Dear Maria:

OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive disorder) is a personality disorder that can be very disabling. The religious form of OCD is called "scrupulosity."

OCD is treatable. You need to talk to your doctor about it. There are medications that can help with this problem. Cognitive therapy can also be very useful. Often cognitive therapy can be enough without taking medication. Even if medication is prescribed, the therapy is very useful.

From a faith point-of-view, you need to trust God that he does not lie. God tells us in 1 John 1:9, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

Read that verse carefully. It says that when we confess our sins, God will forgive us and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Either that is true or God is a liar.

When you confess the same instance of sin over and over, you are calling God a liar because you do not believe His promise. When you confess a sin, it is forgiven, IT IS GONE, IT NO LONGER EXISTS.

I would also advise that you stop going to confession daily. Doing that only feeds your OCD. Confess no more often than weekly and do not bring the same instance of sin back to confession. If it was confessed last week, then it no longer exist this week. Confess only the new sins since last confession.

There is a story told about a saint. I do not remember her name. This future saint was having apparitions of Jesus and pestering her pastor about it. The pastor did not know whether or not these apparitions were genuine, so he gave her a test. He said, "The next time you see Jesus asked him what my last mortal sin was."

A couple of weeks went by until she returned to talk to her pastor. When she came into his office the pastor asked, "Well, did you ask Jesus what my last mortal sin was?"

She said, "Yes I did."

The pastor asked, "What did Jesus tell you about my last mortal sin?"

The woman answered, "Jesus told me that he did not remember what your last mortal sin was."

At that moment the pastor knew that this woman was truly seeing and talking to Jesus. He knew this because he knew that Jesus does not remember our sins once they are confessed.

So the question is, if God does not remember your sins once you confess them, then why do you remember them and think they have to be confessed again and again and again?

Maria, trust in God, believe what he says, believe that he does not lie to you, know that he keeps his promises.

If you believe that God keeps his promises and he does not lie then believe him when he says, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

If you remember this, and discipline yourself to remember and to believe God's promise, then perhaps you will have taken a step toward healing from your affliction.

We will be praying for you.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary