Must Confession be Catholic?

Goatee

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I'll have to take your word for it, not being Catholic. I've only confessed to Episcopalian priests. It was mostly positive as an experience. "All can, some should, none must" is what they tend to say. I was at a stage of my spiritual growth where it seemed appropriate, and I had lived apart from the Church for a while. But now days I feel a little more confident in my faith.

I think the most moving spiritual experience I had, in a religious rite, occurred years ago at a Pedilavium (foot washing) the Episcopal cathedral had. I wish more churches did that. That was alot more profound than any confession I have done. We took turns washing a stranger's feet, then they washed our feet. And all the while the choir sang Ubi Caritas. Folks at our Lutheran church won't do that because they are so prudish in their attitudes and afraid of any hint of sensuality, whereas I guess the Episcopalians were more willing to throw themselves into things.

Catholic church does this too
 
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Phil 1:21

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Wrong, as Jesus sent out the Apostles to forgive thosevthst sinned.
And as soon as you can cite scripture where Jesus said...
...sins can only be forgiven by a priest following confession to a priest...
...then you'll have a point. Until such time, not so much.
 
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Goatee

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Four problems with Catholic confession:
  1. The priests divulge the contents of people's confessions during the homilies and on the radio; sometimes telling stories of individual people or mentioning their sins, and sometimes providing statistics of the percentages of various kinds of sins.
  2. The liberal priests (there are many where I'm from) don't know what sin is; don't believe confession is necessary; try to convince you such and such is not a sin; mock you for trying to follow the protocol.
  3. Standing in line waiting with sick people coughing and sneezing is bad for the health.
  4. You can hear what people in the confessional are saying.

What u say is from someone who does not understand Catholicism.

I would accept leprosy while standing in line waiting to be absolved of my sins!

I close my ears to others sins! I concentrate on my own weaknesses not others!
 
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Goatee

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And as soon as you can cite scripture where Jesus said...
...then you'll have a point. Until such time, not so much.

The Forgiveness of Sins | Catholic Answers

John 20:20-24
20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
 
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Phil 1:21

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The Forgiveness of Sins | Catholic Answers

John 20:20-24
20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
Still doesn't say...
...sins can only be forgiven by a priest following confession to a priest...
Got anything else?
 
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Goatee

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Still doesn't say...Got anything else?

Lol. The modern day priest is a representative of the Apostles. You don't want to believe the scripture I have quoted. That is your decision!
 
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Lol. The modern day priest is a representative of the Apostles. You don't want to believe the scripture I have quoted. That is your decision!

True but chronologically Christ gave those commands before His atonement. He also instructed them to "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons". I've yet to witness someone raised from the dead, maybe someday.
 
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Phil 1:21

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Lol. The modern day priest is a representative of the Apostles. You don't want to believe the scripture I have quoted. That is your decision!
Oh, I have no problem with the scripture you posted. Is the bold, italic, and underlining of the word only in my below quote not emphasized enough?
...sins can only be forgiven by a priest following confession to a priest...
 
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eleos1954

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As a Reformed believer I've always admired the Catholic practice of confession. I think that it ends up having some theological pitfalls and my Catholic brothers are welcome to correct me if I'm misunderstanding them. But to me, the pitfalls are:
  1. A notion of penance which appears to be a form of re-payment for our sins.
  2. The insistence that an ordained priest must hear confession in order for a person to receive forgiveness (extenuating circumstances aside).
Reformed types, and by extension most Protestants, have rejected these theological pitfalls, but why have we rejected the practice of confession altogether? The idea of fixed hours wherein parishioners may come to the pastor or elders of the church in order to confess their sins seems to me to be a wonderful help against the corruptions of the flesh. Yet this is not advertised, encouraged, or even practiced among reformed believers and protestants alike.

Why not? Wouldn't we benefit from it?


Hebrews 4

Jesus the Great High Priest

14Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone to heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us live our lives consistent with our confession of faith.l 15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses. Instead, we have one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet he never sinned. 16So let us keep on coming boldly to the throne of grace, so that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Romans 10

... 8 “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); 9because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
 
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Tree of Life

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Four problems with Catholic confession:
  1. The priests divulge the contents of people's confessions during the homilies and on the radio; sometimes telling stories of individual people or mentioning their sins, and sometimes providing statistics of the percentages of various kinds of sins.
  2. The liberal priests (there are many where I'm from) don't know what sin is; don't believe confession is necessary; try to convince you such and such is not a sin; mock you for trying to follow the protocol.
  3. Standing in line waiting with sick people coughing and sneezing is bad for the health.
  4. You can hear what people in the confessional are saying.

