Hmm unfortunately when Catholic priests are abusing children and others within the church cover it up and don't report it you can understand why people don't trust them.

What about helping to solve a current crime in an open investigation?

Peter Howard STOP THE COVER UPS AND CO-OPERATE WITH THE POLICE

Have you watched stuff on formed? They have quite a few good things there

I just did my first of the 5 first saturday devotion to marys immaculate heart. Everyone should. To those who faithfully follow Our Lady’s requests for the Five First Saturdays, she has made a wonderful promise which she, as Mediatrix of All Graces, will certainly fulfill: “I promise to assist at the hour of death with the graces necessary for salvation.” This means that our Blessed Mother will be present at the hour of death with the actual grace of final perseverance, (which after the gift/grace of Faith), is the most important grace.

The safest indeed

Lillian Manuel Yes it is. The Adoration Chapel is as well.

No, it isn't it's purpose is to be the proper place where the sacrament of confession is conferred, a safe space is a stupid term that means nothing in terms of the church since it is only or earthly cares.

I was just about to comment this hahahaah

Matt M Will you get real ? Are you loving your neighbor as yourself? Are you judging not lest yourself be judged?

Interesting ruling -- I'll be sharing quotes from this for sure! caselaw.findlaw.com/us-9th-circuit/1073304.html

Father, hopefully the tape will one day be destroyed. As you have said, the tape should not exist.

That's so sad. And it's foolish, too -- very misguided.

Yes. It is required to have private confession, but face-to-face is often preferred.

@@clearjr1 I do remember having a long conversation with him and his voiced seemed frustrated before he sent me out...

A number of things may have happened. The best guess was that the priest did not feel that you had committed any sins and so therefore could not absolve you of anything. This is likely the case if you say you had a long conversation with him, as the sacrament is not a time for spiritual direction or guidance but rather a time to state, in specific terms, the sins we have committed. That being said, it is the responsibility of the priest to make that clear rather than just sending someone out without absolution. The other thought that comes to mind, and again, it should have been made clear to you, is that the priest did not feel you had appropriate contrition. This is far less likely. Unless you stated clearly something like, "I did these things but I don't feel bad about them and I have no interest in changing my life," most priests would recognize your coming to confession and stating a sin as contrition enough. Sorry to hear that you had an unfortunate experience in the confessional. God can obviously forgive sins outside of the sacrament, but the sacrament is the ordinary means of forgiveness. One question. You asked if you received forgiveness "that day." Does that mean that you go often, even daily? Or were you just referencing that experience?

@@BreakingInTheHabit Just that experience... I go to confession twice a year as it is recommended whenever we hold Christian Life Programs. I also go whenever I feel the need to, especially during Lent and Advent. You are correct about the sacrament not being centered as a time for counselling as one priest told me. Not the first time I had a bad experience. My worst was when the priest bluntly sent me out coz he said I wasn't making a good confession. I was having a rough time in my life back then and it happened on my birthday. I was so angry and disappointed, I didn't go to confession for more than a year after that. I felt God didn't forgive me. Until someone told me to go do it again. The next priest said sorry on behalf of the last one. He said be forgiving to priests too as they're also humans. The experience, he said, shouldn't stop me from going to confession... Thanks for the insights Brother Casey and @john riordan 😇

It's ancient. I just read a relatively "recent" quote from 1813 that refers to it. It's by the Protestant mayor of New York City, DeWitt Clinton, speaking for the Court of General Sessions, ruling in favor of protecting the seal for Roman Catholics. So it was well known by then.

Conceived and drafted by man, not God. None of this is scriptural from the new testament applied to us in the Church age. Jesus is very clear who is our master, who we pray to and seek forgiveness from.

For forgetting sins in confession, it us usually said at the beginning of your confession "I am sorry for the sins I remember and those that I don't remember" even the sins you don't remember would b forgiven. Priests sin because they are human beings too. Every single human being sins. And the part that says "blessed the woman with no kids" in the Bible should I think b referring to the destruction of the second temple. Check everything before and after that line to understand it more. I hope I have been of some help.

Order of Franciscan Missionaries and Order of Franciscan Missionaries Capuchin.

monocu Time for writing ✍️ them down for the priest to read maybe or hearing aids?

Don’t think you can write it down but have to say it. Secondly, you should tell the priest that everyone can hear him and maybe tell the bishop as well if it becomes a big problem.

