sion without delay, but never without a diligent Examination of Conscience, a true Contrition, a firm Resolution of Amendment, and a sincere declaration of your sins; that the Sacrament of Penance, so replete with grace, may not become for you a source of eternal perdition.
§ 6. Indulgences.
83. By what means does the Church assist us in the discharge of the temporal punishment due to our sins?
By the grant of Indulgences.
84. What is an ' Indulgence '?
An Indulgence is a remission, granted out of the Sacrament of Penance, of that temporal punishment which, even after the sin is forgiven, we have yet to undergo, either here or in Purgatory.
85. How does the Church remit the punishment due to our sins?
By making to the Divine Justice compensation for us from the inexhaustible treasure of the merits of Christ and His Saints.
Indulgences, therefore, derive their value and efficacy from the spiritual treasure of the Church, which consists of the superabundant merits and satisfactions of Christ and the Saints. This treasure is to be considered as the common property of the faithful, committed to the administration of the Church; since, by virtue of the Communion of Saints by which we are united as members of one body, the abundance of some supplies the want of others.
'In this present time, let your abundance supply their want, that their abundance also may supply your want, that there may be an equality' (2 Cor. viii. 14).
86. What is generally required to gain an Indulgence?
It is required, 1. That we should be in the state of grace, and have already obtained, by true repentance, forgiveness of those sins the temporal punishment of which is to be remitted by the Indulgence; and 2. That we should exactly perform the good works prescribed for the gaining of the Indulgence.
