her vows during the night following Palm Sunday in 1212 and where Sister Death came to Francis on 3 October 1226.
Because of the favors from God obtained at the Portiuncula, St. Francis requested the Pope to grant remission of sins to all who came there. The privilege extends beyond the Portiuncula to others churches, especially held by Franciscans, throughout the world.
A plenary indulgence is a mighty tool for works of mercy and weapon in our ongoing spiritual warfare. A plenary indulgence is the remission, through the merits of Christ and the saints, through the Church, of all temporal punishment due to sin already forgiven.
To obtain the Portiuncula plenary indulgence, a person must visit the Chapel of Our Lady of the Angels at Assisi, or a Franciscan sanctuary, or one’s parish church, with the intention of honoring Our Lady of the Angels. Then perform the work of reciting the Creed and Our Father and pray for the Pope’s designated intentions. You should be free, at least intentionally, of attachment to venial and mortal sin, and truly repentant. Make your sacramental confession 8 days before or after. Participate at assist at Mass and receive Holy Communion 8 days before or after.
BTW… the faithful can gain a plenary indulgence on a day of the year he designates (cf. Ench. Indul. 33 1.2.d). You might choose the anniversary of your baptism or of another sacrament or name day.
My friend Fr. Finigan, His Hermeueticalness, has some excellent points and suggestions in his post about the Porticuncula indulgence. HERE
Also, HERE, Fr. Finigan wrote about the requirement that we not have any attachment to sin, even venial. He offers quite a hopeful view of what sounds like a difficult prospect. I warmly recommend it.
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Just to let Fr. Finian know, I am having trouble opening that link.
What does one confess if one is free “of attachment to venial and mortal sin”?
I can see how confession prior to the rest of the steps makes sense, but I am unsure how I can be free of attachment to venial and mortal sin when those other steps are taken and still make proper use of the sacrament of reconciliation (though at all times I am certainly in need of God’s mercy).
Indulgentiarum Doctrina has been moved on the Vatican website. It’s now at https://w2.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/en/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_p-vi_apc_01011967_indulgentiarum-doctrina.html
Can I think as I always have being taught by good Sisters in my Youth a devout Father and later confirmed by a Priest that the Church through the rubrics of Indulgences says we can only be in a state of grace for 16 days. This is my error , erring on the side of charity.The Sister taught me confession every fortnight as was prevalent before Vatican 2
Confession every two weeks is a very good way to grow in holiness and it is to be commended.
As for the state of grace only lasting two weeks, I am not sure that is what the rubrics for indulgence means by requiring sacramental confession within a week before or after the indulgenced act. Consider that St. Maximilian Kolbe was in two prisons before he died, continuously, for a total of five months and that St. John of the Cross was locked up for nine months. St. John the Evangelist was on the island of Patmos some time, as well. I don’t know if any of them had access to confession.
Also, if everyone fell out of the state of grace in two weeks, I suspect that Canon Law would not make it a requirement to go to confession if one has serious sins at least once a year. I suspect it would be more in recognition of the two week situation.
Given the state of the modern world, however, frequent confession seems to be very necessary, so confession no less than once a month is probably necessary for most people’s spiritual health and even once a week might be necessary, in some cases. Even if one remains in a state of grace beyond two weeks, frequent confession has a strengthening effect on the soul so that, over time, it more easily turns to virtue. I highly recommend it.
The Chicken
Father, can you clarify, as other sites state one must go to Communion on the day of the Indulgence, such as today, Our Lady of the Angels.
I am wondering if this day is special concerning the eight day window.
As to not being attached to venial sin, Garrigou-Lagrange and Father Ripperger, in our own day, have address this. It means rooting out the predominant fault. For some help, I wrote many posts on this on the old blog. Here is one.
http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2013/11/what-is-detachment-from-venial-sin.html
sorry for typos…in a great hurry to do the plenary before the end of the day….
“BTW… the faithful can gain a plenary indulgence on a day of the year he designates (cf. Ench. Indul. 33 1.2.d). You might choose the anniversary of your baptism or of another sacrament or name day.”
What requirements would one have to fulfill for this indulgence? Would you merely say: “I declare that the 6th of July is the day that I will receive a plenary indulgence by the grace of God and His Church,” or would you need to say a certain set of prayers (like the Our Father and the Creed)? Would one be able to change it each year or do you need to pick one and stick with it for the rest of your life?
Dear THREEHEARTS,
no, you cannot say that. The state of grace lasts until mortal sin is committed.
Why then, the rule that you can receive a plenary indulgence only so and so many days before (!) and after confession, in addition to being in a state of grace?
(Used to be 8 days, but now, I believe, officially set at 20 or so.)
Because (“devotional”) Confession, even when not strictly necessary on the part of the sin, is such a great thing to receive, and also secondly one’s own part in it a laudable but somewhat hard effort to take upon oneself:
and “mice are caught with bacon”, as the Germans say. So the Church, in her liberty to bestows indulgences as she pleases, has set this barrier to make people confess more often.
(Personal note: it was actually this that brought me to my – although otherwise quite necessary – Confession, years and years after the first one which preceded First Communion.)
THREEHEARTS,
Imrahil is correct–sanctifying grace has no expiration date.
Perhaps you misunderstood the sister and priest. If not:
In the sister’s defense, many of those women were thrown into teaching situations for which they had not been prepared. In fact, an older sister once told me that she never finished her novitiate because she was needed as a teacher.
In the priest’s defense, he may also have been lacking in catechetical formation, then given the usual theological nonsense in seminary.
Supertradmum says:
As to not being attached to venial sin, Garrigou-Lagrange and Father Ripperger, in our own day, have address this. It means rooting out the predominant fault. For some help, I wrote many posts on this on the old blog. Here is one.
Although the predominant fault is included in attachment to sin, it does not circumscribe it. There are other faults that aren’t the champion fault that are also attachments to sin.