For starters, they should continue to confess it. There is no reason to stay away from the sacrament. As pope Francis says, "God never tires of forgiving us, it is us who tires of asking for forgiveness." The only way that we will ever get over sin is with God's grace, so we cannot withhold the very grace we need. On top of that, the sacrament of reconciliation is not a "fix" for sins. Going to the sacrament will not necessarily make us "better people." The sacrament should call us change our lives and seek additional help. Maybe, if you can't stop one sin, it might be an indication that you need to seek professional help, find a support group, or make a major change in your life (removing temptations.)

Thank you brother Cacy, I kinda want to know wether it is good to stick to one priest for confession or and we go to a New priest Everytime. For people confessing the same sin again and again to the same priest would get embarrassing or the priest may get board to hear the same sin again and again from the same person. 😅

God bless you Brother Cassey

@Hammer_of_heretics Matthew 6 BSB (BibleHub): 14For if you forgive men their trespasses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will yourFather forgive yours. And... John 20:23 D-R (BibleHub): Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.

Good question. The priest may not reference anything that he has heard in the confessional, even with the penitent, if the penitent does not first initiate it. As a good practical practice and so not to assume anything, I would ask the penitent to repeat what they had shared so that we were aware of what we were talking about. (This is partially because, as most priests have told me, it is very common to forget people's sins afterwards.)

@@BreakingInTheHabit Hi Brother Casey. I admire the Roman Catholic sacrament of confession. Growing up in a mixed marriage family, I knew that Roman Catholics had confession. My grandfather used to go every Saturday evening before the Vigil Mass. When he was 70 years old, I would use to say "what has he got to confess at 70?" - Now I understand it is something that helps people to unburden their minds and hearts. Did you know we also have confession in the Anglican tradition? Except there are no confession boxes or rooms. We go to the vicar in the vestry, sit down and talk if we want to and he provides absolution. I wanted to know, does the Catholic Church lay down a certain number times of the year a Catholic must go to confession? Thank you.

@John King -- at least once a year, or whenever in a state of mortal sin. We also have to receive Communion at least once a year, after Confession, and preferably during Eastertide.

KA Fleury Well, technically, yes and no. The Easter duty says that one must receive communion once a year during Easter. The requirement, from the fourth Lateran Council, mentions going to confession as a prerequisite and connection to communion, but no one is ever required to go to confession unless in the case of mortal sin. Presumably, many people do not need to go to confession once a year (although the sacrament is always fruitful, even in the case of genial sins.)

if you repent yes (according to the bible so I assume also in confession) but to repent you have to genuinely feel guilt and genuinely want to do and be better I make this distinction only because many believe it's an "I'm sorry" and you're all good, but it's about truly feeling remorse and possibly more importantly changing

Paul Vincent Sanoy Yes!

Thank you so much for referencing St. John Nepomucene. I teach CCD grade 5 and I am preparing this Sunday's lesson on the Sacrament of Reconciliation. I was looking for examples of priests who were willing to die rather than break the seal of confession. Reading your post gave me a great example and one I was not aware. Thank you again!

@@metanoia1122 Very much welcome, I'm glad I could help. God Bless.

Well, excommunication should really be thought about differently. It's not so much something that is imposed on someone else (as if someone were actively "kicking out" another), but rather it is a formal acknowledgment of what the person has brought upon themselves. When a priest breaks the seal, no one "excommunicates" him, but rather, by his actions, he has literally put himself "outside of communion" with the Church.

I believe the answer is no because sacraments cannot be virtual and it might be hard to keep the seal of confession

Its an international church thing yes, but local secular laws can still place limitations on this, always check your local laws regularly for possible change.

@@maddiekits thanks for the reply from a comment that was made a year ago. although i do still find the information useful. thanks

Should just take that all the way to verse 17 as thats the best (17)

If the things you claimed to have happened really did happen, then what was done to you was injustice. God will take up your case with the people responsible when he judges. So if you have been wronged, do not worry, for God shall be the hand of justice. If that priest did such a thing, clearly he has done wrong and has set a bad example. He has profaned what is Divine and treated it with contempt. His punishment, if he hasn't repented, shall be severe. But don't let the bad example of this priest chase you away from that which is truly holy. Satan has used this to his advantage to prevent you from going to confession. When you do not receive the sacraments, you are the one on the losing side and only Satan wins. There are many good priests who are true to their vocation and office. And I know a priest who kept the seal of confession to the point that he was jailed for it. Find such a one who is true to his vocation and office and please go to confession. May the healing take place. Do not let Satan win. How can you have peace? Forgive. There is no other way. As Jesus asked us to do, forgive and pray for those who have wronged us. Then we become true children of God. I'm sorry for what happened to you. Please do not give up hope on the true priests that are out there. Go back to confession and the Church. May God bless you :)

The few instances of violating the seal of confession that I am aware of seem to involve a priest's gossip. Do your best to forgive the priest (and bishop) who perpetrated this injustice on you and pray for them. They were both absolutely wrong.

