2There is no doubt that Jesus called his first disciples, and he calls us, to conversion. Yet the sacrament of conversion--the sacrament of penance--has fallen on hard times over recent decades. There is a much diminished use of the sacrament, and frequent reports of dissatisfaction with the experience of it on the part of both penitents and confessors. Reversing this trend would seem to require a changed mentality. The author of this book aims to equip us for just such a change. First, the author explores the rise of the varied forms of the sacrament of penance, locating them within their respective ecclesial and social contexts and highlighting the considerable transitions through which this sacrament has gone. Building on this, he stimulates us to look at some of the issues which remain for us to address in our time of widespread change in order to move forward into a renewed understanding and use of the sacrament. +