For
sins committed after baptism, a different sacrament is needed.
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Repent,
and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ
for the forgiveness of your sins, and you shall receive the
gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38). We receive forgiveness
of sins from the merits of the sacrifice of Jesus on Calvary.
In the Church, Christ left in two means of receiving forgiveness
– one is Baptism. So Peter wrote, “Baptism which
is prefigured, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from
the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through
the resurrection of Jesus Christ…” (1 Pet 3:21).
For sins committed after baptism, a different sacrament is
needed.
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It has been called penance, confession and reconciliation, each
word emphasizing one of its aspects. |
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Thus
we find confessing to a priest was accepted as part of the original
deposit of faith handed down from the apostles. |
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| During his life, Christ forgave sins, as in the case of the woman caught in adultery (Jn 8:1-11) and the woman who anointed his feet (Lk 7:48). He tells the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins (Mt 8:6). He exercised this power in his human capacity as the Messiah or Son of Man. That is why the Gospel writer himself explains that ‘God’ had given such authority to men (Mt 9:6). He gave his power to the apostles and it was a power that could be passed on to their successors. God had sent Jesus to forgive sins, but after his resurrection Jesus told the apostles, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any they are retained.’ (Jn 20:21-23)
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“As the Father has sent me, even so I send you” (Jn 20:21). Christ told his apostles to follow his example. Just as the apostles were to carry Christ’s message to the whole world, so they were to carry his forgiveness too.
This power to forgive sins comes from God. In 2 Cor. 5:18 St. Paul tells, “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. As the powers necessary to maintain the church as a living spiritual society had to be passed down from generation to generation so is the power to forgive sins is passed from generation to generation. For Christ instituted the power to sacramentally forgive sins in his stead we would expect the apostle’s successors – the Bishops – to act as though such power was legitimately and habitually exercised. Thus we find confessing to a priest was accepted as part of the original deposit of faith handed down from the apostles.
Great writers such as Origen, Cyprian and Aphraates are clear in saying confession is to be made to a priest and the confession was seen as the main part of the sacrament. Cyprian writes that the forgiveness of sins can take place only through the priests. Pope Leo I says absolution can be obtained only through the prayers of the priest. First when a catholic confesses his sins to a priest, he seeks forgiveness of sins, the way Christ intended. Second by confessing to a priest the Catholic learns a lesson in humility. Third, the Catholic receives sacramental graces. Fourth, the catholic is assured that his sins are forgiven. Lastly he can also obtain sound advice on avoiding sin in the future.
During his lifetime Christ send out his disciple to do his work. Just before his ascension, he gave the apostles special authority, commissioning them to make God’s forgiveness present to all people and the Catholic Church continues this duty and will continue, so that the whole Christians world will receive peace and joy in heart and mind and thus enjoy God’s forgiving love in their life time.
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Receive
the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven;
if you retain the sins of any they are retained. |
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