why do people have to go to confession?

Question

I think confession is useless because the religious leader is no better than we are. We are confessing to another human. Isn't that what a therapist is paid for? Or is this just another method to collect money for the church? How can a priest relate to a family or a married couple? How can the church say that gay/lesbian weddings are against God? Do they know God on a personal level? Maybe, they Golf or play bingo with him after Wednesday Mass. Who know? I do know that I REFUSE to par-take in that practice. Unfortunately, I was raised Catholic. Say three hail marys. One Lord's Prayer. And my sins will be absolved after I place the envelope in the basket before me. Amen!

Answer 1

Yeah...like Jon M said....it's all in the Bible:

Jesus Christ Granted the Apostles His Authority to Forgive Sins:

John 20:21 - before He grants them the authority to forgive sins, Jesus says to the apostles, "as the Father sent me, so I send you." As Christ was sent by the Father to forgive sins, so Christ sends the apostles and their successors forgive sins.

John 20:22 - the Lord "breathes" on the apostles, and then gives them the power to forgive and retain sins. The only other moment in Scripture where God breathes on man is in Gen. 2:7, when the Lord "breathes" divine life into man. When this happens, a significant transformation takes place.

John 20:23 - Jesus says, "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven. If you retain the sins of any, they are retained." In order for the apostles to exercise this gift of forgiving sins, the penitents must orally confess their sins to them because the apostles are not mind readers. The text makes this very clear.

Matt. 9:8 - this verse shows that God has given the authority to forgive sins to "men." Hence, those Protestants who acknowledge that the apostles had the authority to forgive sins (which this verse demonstrates) must prove that this gift ended with the apostles. Otherwise, the apostles' successors still possess this gift. Where in Scripture is the gift of authority to forgive sins taken away from the apostles or their successors?

Matt. 9:6; Mark 2:10 - Christ forgave sins as a man (not God) to convince us that the "Son of man" has authority to forgive sins on earth.

Luke 5:24 - Luke also points out that Jesus' authority to forgive sins is as a man, not God. The Gospel writers record this to convince us that God has given this authority to men. This authority has been transferred from Christ to the apostles and their successors.

Matt. 18:18 - the apostles are given authority to bind and loose. The authority to bind and loose includes administering and removing the temporal penalties due to sin. The Jews understood this since the birth of the Church.

John 20:22-23; Matt. 18:18 - the power to remit/retain sin is also the power to remit/retain punishment due to sin. If Christ's ministers can forgive the eternal penalty of sin, they can certainly remit the temporal penalty of sin (which is called an "indulgence").

2 Cor. 2:10 - Paul forgives in the presence of Christ (some translations refer to the presences of Christ as "in persona Christi"). Some say that this may also be a reference to sins.

2 Cor. 5:18 - the ministry of reconciliation was given to the ambassadors of the Church. This ministry of reconciliation refers to the sacrament of reconciliation, also called the sacrament of confession or penance.

James 5:15-16 - in verse 15 we see that sins are forgiven by the priests in the sacrament of the sick. This is another example of man's authority to forgive sins on earth. Then in verse 16, James says “Therefore, confess our sins to one another,” in reference to the men referred to in verse 15, the priests of the Church.

1 Tim. 2:5 - Christ is the only mediator, but He was free to decide how His mediation would be applied to us. The Lord chose to use priests of God to carry out His work of forgiveness.

Lev. 5:4-6; 19:21-22 - even under the Old Covenant, God used priests to forgive and atone for the sins of others.

The Necessity and Practice of Orally Confessing Sins:

James 5:16 - James clearly teaches us that we must “confess our sins to one another,” not just privately to God. James 5:16 must be read in the context of James 5:14-15, which is referring to the healing power (both physical and spiritual) of the priests of the Church. Hence, when James says “therefore” in verse 16, he must be referring to the men he was writing about in verses 14 and 15 – these men are the ordained priests of the Church, to whom we must confess our sins.

Acts 19:18 - many came to orally confess sins and divulge their sinful practices. Oral confession was the practice of the early Church just as it is today.

Matt. 3:6; Mark 1:5 - again, this shows people confessing their sins before others as an historical practice (here to John the Baptist).

1 Tim. 6:12 - this verse also refers to the historical practice of confessing both faith and sins in the presence of many witnesses.

1 John 1:9 - if we confess are sins, God is faithful to us and forgives us and cleanse us. But we must confess our sins to one another.

Num. 5:7 - this shows the historical practice of publicly confessing sins, and making public restitution.

2 Sam. 12:14 - even though the sin is forgiven, there is punishment due for the forgiven sin. David is forgiven but his child was still taken (the consequence of his sin).

Neh. 9:2-3 - the Israelites stood before the assembly and confessed sins publicly and interceded for each other.

Sir. 4:26 - God tells us not to be ashamed to confess our sins, and not to try to stop the current of a river. Anyone who has experienced the sacrament of reconciliation understands the import of this verse.

Baruch 1:14 - again, this shows that the people made confession in the house of the Lord, before the assembly.