These don't appear to be problems with confession as such - but problems with confession done poorly or out of order with the catechism.
 
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PeaceB

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Is the bold, italic, and underlining of the word only in my below quote not emphasized enough?
Another Straw Man.

The Catholic Church does not teach what you wrote. Baptism forgives sins. The Penitential Rite at Mass forgives sins, reception of the Eucharist forgives sins, and a personal act of contrition that arises from a love of God forgives sins. Confession is the only ordinary means for Catholics to receive absolution of mortal sins, and even then exceptions would apply where confession would be impossible. God is not bound by the Sacraments.

The Catholic Church teaches that Protestants such as yourself can be saved, so even simple 4 year old logic should be enough to tell you that the Catholic Church does not teach what you wrote.

And you were raised Catholic and should have been taught the above things. So you are being disingenuous (again).
 
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Galilee63

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So a person is not Catholic in faith yet Christian or non Christian and wishes to repent to our Lord Jesus in remorse and sorrow and have Jesus clean all sins off their souls now and prior to departure to Him and in order for satan and his evil spirits to not drag their souls grabbing them to hell.

Firstly always make The Sign of The Cross in reverence to Jesus God The Most High and Holy Spirit.

3 Our Fathers, 3 Hail Marys, 3 Glory Be's - physically and spiritually you have entered Gods Heavenly Holy Divine Sacred Heart through His Sign of The Cross and these Holy Prayers knowing Jesus is listening and hearing your heart and soul and blocking satan from intervening.

I ask Jesus and Holy Spirit to illuminate in Holy Discernment all of my sins weekly and God does this every time prior to Holy Confession before going into the Holy Confessional to repent sins to Jesus through His Priests on a Saturday or Sunday. Oh the relief after Holy Confession! Nothing can compare with it in my heart soul life.
Next, know and trust our Lord Jesus is always hearing you and awaiting hearts souls to repent and is Present when you address Him.
I, "Full name given" immerse my heart and soul in Thy Ocean of Mercy, Holy Sacred Wounds and Precious Holy Blood dear Lord Jesus and pray for Thee to cover my heart soul mind and body with Thy Precious Holy Sacred Blood and clean my soul of my sins and lead me to Holy Confession and Holy Reconciliation in Thee, now and for eternity, Amen" Thank you dear Lord Jesus and Holy Spirit.

Then

"Oh my God I am very sorry that I have sinned against You and with Your help I will not sin again".

Jesus knows our hearts whether they are genuinely sorry remorseful or not. And all this goes towards Jesus wiping/cleaning our sins away.

I always include Most Holy Mother Mary in prayers and asking for my sins to be illuminated in Holy Spirits Holy Discernment because whilst Jesus is there and Present, Holy Mother Mary is always my Holy Divine Loving Intercessory when Jesus is extremely busy and all prayers are heard and answered immediately through my Holy Mother - my real Mother. It was Holy Mother Mary Whom led me to Jesus receiving Jesus into my heart communicating with my heart daily and Whom led God in Holy Communion and Holy Communication with my heart daily. And returned to the Catholic Faith 7 years ago full time receiving our Lord in His Holy Blessed Sacraments then my whole life changed indescribably for the better for my heart and soul and receiving our Lords Holy Callings full time in His Holy Blessings Gifts and Graces IF from my heart not just mind sharing in His Bitter Passion His Sorrows and Sufferings.
Dear Lord Jesus and Holy Spirit I wish to confess these sins from my heart in remorse and deep sorrow. List the sins to Jesus focussing on His Cross and Sorrows and Sufferings.


Jesus said

"Repent and believe in The Good News" and to
His Disciples/His Priests for all mankind to repent to Him/Jesus through His Disciples and Priests now and for all time:

"Mark 1:14

and He was there for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and the angels ministered to Him. 14After the arrest of John, Jesus went into Galilee and proclaimed the gospel of God. 15“The time is fulfilled,” He said, “and the kingdom of God is near. Repent and believe in the gospel!”…

and Luke 24

Jesus Unveils the Scriptures

44Jesus said to them, “These are the words I spoke to you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about Me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms.” 45Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.

46And He told them, “This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47and in His name repentance and forgiveness of sins will be proclaimed to all nations, beginning in Jerusalem. 48You are witnesses of these things.

