St.Francis of Assisi Parish |
Why do Catholics Confess their sins to a
priest?
"Why can't I just confess my sins directly to
God?"
The first and best answer to the question
is: because Jesus said so in St. John's Gospel, Jesus
appeared to His Apostles after His Resurrection and said
to them: "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me,
even so I send you." And when he had said this, he
breathed on them, and said to them, "Recieve the Holy
Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are
forgiven; if you retain the sins of any they are
retained."
-John 20:21-23
Christ clearly states in
this passage that He wishes to act through the Apostles
in order to forgive men their sins. Since the Church is
founded on Peter and the Apostles, the powers given to
them are communicated to their successors.
Why
might Jesus have chosed to effect the foriveness of sins
in this way?
One reason is so we never have to
worry about whether our sins are forgiven. God has given
us a simple fomula-Confession-for getting back into His
graces when we have failed. It's not based on subjective
feeling, but a sacred rite. Within Confession, our
contrition doesn't even have to be perfect, although
perfect contrition is the ideal.
"Perfect
contrition" is being sorry for sin because it offended
God. "Imperfect contrition" is sorrow for sin due to a
natural fear of punishment. Imperfect contrition is all
that is necessary within the Sacrament of Confession.
God does the rest. Wow, what a gift.
A way to
confess and do penance without all the worry of "Have I
done it right?" Other reasons include the sacrament
graces we recieve in Confession and the advice of the
priest, both of which assist us in avoiding sin and
growing in virtue.
Jesus is Wisdom Itself. He is
the Word of God. He never did anything that as
unnecessary- sacramental confession included. He knows
us far better than we know ourselves and he knows just
what we need.
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of Assisi Parish 2013-2024. All rights reserved.
398
Vernon Ave., P.O. Box 186 South Barre, MA 01074
fax
(978) 355-0042 • Office phone
(978) 355-2228 |
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