Forgive us our trespasses *as we forgive those who trespass against us*. Remember the servant who was forgiven a debt of 10,000 years' wages, but then he demanded repayment of a piddling debt from a fellow servant. Remember that the Master called the servant back in anger and punished him harshly for refusing to forgive a debt, when he himself had been forgiven a much greater debt.Withholding forgiveness causes anguish in the soul.

It's actually against canon law for the rector or provincial to hear the confession of seminarians or subordinates. The example that I gave in the video of the business woman is not against canon law, but as a pastor, I would never hear the confession of one of my employees for this very reason.

No. The penitent may reveal their confessions themselves, but a priest may never break the seal for any reason.

I don't know of any specific cases of these issues, they are just hypothetical solutions.

There was a case of a Lutheran minister in the 1950s who required a woman to make a confession before he would admit her to communion, and she confessed to a crime. The pastor then testified against her and she was convicted, but her conviction was overturned because the higher court cited Justice Field: “suits cannot be maintained which would require a disclosure of the confidences of the confessional, or those between husband and wife.”  [Field ruled in Totten v. United States, 92 U.S. 105, 107, 23 L.Ed. 605 (1875). The case of the woman who was convicted based on her pastor's testimony was Mullen v. United States, 263 F.2d 275, 277 (D.C.Cir.1958). ]

KA Fleury very interesting!

12345 678910 Well just reflect and pray on that and then when they have Penance Service in a week or two try again. I have been refused absolution before and then went again later on and was absolved after reflection, prayer and action. God Bless and Keep You!

If you eliminate your prejudice you can give yourself the absolution you need.

I know of zero priests that would break the seal of the confessional.

@@BreakingInTheHabit then you know many priests who are potentially complicit in the activities of their penitants, hence furthering the distance between the Catholic Church and any sane human faced with the reality of child abuse. I've yet to see you address this issue and I look forward to seeing you take it on in the near future.

​@@Aima952 I don't really see how its different than a private citizen now reporting a crime as well, which is legal in the majority of cases, the first amendment cover the withholding of speech in most cases similar to the act of speech.

There's really nothing complicated about the question: the priest goes and pours out the altar wine. The priest is not allowed to act on what he hears in a way that will negatively affect the penitent, but that doesn't mean he cannot act at all. He would not be allowed to, say, check the security footage of the Church or call the police, but he can most certainly throw away the wine.

@@BreakingInTheHabit Thanks :)

If they have, it's been kept a very tight secret. There doesn't seem to be any credible sources to say they've even tried. It requires a court warrant to plant electronic surveillance, and almost no judge would risk approving that. The public outcry that would result from wiretapping a confessional would be so extreme that everyone involved would be risking their jobs. For something like that to happen, they'd all have to be 100% certain that it was the only way to get the evidence they need to take down a really infamous criminal.

No. The penitent may share anything that he or she wants but cannot give permission to the priest to do so. The priest may not break the seal for any reason.

@@BreakingInTheHabit That would be another key difference between the priest and the other professionals. In law the client is always free to waive the attorney client privilege because the privilege is said to belong to him. Here, the privilege does not belong to either the two actors but to God so the priest does not have the power to waive the privilege and the penitent does not have the power to enable him to do so.

That is the point of the second half of the video. As of now, a priest is exempt from the requirement to be a mandatory reporter in the case of confession, but some states have tried to remove this.

@@BreakingInTheHabit why wouldn't you want to protect children and remove pedophiles from the church? It shouldn't have to be mandatory for priests to report this... This is exactly why people leave the church because their trust and often their very selves have been betrayed.

Yes

Yes, very often. He is a man just like the rest of us and is in need of forgiveness of sins.

@@BreakingInTheHabit Where does he go to confession? A priest, bishop, a cardinal?

www.catholic.com/qa/who-hears-the-popes-confession Pope Francis generally goes to confession in a public way, often to different people (almost always to a priest).

