“Well,” because we should tell all the sins we can remember; but if we did not tell a venial sin after we had told a mortal sin, our confession would not be bad.  Or if we committed a little venial sin after confession, that should not keep us from Holy Communion; because the Holy Communion itself would blot out that and any other venial sin we might have upon our souls:  so that you should never let anything keep you away, unless you are certain you have committed a mortal sin after the confession, or have broken your fast.

210 Q. What are the chief qualities of a good confession?  A. The chief qualities of a good confession are three:  it must be humble, sincere, and entire.

211 Q. When is our confession humble?  A. Our confession is humble when we accuse ourselves of our sins, with a deep sense of shame and sorrow for having offended God.

212 Q. When is our confession sincere?  A. Our confession is sincere when we tell our sins honestly and truthfully, neither exaggerating nor excusing them.

“Exaggerating.”  You must never tell in confession a sin you did not commit, any more than conceal one you did commit.  You must tell just the sins committed, and no more or less; and if you are in doubt whether you have committed the sin, or whether the thing done was a sin, then you must tell your doubts to the priest:  but do not say you committed such and such sins when you do not know whether you did or not, or only because you think it likely that you did.

213 Q. When is our confession entire?  A. Our confession is entire when we tell the number and kinds of our sins and the circumstances which change their nature.

“Number”—­the exact number, if you know it; as, for example, when we miss Mass we can generally tell exactly the number of times.  But when we tell lies, for instance, we may not know the exact number:  then we say how often in the day, or that it is a habit with us, etc.

“Kinds”—­whether they are cursing, or stealing, or lying, etc.

“Circumstances which change their nature.”  In the case of stealing, for example, you need not tell whether it was from a grocery, a bakery, or dry-goods store you stole, for that circumstance does not change the nature of the sin:  you have simply to tell the amount you took.  But if you stole from a church you would have to tell that, because that is a circumstance that gives the sin of stealing a new character, and makes it sacrilegious stealing.  Or if you stole from a poor beggar all he possessed in the world, so that you left him starving, that would be a circumstance making your sin worse, and so you would have to tell it.  Therefore you have to tell any circumstance that really makes your sin much worse or less than it seems; all other circumstances you need not tell:  they will only confuse you, and make you forget your sins and waste the priest’s time.

214 Q. What should we do if we cannot remember the number of our sins?  A. If we cannot remember the number of our sins, we should tell the number as nearly as possible, and say how often we have sinned in a day, a week, or a month and how long the habit or practice has lasted.