Penance

I remember going to confession when I was a young 'aspiring' Catholic attending Catholic school and exactly what it was like. We had to go during school. We'd sit one chair apart from each other in the Chapel and wait our turn. When it was your turn, you always hoped you got the nicer priest. He had this way with people and was genuinely kind and wholeheartedly believed in what he was doing. We'd walk humbly through the door, sit behind the screen (if you were feeling particularly sinful) or just face the priest who was half asleep in his chair.

Sitting there spelling out all the sins you'd committed over the last week or so. Well, let's see. I lied about where I was going with my friend. I told mom X and Y, but I left out Z. I did bad on a test. Pretty pungent stuff at age 10!!

Afterwards you're given a penance. Say N number of Hail Mary's (squared) and you'd walk back to your place in the Chapel and say your penance.

This concept is now foreign to me. Particularly the penance part. Being a heavy believer in karma, it seems to me being given a penance is one of the following:

• An attempted preemptive strike at dodging the natural process of karma
• A mechanism to ensure punishment 
• A form of double punishment

Either way it's punishment. Which you would think works against the religion itself. Punishment means saying extra prayers. (oh come on, that's a little funny) Regardless, in no way are you taught about learning something from mistakes besides avoiding being punished. It's kind of like that statement in Office Space:

"That's my only real motivation is not to be hassled, that and the fear of losing my job. But you know, Bob, that will only make someone work just hard enough not to get fired."

This is not meant to be offensive to the Catholic religion or any religion for that matter. As previously stated, I am a firm believer in karma. But not in the sense of punishment. More in the sense of knowing myself and my actions so well that I recognize when something is happening to me that I've done to someone else before and realizing what it's like. It doesn't necessarily have to be a bad deed either.

I recall this odd instance when I was in my early 20's. I had my car broken into and the thieves tossed my purse into a ditch. A biker spotted it, picked it up and returned it to me. I have it written down somewhere, but I can't remember his name. Anyways, about 2 weeks later, I was walking on a trail through the woods and found a wallet. It belonged to someone with a name nearly identical to the person who returned my purse. It was one letter off. Well, of course I called the person and promptly brought it back.

I should probably get to a point, but I don't really have one. I'm more curious to know if anyone has a karma story or ideas about the whole penance thing. Discussions welcome...