@@BreakingInTheHabit Thank you Bro. Casey. By the way, a great video to prepare us for Lent.

I don't think you need to go into detail but convey the overall picture of your wrongdoings and seek chnsgr in your heart by Jesus to not continue on your path.

How so?

@@kimfleury For the very reasons Br Casey cited - if you knew a child was being sexually abused, for example, and it was within your power to stop it.

David L Rattigan This is where the priest would urge the penitent who is confessing to do right by the victim and turn themselves in. If they know about things outside of the confessional then they can turn the perpetrator in.

@@geraldineekhator5428 What if a priest gains knowledge during confession , that the person intends to commit murder and then that person does murder someone , how can a priest live with themselves , knowing they could have gone to the police and stopped it ? That's the issue I see with confession !

@@alandoughty6320 Well I’m sorry that you have that issue. satan likes to cause guilt in people and so that is how he gets to people so that they don’t forgive themselves. There have been people to confess that they were going to kill someone and they never did. A priest guides the person in confession to the best of their ability and if that person does the crime it’s on them. Just like if someone commits suicide. Do you blame yourself because they did that even though you think that you could have done something? You could not have changed their mind. In the end it is the person who is responsible for the sin. Not the priest.

They can. The Church recognizes that forgiveness and guidance is not limited to the sacrament of confession. Rather, this sacrament is the *ordinary* means of reconciliation with God, not the *only* . That said, we must recognize that we are always a part of the Church. We are not meant to walk alone. Having a guide is not just "helpful," one could argue that it is necessary in all cases. Similarly, we must remember that our sins have no only hurt us but also removed us from the full life of the Church. Going, then, to a priest (a representative of the Church) serves as a means of being welcomed back into that communion and reconciling with the institution (in a symbolic sense.)

Main answer to me is Jesus set it up this way. There are a lot of good reasons, but this is the main one.

@@BreakingInTheHabit This is good and helpful to know. Thanks!

Jesus expressly gave the Apostles the power to forgive sins. This action of Our Lord implies some sort of disclosure to the Apostle so that he knows what he is forgiving. As Deacon Casey said, it is the ordinary way to receive forgiveness. So why not be sure and go to confession during this Lent?

I don't think a priest can be 100% sure if a person is forgiven unless God chooses to reveal that to him. Some people have been blessed with the ability to "read souls", but in ordinary cases a priest decides to give absolution when he believes a person is contrite/repentant of his sins. If the person confessing is being insincere (e.g. faking his way through confession thinking his sins are automatically forgiven anyways) then God would know that and the person wouldn't be forgiven until he honestly asks for forgiveness. God is the only one who truly knows our hearts, so there's no need to worry about your forgiveness if you take confession seriously.

How?

There can definitely be a feeling of shame confessing one's sins to another. But I guess I have to ask you: would you rather continue to stay in shame away from God, or do you want to do what's necessary to fix the relationship? I know exactly what you're feeling as I have felt very ashamed before, but I can tell you that the feeling you have after confession, after receiving the grace of forgiveness, makes it entirely worth it.

@@BreakingInTheHabit I know that what you say is true and for so long I have had a yearning to go and make a confession. Please pray for me to receive the courage I need to go. I must off load this burden so I can begin to heal from the guilt that follows me daily. Thank you.

@@williamgauthier9294 Will do.

"Be ashamed when you sin, not when you repent" -St. John Chrysostom

@William Gauthier -- I pray that you will be guided to the priest who has the particular gifts that will assist you in your situation. Trusting in God the Father to work all for your good, I hand this prayer to Him in Jesus' Name.

Not sure what you mean by absolving future sins. The sacrament only absolves previously committed sins, not the future. And the second part is mostly right: absolution can only be received if someone is truly repentant. I would caution you against equating God's justice with the justice of society, however, as these things are often very different. Our society simply wants punishment, not justice, and so turning oneself in to authorities is not always the best option.

@@BreakingInTheHabit @Breaking In The Habit Thanks for responding 🙂 my apologies, I mistook you saying that someone could confess to future sins with those sins being forgiven. I lived in the US till I was 12 and my small church did a homeless ministry. People would come and confess to our pastor and he'd encourage them to go to the police. In most instances they did, and surprisingly, the police cared so little that unless it happend in the last 24 hours they didn't want to know. I think it helped that my pastor would go with them as the police knew our pastor would mentor them through that sin. But there were cases where people went away to prison but at least they could still see a pastor and they could share the gospel with the inmates, and when they came out, they were ready to be a benefiting part of society. I can understand the hesitancy to face the law, but I just really struggle to see how people can face justice and rehabilitation without the authority and powers of the state. My biggest heart break I suppose has been sins that have happened within church of which many of my friends have had abuses or heard of them, and they say, 'how is it that there's no consequence for these church leaders actions?

