penance

Penance is the practice or condition of repenting for wrongdoing. The term comes from Latin poenitentia, meaning repentance, and is used in both religious and secular contexts to denote remorse, self-examination, and actions intended to repair harm or restore moral order.

In Catholic theology, Penance commonly refers to the Sacrament of Penance, also known as Reconciliation. It traditionally involves four elements: contrition (sincere remorse for sin), confession of sins to a priest, absolution (forgiveness granted by the priest on behalf of God), and penance (a set of prayers or actions prescribed to satisfy temporal consequences and to fortify the penitent). The sacrament is regarded as the means by which God grants forgiveness and reconciles the individual with the Church. Its formal development occurred in the Middle Ages, but its roots trace to early Christian practice of penitents seeking restored communion.

Among other Christian traditions, confession and repentance are observed in various ways without a universal sacramental framework. Orthodox, Anglican, and many Protestant communities emphasize personal repentance, with confession to God or to a spiritual authority and acts of spiritual discipline. The terminology and emphasis on a formal sacrament differ, but the core idea of turning away from sin and seeking reconciliation remains central.

In secular use, to do penance means to undertake voluntary acts intended to atone for an offense or to demonstrate remorse. Penance may describe self-imposed disciplines, reparative actions, or consequences endured as a form of moral or social restitution.