49And behold, I am sending the promise of My Father upon you. But remain in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

and John 20:23

22When He had said this, He breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld.” 24Now Thomas called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came.…

Therefore, forgiveness of sins are to be done by Jesus Holy Spirit God our Heavenly Father in Jesus Christ our Merciful Saviour through His Priests of whom have been appointed each Century (and we as Catholics were requested by our Lord Jesus to pray for them each Century to be protected against satan and his evil spirits in The Most Holy Rosary) of which was not done by many, in order for our Lord Jesus Holy Spirit God The Most High to work through them more powerfully and greatly. Another story in itself and that is why satan always attacks the Catholic Church the greatest and Gods Priests and Religious because satan knows that many souls are saved through Holy Confession, Holy Reconciliation and Holy Communion and of course Holy Baptism through His Catholic Church and through His Priests and Religious. During Jesus bitter Passion on The Cross Jesus was consoled the most He told Saint Faustina in Poland in the 1930s by His Priests and Religious strengthening Him in His Bitter Passion for many Holy reasons one being that His Holy Sacred Divine Blessed Sacraments would be received in the future through Him in His Priests and Religious continued. However Catholics each century dating back to Saints Paul and our Lords other Disciples and followers were telling people to pray for them all and this was to continue each century. Then Jesus appeared to His thousands of Nuns Saints asking people to receive his Blessed Holy Divine Sacraments of which He is Present - our Lords Holy Words here:

Catholics around the world are returning to the practice of their faith despite attacks from evil forces to discredit the Church. The attacks are meant to turn people away from the confession of their sins

Caused by satan and his evil spirits because more souls are claimed through non Holy Confession, Non Holy Communion, Non Holy Baptism, Non Holy Reconciliation in and with our Lord Jesus, Non Holy Blessed Sacraments of which Jesus is truly Present in His Holy Catholic Church with His Holy Angels and our Mos

which is the key to receiving the mercy of God. In recent revelations that have been accepted by the Church Our Lord Jesus indicated to St. Faustina that He would give mankind "the last hope of salvation."

This "last hope of salvation" is the recourse to His Feast of Mercy. Jesus first appeared to St. Faustina in 1931 and He told her that she was to prepare the world for His return. He told her that before He comes again, He would pour out His mercy. In that vision Jesus was dressed in a white garment and had two brilliant rays of light coming from His Heart, one red as blood, the other clear as water. He told her to paint an image of Him just as she had seen Him and to sign it "Jesus, I Trust In You." She was also to work on establishing a Feast of Mercy in the Church and to have the painted image venerated throughout the world. Our Lord said that this feast is to be celebrated on the first Sunday after Easter. On May 5th, 2000 the Vatican issued a decree and fulfilled the will of Christ by establishing this feast, now called "Divine Mercy Sunday".

Jesus told St. Faustina, "I desire that the Feast of Mercy be a refuge and shelter for all souls, and especially poor sinners. On that day all the divine floodgates through which graces flow are opened. The soul that will go to Confession and receive Holy Communion shall obtain the complete forgiveness of sins and punishment. Let no soul fear to draw near to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet."(Diary, 699) For example, a person, who had been a terrible sinner all their life could return to the Church and be totally pardoned by first going to Confession and then receiving Holy Communion on that Feast of Mercy. But why that day and why now, you might ask? Because Our Lord said it was to be so. The Bible says that in the last days that God would pour out His spirit and all those who ask for His mercy would receive it. We could be in those last days!

Jesus said, "Souls perish in spite of My bitter Passion. I am giving them the last hope of salvation; that is, the Feast of My Mercy..... Tell souls about this great mercy of Mine, because the awful day, the day of My justice is near." (Diary, 965) It doesn't take a genius to see the times that we are living in. We only need to look at what is happening in our world today. Repent of your sins and ask for the Lord's Mercy.

Don't ever be afraid to go to Confession. Jesus said, "When you approach the confessional, know this, that I Myself am waiting there for you. Never analyze what sort of a priest it is that I am making use of... I am only hidden by the priest, but I Myself act in your soul. Here the misery of the soul meets the God of mercy. The greater the sinner, the greater the right he has to My mercy." (1602,1725, 723)

St. Faustina was born in 1905. Through her and her diary, Jesus communicates to the world the message of His Mercy. Here are the 14 most inspiring quotes from St. Faustina's Diary.