Super Lav But we still have to confess with our lips. It is easy to confess in your mind to Jesus, going to confession and repeating the same sin over and over helps you stop.

We are supposed to follow God's law first and foremost, not the laws of humanity. When human law conflicts with divine law, we have an obligation to stand against it. While I understand the sentiment you're getting at, you truly have no idea how many people "use the seal of confession to cleanse themselves of temporary guilt only to reoffend." This is an assumption, I would caution you against it. Further, I would not be so quick to diminish the power of God's grace received. While it may appear to some that there has been no conversion and that it is a loophole to sin, if there is any contrition at all the grace of God has an effect on someone. Finally, I would recommend that you rethink what the sacrament is about in the first place. It is not a place where one achieves perfect reconciliation in one conversation. The effects of sin still remain, and a true confession will lead us to begin to make remedy for our sins. The sacrament is not the end of our dealing with sin, but rather the beginning. It is returning to receive the strength we need to go forward. And many people continue to stumble along the way. Sinning again after going to confession does not mean that someone was not contrite or that they weren't serious about making restitution.

@thedoctorplusone -- I can attest to what Brother Casey has written here. To his testimony, I add one more bit of wisdom, found in a meme, but with so much truth: "Whenever I start thinking of how other people can improve themselves, I think about how hard it is for me to fix myself, and then I keep my mouth shut."

@@BreakingInTheHabit Brother, I do understand the sacrament and appreciate your stance. I appreciate, and for Lent especially, will reflect on your final paragraph. While what you've written may seem obvious, it is very difficult for many to accept that a Confessor who has heard a confession of sin regarding the abuse of Children (or similar), would do anything other than inform authorities (given the vulnerable position the Church finds itself in globally at the moment). God's blessings on you this Lent Brother Casey!

god loves you too

There's a difference between public penance and public confession. I don't see a problem with public penance, but public confession has some drawbacks.

@@BreakingInTheHabit I would say that public confession has a LOT of problems, not least among them simply the time it would take and the likelihood that many sins would not be forgiven if they were held up to public exposure.

One of my friends was a member of a Protestant church that practiced public confession. It only lasted a few years before it blew up because it increased animosities in the congregation. It was very sad because a lot of people were hurt.

Hi Andre. I understand the issue facing the Australian Church as it is one facing the American Church as well. Many individual states are trying to put priests on trial or force them to break the seal. If I may, I would like to respectfully disagree with you. The issue in this crisis is not that priests have kept secret things heard in confession; the issue is that they have known about or perpetuated acts that they were completely free to share but didn't. Bishops have a responsibility to investigate their priests, and often, know more than enough about them. There are far more effective ways to understand the wrongful actions of a priest than confession. Removing the seal of confession would not have prevented these issues when bishops and priests willfully withhold information in normal circumstances. Rather, the sacrament of confession is a place outside of normal space and time, a liminal state with God. It cannot be a place for punishment or reporting, but must always be a free place to speak to God without restriction. If there is ever a fear of punishment, confession will lose what makes it such an important sacrament.

Breaking In The Habit I have been following the developments in USA quite closely, and those in Ireland and around the world. I do understand your stance and that of the church. As someone hurt by the church and who has left, but returned in the last 7 years. I pray that in extreme cases things will change. Both the Priest and the victims must be protected.

Andre Poidomani I am so glad that you came back and so very sorry 😐 that you were hurt by the church. 🤗Hug it better if I could. 🤗

That’s a very modern perspective, one that strays from the practice of Christians for more than a millennium.

Exactly.

@@damienparoski2033. That's not what that means. If you present the gospel and the person accepts Jesus their sins are forgiven if they reject Jesus they will die in their sins and their sins are not forgiven. Mark 12:1-12

From the Catechism: 1441 *Only God forgives sins.* Since he is the Son of God, Jesus says of himself, "The Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins" and exercises this divine power: "Your sins are forgiven." Further, by virtue of his divine authority he gives this power to men to exercise in his name.

