Confession

Jesus - meaning Savior - our Lord, had all His ministry on earth for the redemption of mankind, sinners. He had been at the same time Physician of the body as well as the soul. The sick of the palsy received from Him first remission of sins, followed by healing of his infirmity.

More than the resurrection of the body from the grave, he esteems the regeneration of the soul from mortal sin.

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The prime objective of the Church, His Mystical Body is to continue the redemptive work. Remission of sin should be there, so long as sin is in the world, and our Lord appointed Appointed Ambassadors of Reconciliation in the Church as St. Paul says in 2 Cor.5:18-21

Our Lord gave authority to his Apostles to forgive sins. (1)To Peter Math. 16:18,19 (2)To all apostles 18:18 (3) Again to all Apostles Jn.20: 21-23

The Apostles received the authority from the Lord and by their laying on of hands. They imparted the same authority, to their successors and through them to the Priests.

Absolution by the priest implies the confession by the penitent. "Many confessed and shew their deeds before the Apostles." (Acts 19:18) St. John exhorts us "I/we confess our..." (Jn.1:9)

Confession is the Sacrament by which sins committed after Baptism are forgiven through the absolution of the priest. It is a moral virtue that prompts the sinner to detest his sin and incites him to offer satisfaction for them and to amen his life.

Through mortal sin, the soul is deprived of its supernatural life. As sin is an offense against God, only God can forgive sins. But the priest as God's representative can forgive sins because God has given him the power to do so.

Effects of this Sacrament.

  • The restoration or the increase in the sanctifying Grace.

  • The forgiveness of sin.

  • Help to avoid sin in the future.

When we receive the sacrament worthily, the merits of our Lord's redemption are applied to us. it also allows us to receive special advice from our confessor.

To receive the sacrament worthily, we should

  1. EXAMINE OUR CONSCIENCE. That is - we should sincerely make an effort to call to mind, all the sins we have committed since our last confession; we should do asking God's help. We shall also call to mind the commandments of God and the Church and the particular duties of our vocation. We should ask ourselves, how our approach had been regarding the above.

  2. BE SORROWFUL FOR OUR SINS. By sin, we offend and insult God. Unless we are sincerely sorry for our sins and are firmly resolved not to commit them again, we cannot reasonably expect forgiveness from God. (Is, 55:7; Joel 2:13,14; Lu.15:17-24) this kind of sorrow is termed as 'contrition' (sincere sorrow for having offended God and hatred for the sins committed with a firm purpose of sinning no more.) Ps.51:12,19

  3. Have the firm resolution of not sinning again.

  4. Confess sins before the priest.

  5. Perform the penance enjoined.

Confession is the telling of our sins to a priest of the Church fo obtaining forgiveness. We must confess our sins because our Lord obliges us to do so. He spoke to the Apostles (and through them to their successors).

"Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven; whose sins you shall retain, they are retained." (John 20). These words of our Lord obliges us to confess our sins because the priest cannot know whether to forgive or retain unless we tell them to him.

The priest acts as the judge, and as the physician of the soul, At the confessional. He should know the details as he is acting as the representative of Christ. The shame need not prevent us from confessing because he is bound by the SEAL OF the sacrament of penance; never to reveal anything that has been confessed to him.

The priest in the confessional will advise us, help us, clear our doubts, guide our future conduct, and forgive us in the Name of Christ. From the highest dignitary, everyone should confess their sins to a priest. Our confession must be humble, sincere, and entire.

The priest gives us a penance after hearing the confession, which must be performed immediately or afterward as the case may be. We have to make some atonement for our sins and make some satisfaction. (see Joel 2:12)

  • Contrition is repentance in heart and will.

  • Confession is repentance in the lips.

  • Satisfaction is repentance in life.

We must seek divine forgiveness in the Sacrament of Confession, for that is the direct means of pardon. One may say, apart from the Sacrament of Confession, I prefer forgiveness directly from Jehova.