1.
maryatthefootofthecross.jpg

“Suffering is a great grace; through suffering the soul becomes like the Savior; in suffering love becomes crystallized; the greater the suffering, the purer the love.” (#57, page 29)



2.
“O my God, how sweet it is to suffer for You, suffer in the most secret recesses of the heart, in the greatest hiddenness, to burn like a sacrifice noticed by no one, pure as crystal, with no consolation or compassion. My spirit burns in active love. I waste no time in dreaming. I take every moment singly as it comes, for this is within my power. The past does not belong to me; the future is not mine; with all my soul I try to make use of the present moment. (351, page 157)

3.
“Great love can change small things into great ones, and it is only love which lends value to our actions. And the purer our love becomes, the less there will be within us for the flames of suffering to feed upon, and the suffering will cease to be a suffering for us; it will become a delight! By the grace of God, I have received such a disposition of heart that I am never so happy as when I suffer for Jesus, whom I love with every beat of my heart.” (303, page 140)

4.
“I will not allow myself to be so absorbed in the whirlwind of work as to forget about God. I will spend all my free moments at the feet of the Master hidden in the Blessed Sacrament.” (82, page 42)

Martha_Mary.jpg



5.
“A soul does not benefit as it should from the sacrament of confession if it is not humble. Pride keeps it in darkness. The soul neither knows how, nor is it willing, to probe with precision the depths of its own misery. It puts on a mask and avoids everything that might bring it recovery.” (113, page 63)

Return_To_Me_Share_Image.jpg



6.
“O my Jesus, You have tested me so many times in this short life of mine! I have come to understand so many things, and even such that now amaze me. Oh, how good it is to abandon oneself totally to God and to give Him full freedom to act in one’s soul!” (134, page 74)

7.
“He who knows how to forgive prepares for himself many graces from God. As often as I look upon the cross, so often will I forgive with all my heart.” (390, page 175).

8.
“When I see that the burden is beyond my strength, I do not consider or analyze it or probe into it, but I run like a child to the Heart of Jesus and say only one word to Him: “You can do all things.” And then I keep silent, because I know that Jesus Himself will intervene in the matter, and as for me, instead of tormenting myself, I use that time to love Him.” (1033, page 392)

Jesus_with_children-long.jpg

9.

“O Christ, if my soul had known, all at once, what it was going to have to suffer during its lifetime, it would have died of terror at the very sight; it would not have touched its lips to the cup of bitterness. But as it has been given to drink a drop at a time, it has emptied the cup to the very bottom. O Christ, if You Yourself did not support the soul, how much could it do of itself? We are strong, but with Your strength; we are holy, but with Your holiness. And of ourselves, what are we? - less than nothing...” (1655, page 587)

10.
“Although temptations are strong, a whole wave of doubts beats against my soul, and discouragement stands by, ready to act. The Lord, however, strengthens my will, against which all attempts of the enemy are shattered as if against a rock. I see how many actual graces God grants me; these support me ceaselessly. I am very weak, and I attribute everything to the grace of God.” (1086, page 406)

11.

Mercy.JPG

“Everyone in the world can belong to this group. A member of this group ought to perform at least one act of mercy per day; at least one, but there can be many more, for such deeds can easily be carried out by anyone, even the very poorest. For there are three ways of performing an act of mercy: the merciful word, by forgiving, and by comforting; secondly, if you can offer no word, then pray-that too is mercy; and thirdly, deeds of mercy. And when the Last Day comes, we shall be judged from this, and on this basis we shall receive the eternal verdict.” (1157-1158, page 424)



12.
“‘I am love and Mercy Itself. There is no misery that could be a match for My mercy, neither will misery exhaust it, because as it is being granted – it increases. The soul that trusts in My mercy is most fortunate, because I Myself take care of it.’” (1273, page 459)

13.
“‘I remind you, My daughter, that as often as you hear the clock strike the third hour, immerse yourself completely in My mercy, adoring and glorifying it; invoke its omnipotence for the whole world, and particularly for poor sinners; for at that moment mercy was open wide for every soul. In this hour you can obtain everything for yourself and for others for the asking; it was the hour of grace for the whole world – mercy triumphed over justice.’” (1572, page 558)

14.
“Today the Lord said to me, ‘Daughter, when you go to confession, to this fountain of My mercy, the Blood and Water which came forth from My Heart always flows down upon your soul and ennobles it. Every time you go to confession, immerse yourself entirely in My mercy, with great trust, so that I may pour the bounty of My grace upon your soul. When you approach the confessional, know this, that I Myself am waiting there for you. I am only hidden by the priest, but I Myself act in your soul. Here the misery of the soul meets the God of Mercy. Tell souls that from this fount of mercy souls draw graces solely with the vessel of trust. If their trust is great, there is no limit to My generosity. The torrent of grace inundate humble souls. The proud remain always in poverty and misery, because My grace turns away from them to humble souls.” (1602, page 568)


St._Faustina__.png



What are your favorite quotes from this great saint?
Quotes taken from Divine Mercy in My Soul, the Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska, copyright 2007.