@@BreakingInTheHabit. Not scriptural. Mark 12:1-12 Jesus never quoted tradition or catachism. He only quoted scripture. U can't commingle scripture with catachism and or religion.

@@ewaldradavich7307 ah the famed sola scriptura argument. I was wondering when you'd show up!

That's one way to look at it. But it's also an incredibly comforting experience to know that you're not returning to God or turning away from your sins alone. There's someone there to help you pray and give you guidance on how to get your life back on track. The seal of the confession takes the humiliation out of it because the other person cannot speak a work of what they've heard.

Turning to Christ in my confession is comforting enough for me. Can somebody provide a better comfort than He?

Jane Farrer Matthew 3: 6 (and Mk 1: 5): “. . . they were baptized by him [John the Baptist] in the river Jordan, confessing their sins.” So he who prepared the way for Christ, listened to confessions of sin. Matthew 9: 6-8: Jesus tells us that He was given authority on earth to forgive sins (a power reserved to God alone) and proves it with miraculous healings and then Scripture notes this same authority was given to “men” (plural). Is this merely a figure of speech? No, John's Gospel makes it clear Jesus intended to give this sacrament to men: John 20: 21-23: In his very first Resurrection appearance our Lord gives this awesome power to his Apostles with the words: “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” How could they forgive sins if they were not confessed? They could not. This authority comes through the gift of the Holy Spirit which precedes it. Does this remind of you what He told Peter (Mt. 16: 19) and then the other apostles (Mt. 18:18)? “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” This includes sins. Jesus allowed for us to receive spiritual consolation and counsel in this beautiful sacrament of the Church. We see this awesome power in other sacraments as well. What today we call the sacrament of the sick. Again, we look to Scripture: James 5: 14-17: "Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; 15 and the prayer of faith will save the sick man, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to one another …” Notice the command does not say confess your sins straight to God. Notice also who they are to go to the “elders” (bishops or priests-see the Acts 14: 23; 15: 2 for example). John 1: 9: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” The word confess has an oral/verbal or proclamation meaning. St. Paul describes his ministry as one of reconciliation of sinners: 2 Corinthians 5: 18: “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation . . .” Conclusion: The Bible clearly shows that while God alone can forgive sins and Christ is the one Mediator between God and man, and that God uses men to bring about his reconciliation. Clearly he gave that authority to his Apostles and they in turn "layed hands" (1 Timothy 4: 14 and 5:22 show laying on of hands as an ordination to God's service) on other good men (this is the sacrament of holy orders) and hence ordained men are used by God to give assurance of forgiveness of sins (absolution) to one who is sincerely repentant, has a firm purpose of amendment (confession of sins must not be a mere ritual but rather part of a process of conversion of heart and mind) and confesses their sins (honestly). This requires great humility but then as Scripture says, "Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, who do his commands; seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the wrath of the Lord" (Zephaniah 2: 3 ); or from the New Testament Book of James: If you are humbling yourself, this biblical information will help you to open your heart and your faith

Jane Farrer Maybe that is what you need, humiliation to stop sinning, it's easy to confess your sins to Jesus, but are you truly confessing?

Jesus instituted the Sacrament of Reconciliation when He gave the apostles authority of the remission of sins.

I can see that working for some people, but also many people need guidance on the way out of sin and hearing a direct confirmation that their sin will be forgiven, you can ask the god of course but ignoring signs is a lot easier than ignoring a person devoted to god telling you directly

you just defined confession lol

The church doesn't say that it can, priests are just helpers in this matter and provide human assistance to improve your life. The final decision is still God's.

I think the issue with your comments lies in your first question: "why is the confession to the priest and not to God?" If you believe that God is not present in this situation, or more importantly, that the confession is not one directed towards God, then it won't make sense, and I understand your anger. But the fact of the matter is that the sacrament of confession is precisely a confession to God. As I said in this video, the priest should be seen as a guide to confessing to God, rather than the one forgiving sins (we believe that only God forgives sins). One can and should go directly to God with their contrition, but when the sin prevents us from seeing clearly or when it removes us from the community, it is necessary to have someone to help us to do this, but it is still a conversation between us and God. The priest has no right to share what he has heard because the words were not directed towards him. He is the guide, the one eavesdropping on the conversation to help the penitent speak to God.

Michael Biggs Jesus also heals the sick, but you probably have no problems going to see a doctor. God uses men to accomplish His deeds - the Bible is filled with stories about them.