Awaken

Session 5 - Saying No to Sin

This session aims to prepare the participants to experience the Sacrament of Reconciliation (if they’re Catholic) or to talk to a priest about their sins (if they’re not Catholic). We want this session to awaken a desire in the participants to be free from the sin that enslaves them. And even more importantly, to be reunited with the Lord in a genuine, loving relationship through the forgiveness of their sins.

Agenda

5 min - Welcome and opening prayer

20 min - [Catechesis Video] Session 5 - Saying No to Sin

20 min - Testimony

5 min - Break

20 min - Reconciliation liturgy

Confessions

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Catechesis Videos

Session 5 - Saying No to Sin - Fr. Ervin Caliente

Testimony Outline

  • Think of a time when you needed to ask for forgiveness or you needed to give forgiveness. Was the experience difficult? How did God help you with it? Was God’s peace present afterwards?
  • Describe a time when you either had a conversion away from sin and turned towards the Lord, or a simple change that made a big difference.
  • What was your life like after your conversion experience? What was your relationship with our Lord like afterwards?
Download Outline

Testimony Videos

Gregg J. Testimony

Small Group Questions

Download Small Group Questions

Additional Resources

Leader's Guide

Preparation tasks

  • Recruit testimony speaker.
  • You’ll be sending participants to confession (if they’re Catholic) or to talk to a priest (if they’re not Catholic) at the end of the session. Be sure to recruit priests in advance to hear confessions.
  • Explain to the priests ahead of time that not everyone coming to confession is necessarily Catholic. But you will be encouraging those participants to still enter the confessional to talk to the priests.

Agenda variation

  • This session doesn’t have a hard ending. Instead of closing in prayer, participants will be able to go to confession or talk to a priest. Once a participant has done that, they are free to go. This means that this session could be shorter for some participants and longer for others, depending on when they are able to go to confession or talk to a priest.

Supplies checklist

  • Signs for directing people to the meeting location
  • Refreshments (optional)
  • Check-in list
  • Podium or music stand
  • Microphone, if needed
  • Video presentation equipment (i.e. TV or projector)
  • Examination of conscience handout (use your own or download from this session’s resources in the online portal)
  • Reconciliation Liturgy
  • Announcements: next session date

Setup checklist

  • If needed, post signs to direct participants to where the session is meeting.
  • Set up refreshments (optional).
  • Set up additional confessionals, if you need more.
  • Put a podium or music stand up front for the witness speaker who is giving their testimony.
  • Set up a TV or projector. Test the video before the session starts so you can troubleshoot, if needed.
  • Set up chairs.
  • If you have a larger group, set up a microphone in the front of the room.
  • Meet with your volunteers shortly before the session begins. Review the agenda and pray with them.
Download Leader's Guide