Why Confession?

 

Q. Why do we have confession? If God knows everything, why can’t we just tell him that we’re sorry when we do something wrong?

A. Confession may be one of the most difficult parts of our faith for some. But for others, Confession is something they deeply look forward to. Your question is a good one. Let me offer some thoughts.

First of all, it’s very true that “God knows everything.” We call that omniscience. So, yes, He knows everything you’ve done and He knows whether you are sorry for that or not. But there is a big difference between God “knowing” what you did and His act of forgiveness.

For example, if you sinned against a friend with whom you were very close and then you felt sorry for that it’s possible that your friend would realize, just by knowing you, that you were truly sorry. But that doesn’t mean that you can just presume on your friends goodness and forgiveness. The best thing to do, in this situation, is to actually sit down and tell your friend you are sorry and to have your friend tell you that you are forgiven. This very human exchange brings about reconciliation.

So it is with God. God is all merciful and wants to forgive us all our sins. But for true reconciliation to take place God wants you to actually say those words and then to hear the words, spoken by the priest, that you are forgiven. So Confessions is not only about God forgiving us, it is also about reconciliation with God on a human level.

What’s important to understand is that God offers us forgiveness in His way. He forgives us through a human being. Who is that human being? It’s the Father’s Son who became one of us. Jesus is the one who offers the forgiveness of God and Jesus is both fully God and human. But how does Jesus do that now that He has ascended back into Heaven? Well, before He ascended He gave His divine power of forgiveness to His first priests, the apostles. They, in turn, passed that power onto others who passed it on to others down through the ages all the way to our present age. Priests, despite the fact that they are imperfect themselves, have the spiritual power of Jesus to actually speak His words of forgiveness to others. Therefore, when a priest says. “I absolve you” we must hear Jesus Himself, as the human face of God, saying to us those same words.

Why did God choose to use priests to dispense His forgiveness? Honestly, we really don’t have a perfect answer to that question. Sure there have been wonderful writings and reflections and teachings on this subject throughout the history of the Church. But, in the end, we will only fully understand this mystery of how God gives us His forgiveness when we are in Heaven. For now, we must simply follow what Jesus taught and receive His forgiveness in the way we know He offers it.

And on a psychological level, I, as a priest, have seen so many people benefit from actually hearing those words spoken from my mouth. So many times I have seen people come into the confessional scared and ashamed and walk our freed and at peace. So it really works. Make sure you give it a try soon!

(Taken from Catholic Q & A)

Click on the Question for Answers to previous five queries

What is an Indulgence? 

Losing Faith in God? 

Do things go bad if we forget God? 

How can we become Saints? 

The reason for me to go into Purgotory

What is an Indulgence?

Q. I was excited to watch the announcement of the new pope… I even got to watch it live. When it was over, I heard Pope Francis gave an indulgence even to people who watched on TV. I’ve heard of an indulgence, but I’m not really sure what that is. Can you explain it?

A. Indulgences are one of those gifts within our Church that few understand. I think, in the old days, they were practiced and spoken about far more often. But, perhaps because of confusion and misuse, they slowly drifted out of our regular church conversations. In recent years it is my experience that indulgences are being spoken of more often.

So, what is an indulgence? The official definition of an indulgence is this: “An indulgence is the remission in the eyes of God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose culpable element has already been taken away.” Hmmm, so what exactly does that mean?

I think the best way to understand this definition is to look at sin and its effects upon us. When we sin we need forgiveness. Forgiveness is offered to us freely through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. If our sin is grave then we deserve eternal punishment. Confession eliminates this eternal punishment. Confession also forgives the guilt of our smaller sins. However, just because we have been forgiven does not mean that our attachment to that sin is eliminated also. For example, if someone confesses, with true sorrow, that they have been using foul language on a daily basis, then God will forgive them completely for all the times in the past that they have used foul language. However, this forgiveness does not necessarily mean that they have completely and totally broken the habit of sin. There is a good chance that, upon leaving the confessional, if they trip and fall down, they will be immediately tempted to use foul language. So what does this illustrate? It illustrates that we need not only forgiveness but also the grace to completely and totally detach ourselves from the habit of sin and the unhealthy attachment we have to sin. This is hard! It takes true conversion. But this is the reason for an indulgence.

The Church, specifically the pope, has the authority on earth to unlock the storehouse of grace in Heaven and let the faithful know that if they perform certain acts of piety, faith and devotion, they can be assured of the fact that God will pour down His graces upon them to help them enter more deeply into a complete detachment to all sin. So, for example, if someone spends at least a half an hour in prayer before the Blessed Sacrament they can receive a plenary indulgence as long as they also go to Confession and Communion within seven days before or after and offer prayers for the intention of the pope. When this is done, they receive a plenary (or full) indulgence. This means that every grace they need is available to them to completely detach from sin and to live in a perfect state of grace. Therefore, if they went to confession, received the indulgence and fully opened their heart to this grace through their conversion and love then, if they were to die at that moment, they would go straight to Heaven.

I think the most important thing to understand is that indulgences are simply another way of receiving the outpouring of grace that our God wishes to bestow upon us! This grace is given specifically for the purpose of detaching from our tendency to sin. And, it is for certain, that every grace we are given from God is necessary and should be sought out and received with much anticipation and gratitude. Hope that helps!

(Taken from Catholic Q & A)

Click on the Question for Answers to previous five queries

Losing Faith in God? 

Do things go bad if we forget God? 

How can we become Saints? 

The reason for me to go into Purgotory

Is it OK to hang Rosary over Car Mirrors?