No one wishes for their friends to fall off a great cliff and be crushed to death. If their loved ones suffer the horrific ordeal of a shipwreck, they long for them to reach safe harbor, to be saved, and to enjoy a happy life. Therefore, for our friends, what we want is the greatest good, not the greatest harm.

Now, whoever dies in mortal sin suffers the greatest evil, which is hell, where they endure immense unhappiness and great and eternal punishments, including being forever separated from God. Whereas, whoever dies having had their mortal sins forgiven is saved. That is, either directly or after purgatory, they go to heaven, which is our highest good. In heaven, they enjoy immense and eternal joy and happiness.

At the same time, we know that the human heart is weak and fragile, inclined to evil, and prone to sin. Moreover, temptations to evil are frequent and sometimes very strong, making it easy to fall into mortal sin. In fact, it is evident to everyone that many mortal sins are committed on this planet. It is a dark stain that is widespread throughout the world. It is therefore quite possible that all of us have friends who have unforgiven mortal sins. If they die in this state, they will be condemned forever. It is therefore very important that their mortal sins be forgiven before their death, whether sudden or not.

Since mortal sin is forgiven in the holy sacrament of confession, and since God is always willing to forgive sins in this blessed sacrament, however grave they may have been, one of the greatest good things we can do for our friends is to help them go to confession.

Paragraph 1452 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church states that perfect contrition forgives mortal sins if it includes the firm resolution to have recourse to sacramental confession as soon as possible. For perfect contrition to exist, therefore, one needs not only sorrow for one’s sins and the purpose—at least implicit—of not sinning again, but also a relationship with the sacrament of confession, in which we confess those mortal sins that we have not yet been able to confess.

In turn, number 1497 of that same Catechism states: “Individual and integral confession of grave sins followed by absolution is the only ordinary means of reconciliation with God and with the Church.”

Thus, it is clear that whoever wants to close the mouth of hell and open the gates of heaven for his friends who are living in mortal sin, wants them to confess their mortal sins.

To succeed, then, within this mortal life, in making the great, immense, enormous leap from the highest evil, hell, which was almost within reach, to position oneself next to the already open gates of the highest good, heaven, is one of the greatest wonders of this existence, and is a source of great joy, as well as great peace.

Note also that one should not delay responding to the invitation to confess mortal sins, and for several reasons. One, so that one can move from the current condition of being an enemy of God to being a friend of God! Another, because if sudden death occurs while one is in mortal sin, one will be condemned. It would be foolhardy not to take advantage of the opportunity to have one’s sins forgiven, always putting it off until later, since that later may never come. Furthermore, if instead of cleansing the soul, one adds sins, accumulating and piling up garbage, it may become more difficult to break with sin. For it is easier to break a single thread than a rope of many threads.

Furthermore, confession gives us special grace, important help, in order to avoid falling into the sins we have confessed. Whereas, unconfessed sins increase our inclination to sin again, to defile ourselves further.

It is also possible for a person not to be in mortal sin. In such a case, it is a sign of consideration, a thoughtful gesture, towards the Lord, especially during Advent or Lent, when we prepare ourselves respectively for Christmas and Easter, and also to better receive Holy Communion, to cleanse the house of our hearts and adorn them through the sacrament of confession of sins, which makes them more pure and beautiful, so that the Most Holy, Christ in the Eucharist, may feel more at home within them.

Lovers understand this very well, because to see each other, they prepare themselves, taking care of their appearance, their perfume, dressing well, and the details that make life more pleasant for the other person, and this for a very simple reason: because they love each other!