Dear Matt,

Over the past 20 years, this is a common question we have received from the web site. It's even in our searchable knowledge base. There are a lot of quick answers there, so give it a try.

I searched the knowledge base for you and found these web postings that may help:

• Can I become a Catholic at age 16 even if my dad and step mom don't like the Church?
• Is it normal at age 16, to feel this good about a new faith I've been reading about?
  

My reply to the second posting also has links to other web postings. Make sure you read them too.

You said:
I want to go to Confession as well but they won't let me go.

• If I were to die tomorrow without confessing my mortal sins, would I go to Hell?

I'm really worried about this.

For sin to be mortal it has to meet three criteria:

1. it must be grave matter
   
2. there must be sufficient knowledge
   (meaning, if you don't know something is a mortal sin, it is not a mortal sin), and
   
3. it must be done with full consent of the will.
   

If one of these is missing it is not a mortal sin.

Based on what you have said, your will has no interest in sinning with full consent but to join the Church so you can receive apostolic absolution from a priest. For that reason, I wouldn't worry about this. Rather focus on reading the postings I suggested; my team has some excellent insights.

You are at an age where you can make your own faith decisions but you are also a minor and therefore need to abide by your parents.

Make an appointment with a Catholic pastor, known for his faithfulness to the Church. Both of you can workout a good game plan to enter the Church in the near future.

If you have any future questions, search our database. If you can't find an answer in the database, just ask us.

Mike