Sula asked:

If a sinful man decides to tell the truth does that make him good?

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Talk of sinners and sinning puts your question in a religious context. So I will respond in a similar
vein. It is never sufficient merely to repent your sins. You have to atone for them, and make
reparation for any wrong doing on your part that has caused harm to others.

Atoning for your sins requires the sincere resolution not to commit the sin again. It may also require
that you accept your just punishment, whatever that entails. Having shown genuine remorse, and
paid the appropriate penalty for what you did, you now have the opportunity to strive for goodness,
and succeed to a greater or lesser extent, depending on your efforts.

It is harder to draw limits on reparation. You owe a debt to the person or persons you have harmed,
but if the harm is great, the debt incurred is one you may never be able to repay, a fact that you, and
they, may have to live with.

My wife regularly attends Confession. As a Jew, I am given the opportunity to atone for my sins once
a year. My God is a forgiving God, just like hers. But forgiveness has to be earned. Merely owning up
to the truth is not enough.

Geoffrey Klempner