"God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."  (formula of absolution)

Reconciliation is the sacrament by which we receive God's healing forgiveness for sins committed after baptism.  The rite is called reconciliation because it reconciles us not only with God but with the church community.  Both these aspects of reconciliation are important.  It is called confession because we make a twofold confession:  we confess our sins and we confess our faith in God's mercy.  It is also called penance because it consecrates our personal and ecclesial steps of conversion and through it we receive penance, satisfaction for God's mercy.  

As members of Christ's Body, everything we do affects the whole Body. Sin wounds and weakens the Body of Christ; the healing we receive in penance restores health and strength to the Church, as well as to ourselves.  Since every sin is an offense against God, which disrupts our friendship with him, the ultimate purpose of penance is that we should love God deeply and commit ourselves completely to him.  Therefore, the sinner who by the grace of a merciful God embraces the way of penance comes back to the Father who "first loved us" (1 John 4:19), to Christ who gave himself up for us, and to the Holy Spirit who has been poured out on us abundantly.

The follower of Christ who has sinned but who has been moved by the Holy Spirit to come to the sacrament of penance should above all be converted to God with their whole heart.  This inner conversion of heart embraces sorrow for sin and the intent to lead a new life.  When a person turns aside or away from God's love, the harm is to the sinner.  Venial sin strains one's relationship with God.  Mortal sin ruptures the relationship.  Sin is a tragic reality.  But the sacrament of penance is a joyful reunion.  Therefore, we should receive the sacrament often:  Holy Mother Church recommends once a month, but at minimum at Christmas and Easter.