"
 
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Joe 73

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Four problems with Catholic confession:
  1. The priests divulge the contents of people's confessions during the homilies and on the radio; sometimes telling stories of individual people or mentioning their sins, and sometimes providing statistics of the percentages of various kinds of sins.
  2. The liberal priests (there are many where I'm from) don't know what sin is; don't believe confession is necessary; try to convince you such and such is not a sin; mock you for trying to follow the protocol.
  3. Standing in line waiting with sick people coughing and sneezing is bad for the health.
  4. You can hear what people in the confessional are saying.


Here's what I got.

well for #1, (at least catholic)priests have a seal of confession, which is taken very seriously, where they are not allowed to reveal what someone confessed to them under penalty of excomunication, which can only be restored by the pope(I think). IF they are revealing peoples identities with regard to their confession, that is a huge break of rules. It would be different if they were telling the story of someone else who confessed to a different priest, but shared their story publicly to them. There is an area where I guess it doesn't break the seal because they are using anonymous examples, but they should in no way give away the identity of the confessor. it would be polite if they asked the person to use their confession as an example, and I think its a risky business, unless you are sure none of the information gives away anything. But assuming its entirely anonymous, its not inherently bad. if priests use peoples stories, give people statistics.... You can use statistics and stories for good or for bad.

A lay person does not have so severe a consequence for revealing your confession to someone else.

2. This is one is interesting, you should try to find a priest you can trust, and its not good that they are doing this, but at the same time it does not affect the validity of the confession whether the preist is holy or not.

3. This is no excuse, don't go to church cause sitting next to people is bad for health then... not every church has a line where people stand close to eachother anyway.

4.This is not a deciding issue too, it depends on the church, but they try to have some privacy, and I think the seal applies to anyone sitting outside the confessional who happens to overhear. most people try not to hear anyway, and you are encouraged to speak quietly.


those issues are more individual church/people issues then catholic issues.
 
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Monk Brendan

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  • A notion of penance which appears to be a form of re-payment for our sins.
  • The insistence that an ordained priest must hear confession in order for a person to receive forgiveness (extenuating circumstances aside).
Your first assumption is untrue, therefor, your argument falls apart. Penance is a TEMPORAL rather than eternal punishment. It gives you a, "get out of jail for 90 days," card which you can use to get out of the EARTHLY punishment for your sins. As I mentioned on a different thread, the penances (earthly punishments) were severe in the years after Rome fell. Now, I agree with Luther that selling them was wrong. You have to earn them, and not buy them. And the whole idea of getting people out of Purgatory (not hell, once you land there, you're in for good) was seen as a way of making money for the Vatican, and I disagree with that, as well.

As I also mentioned in an earlier post, the priest is standing in front of you as a witness. As you are also standing in front of an Icon of Jesus, He is there, as well (beside the point of "Where two or three...) When you confess to the priest, he is there to listen, to counsel, to console, and to teach. You confess your sins. God hears, when the priest pronounces your forgiveness, God supplies the grace, not the priest. (this of course is how EASTERN CATHOLICS do it.)

In the Roman right, the confessor sits (nowadays) in front of the penitent. The idea that God is there is the same, (where two or three...) When you confess, God gives you the grace to do it right. And when the priest blesses you, and pronounces your forgiveness, God supplies the grace, and not the priest.

Are you perhaps doubting that Jesus can do this? Hey, if Jesus said it, (and he did, John 20:22) then He can do it Don't take it up with me. Talk to God, and not to your own understanding.
 
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FireDragon76

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PeaceB is correct. The Catholic church does not teach that forgiveness is only available in a confessional. Perhaps some traditionalist Catholics do give that impression, but it does not necessarily reflect the current theological reflection on the sacraments or on God's grace.

The confessional is not even a big part of modern Catholic life for most that go to church, in my estimation. Like other Christians, they seem to focus on worship and prayer. The period the Reformation happened in reflected a time of a great deal of spiritual confusion and ignorance on the part of all Christians, and today we are closer in theology and practice than in the past, even if we still have many areas where we don't exactly agree.
 
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Goatee

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Oh, I have no problem with the scripture you posted. Is the bold, italic, and underlining of the word only in my below quote not emphasized enough?

Priest does not forgive any sins though. It is Jesus that forgives. Thought you would have known that?

All Catholics know that it is not the priest that has forgiven them their sins.
 
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We are to confess our sins to one another. It doesn't have to be a priest/pastor

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

James 5:16
 
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