The idea of confessing one’s sins to a Catholic Priest may seem a bit odd to those who were not brought up in the Catholic teaching (and even to some who were), and so I am sometimes asked about why this is necessary. Why can’t I simply confess my sins to God? The short answer to the last question is, you can, and should confess your sins directly to God, and do so with complete repentance in your heart. This is ALWAYS part of the process of seeking God’s forgiveness and mercy. However, that is only part of the equation in the Catholic teaching. Before I go to much farther, I want to clarify something, the word Catholic simply means universal, the Catholic Church was not a denomination that emerged after the Protestant reformation which required defining. The Universal Church had always existed since the time of Christ, and it draws many of its traditions and teachings from those that would have been observed by Jesus and the rest of the Jewish people of that day, and well before. The confessing of one’s sins is one of those areas rooted in this, but also very much in the New Testament, and is directly rooted in the mission that Jesus Christ gave his disciples.
First, let’s talk about the ancient tradition of confessing one’s sins. The Levitical Priests of the time followed what was present in several of the Old Testament scriptures, and specifically the book of Leviticus, in Leviticus 19:20-22 a good example is provided (see below).
“With the ram of the reparation offering the priest shall make atonement before the Lord for the wrong the man has committed, so that he will be forgiven for the wrong he has committed.”
The Levitical Priest is called upon to make atonement for the sins committed, and as part of that is acting as an intercessor so that the sin will be forgiven. This is the root of that tradition in the Old Testament, and it is one that would have been followed in Jesus’ time.
Jesus, however, was a game changer on many levels, and one of them is how we can be healed of our sins. Remember, in Leviticus, the word atonement is used as the action that the Priest provides in the equation. Jesus on the other hand is able to forgive sins, and so directly heal those who are afflicted by sin. He saw this as a much higher priority than the physical healings He performed, and yet He also often paired the two together. In the narrative of the paralytic lowered down to him through the roof (Mathew 9:1-8), the first thing He says is that the man’s sins are forgiven, then and only then, does he heal him physically. Yet he also tells them in many instances to sin no more, such as the healing of the man lying ill by the pool of Bethesda, or the woman caught in the act of adultery.
John 5:14-15
“Look, you are well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse may happen to you.”
John 8:1-11
” Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, [and] from now on do not sin anymore.”[1]
Sin in that time was seen as directly linked to one’s overall condition, and this has not changed when we consider the complete person. For this reason, Jesus knew that the people would need to be able to receive forgiveness and healing on a continuing basis, and He also knew that as part of that they would need to be counseled to sin no more and instructed on how to avoid sin in the future. To accomplish this, He commissioned His Disciples to forgive sins and heal the people from the corruption that comes from it. In John’s Gospel we hear the narrative of the commissioning of the Disciples, those who were the forerunners of the Priests and Bishops of today.
John 20:21-23
“Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the holy Spirit. 23 n Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” [2]
This was the New Testament root of the practice of having one’s sins heard and forgiven through the intercession of a Priest. Jesus had a purpose with every word that He spoke, and this is certainly no exception. He knew that the people would need to continue to be guided and held accountable for their conduct, because He knew only too well human nature, and that His creations would require this to be sound in spirit and body. This is the essence of the healing that takes place in the confessional, the priest is not there to simply listen to us confess the wrongs we have done, he is not there to judge, he is there to allow Jesus to work through him, just as he worked through His disciples to provide forgiveness through administering Absolution in the name of Jesus Christ, and healing to the people. To council the people to sin no more and to provide insight into how to avoid the same mistakes in the future, all of this is part of that healing and forgiveness that takes place through interactions with the Priest. When we are forgiven, by definition we are truly penitent of our actions because we know the wrong, we committed, and should be determined to try to avoid sin in the future, just as our Lord warned so that we would not continue to be afflicted by sin. This does not usually happen on its own but comes from intervention to help change behaviors. This comes about through the continued work of His disciples who have the commission from Him to pursue this ministry.
The ministry of helping others through the forgiveness of sins is received through the imposition of hands and the reception of the Holy Spirit that occurs at ordination and is completely centric to the ordained priesthood. This is not to be confused with the common priesthood which calls all of us to spread Gods word but is the unique extension of those specifically chosen by Jesus Christ to go forth with the mission of forgiving the sins of the people. He chose the Twelve specifically for this, not all men, and this specific mission through joining those chosen through apostolic succession continues to this day.
2 Corinthians 5:18-21
18 And all this is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and given us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 namely, God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 So we are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake He made Him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him. [3]