Why Confess to a Priest?

While discussing the Sacrament of Penance, I will use a few different terms. Reconciliation, the penitent will reconcile with the Church and God, this reconciliation cannot be separated. “To reconcile means to bring two entities together, so that they are in agreement.” Penance, the penance performed restores the relationship with the Church and God. The word comes from the Latin paenitentia meaning remorse for wrongdoing. Confession is probably the most common term used and it refers to the act of confessing one's sins to the priest. By acknowledging our sins, we take responsibility for them.

Sin is an evil human act, hence an offense not only to God, but the whole Church, as the Church is wounded by the sin. All wounds need to be healed or cared for. The wound caused by sin requires a special kind of treatment or healing. We get this treatment through the sacraments, one in particular, the sacrament of penance or healing.

“When the sacraments heal us, they restore us to life and make it possible to for us to worship God more perfectly.” The sacrament of penance restores health to our souls by the immediate forgiveness of sins. Penance is the punishment one must undertake to make amend for their sins. The penitent, the one wishing to get healed, comes forward to Christ through the confessor in order to change from sin. Why then is this necessary when the priest offers the Penitential rite at Mass? The Penitential rite offered at Mass and the sacraments of penance are very different. The rite during mass forgives venial sins, very important sins as they may lead to mortal sins if not addressed, with no absolution, while reconciliation forgives mortal sins and grants absolution.

What is a sin?” A sin is an act or inaction that is opposed to the goodness of God.” Earlier I mentioned mortal sin, what makes a sin a mortal sin? A mortal sin is often called a grave sin, as we find in John 5:16, “all wrongdoing is a sin but not all sin is mortal.” There are three conditions for a sin to be moral, it must involve grave matter, (the Ten Commandments) it must be freely consented to, and done with full knowledge of what one is doing. If any one of the three is lacking, then it is called a venial sin.

All sin hurts the Church. How can my sins hurt the Church or anyone else? Sin to the individual destroys the happiness and human flourishing that God intends for every person. Some sins constitute a direct attack on one’s neighbor, or relationships between communities. By choosing to commit a mortal sin, one chooses to turn away from God and a relationship with Him, giving up eternal life, and resulting in eternal punishment in hell. While talking about punishment, you might ask why the penitent has penance or punishment after receiving absolution. To answer this we must first understand that the separation from God as a result of sin is the most severe punishment. Furthermore, let’s dissect the result of the sin, it has two consequences. First, as mentioned before, it ends the friendship with God; secondly it becomes attached in some way to one lesser than God. The penance given repairs the friendship with God and others harmed by the sin.

Are all sins forgivable through confession? The answer is no. Any sin against the Holy Spirit is blasphemy-contempt for God through actions, words or thoughts. As Jesus told us,”Whoever speaks a word against the Son of God will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. (Matt:12)”There are two reasons why this is unforgivable; one is that the one that sins against the Holy Spirit has hardened his or her heart against God, refusing to acknowledge their sins. Secondly, the sin denies God's power by maintaining that God could never forgive a particular sin.

Is Confession a new covenant thing or has it always been around? “There are many examples of communal and personal expiation for sin in the Old Testament, and the theme of seeking forgiveness for sin from God is prevalent.” Of all the Old Testament sin offerings possible, Yom Kippur was the annual day of atonement for sins prescribed in Leviticus, the high priest offered animal sacrifices in order to expiate his sins and those of the people. As Jesus began his public ministry, He preached the necessity for penance.

Has the rite of Penance changed over time? Yes it has, the external rite has changed through the centuries. Christians in the earlier times would seek reconciliation through their local priest or bishop, usually communally. Christians who confessed their sins would do so privately, but their penance was public usually lasting for years. Totally private confession, where the confession and the penance were done in private didn’t take place until the 6^th - 8^th centuries.

Why is it necessary to confess to a priest rather than to God? The priest represents the entire Church that is harmed by sin. Scripturally speaking, in the upper room on the eve of Jesus’ resurrection, He told the occupants to receive the Holy Spirit and to forgive sins. We are not saying that priests are God, as God alone can forgive sins. Christ has delegated to the apostles the authority to absolve sins. Therefore, to absolve sins, one has to hear the sin, which means, yes, one has to verbally confess the sin.

Is there anything one needs to do before seeking penance? One must review their actions and thoughts truthfully and humbly in accord with Gods law. This is done through the examination of conscience.

What is general absolution and can I do that instead? General absolution refers to granting absolution to a group of people before hearing their confessions. This is only to be used in emergency situations. The norm for the celebration of penance is individual confession and individual absolution.” All who the care of souls are entrusted must provide suitable and realistic opportunities for confession for those under their care who wish to receive the sacrament on days and times to suit them”.

No Sin, no religion. The Loss of sense of sin correlates to the loss of sense of God. If we say “We are without sin” we deceive ourselves. If we acknowledge our sins, He is faithful and will forgive us (1 John: 1).