1 John 5:16-17; Luke 12:47-48 - there is a distinction between mortal and venial sins. This has been the teaching of the Catholic Church for 2,000 years, but, today, most Protestants no longer agree that there is such a distinction. Mortal sins lead to death and must be absolved in the sacrament of reconciliation. Venial sins do not have to be confessed to a priest, but the pious Catholic practice is to do so in order to advance in our journey to holiness.

Matt. 5:19 - Jesus teaches that breaking the least of commandments is venial sin (the person is still saved but is least in the kingdom), versus mortal sin (the person is not saved).

Answer 2

Upon which planet where you "raised Catholic"? Wasn't this one. There is no collection taken at the sacrament of reconciliation (confession) -- not before, or during, or after.

I've been told that the real reason others object to confessing to a priest is not so much that it doesn't line up with their interpretation of the Bible, but that they really don't want anyone else to know what they've been doing. It may or may not be true, but in some cases I'm sure it comes pretty close.

Answer 3

It is meant to be a symbolic and humbling experience.

You reflect on your choices and actions and confess them out loud to the priest, thereby admitting that you are imperfect and asking God for forgiveness.

Oh, there is no charge.

I had many lively and fun discussions with my teachers at Catholic schools about this.

I still have fun discussing it with a friend who is a priest.

These days, most churches offer reconciliation Masses where you privately confess your sins. A lot of churches only have confession once a month because people don't do it anymore.

A devout Catholic could argue that is is because we are prideful.

Answer 4

These beliefs are entanglements of the Catholic religion. I am a Christian, but not a Catholic. I believe confession is something you do to God and also to anyone you personally wronged in order to get forgiveness. An important part of that confession would have to be genuine repentance for whatever was done. God knows what's in our hearts and if we just say we're sorry without truly being sorry, He knows and will not forgive.
As for the gay/lesbian thing, I think you know that's wrong and are not willing to submit to it. Regardless of what the priest, or preacher tells you about that, you can go directly to God's Word and see what He has to say. I suggest you just get alone with God and the Bible and explore the truth for yourself. I hope you search for the Truth sincerely. If you decide to do so, God promises to reward you with His Truth. This is something you can do on your own, alone with God. God bless you with peace.

Answer 5

We go to confession with a priest because he will not judge you, he will not blab to anyone about your sins and he is a link to the graces of God, a cleansed soul.

You must not have been a very good Catholic to not understand that.

You Never have to pay the priest or Church after confession, one must wonder if you where ever Catholic at all to say such things.

Answer 6

That's your problem, you were raised catholic. Confession is strictly a catholic thing. I go to the altar, and ask God himself for forgiveness, in the name of Jesus Christ.

Gay / lesbian weddings? That one is easy. The Word of God has already condemned homosexuality, the same as murder, or adultery, or any other sin.

Saying three hail Marys, or any type of an act of contrition is a waste of time. You cannot pay for your sin. Jesus already paid the price for your sins, my sins, and the sins of the world. Every one ever commited, and every one that will ever be commited. So you see, your sin was 'absolved' before you ever commited it. You need only ask God to forgive you, in the name of His Son. It's that easy. The hard part is repenting, or turning away from sin, and living a holy life, as Christ instructed us to do.

Catholicism is leading millions to hell. This is no surprise, as it is written that false doctrine will deceive even the elect. We need only to study the Word of God, and we will know the truth. 2 Tim. 2:15, "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." This studying will expose false doctrine, which is a stumbling block to so many.

Answer 7

I take it this is more of a rhetorical question for you than anything else. And I agree with your sentiments.

You are now [or have been] in your spiritual quest as you begin to inquire deeper into the Church's doctrines and traditions. There is a whole litany of questions to be asked yet.

And soon enough, once you acquire enough knowledge from the answers that you'll find, it will empower you to make a cognitive decision to "leave childish things" behind and walk out the front door of the church for the final time... I know I did.

Good luck and Godspeed in your quest.

Peace be with you.

Answer 8

I'm not catholic so I don't understand the concept.
I grew up baptist and we were taught that all you had to do was ask God for forgiveness. No middle man involved.

I do think that genuine priests, like any other clergymen, can be good for people to talk to if their religion is a big part of their life.

BUT to each his own. I don't think it's for any of us to judge how a person chooses to relate to God if it's not hurting us.
It may be just as strange to a devout catholic that you don't go to confession.

Answer 9

I don't get it either. I was raised catholic, and this was one of a long list of questions that was on my list when I began to deconvert.

It really doesn't make sense... if god is supposed to be omnipotent and omniscient, surely he can know and forgive your sins (which were already supposed to be covered by Jesus, no?) then why do you have to talk to a priest who acts in modus divinum? Also, since Jesus' death was supposed to be the ultimate payment, how come you have to do a penance? And how does a few measly decades of the rosary make up for doing some really serious things... why not just right the situation?

Answer 10

Indeed, sin consciousness is only ended when law is ended.
Christ is the end of the law, is the end of sin consciousness.
Hebrews 9 begins revealing law can't purge anyone of sin,
for law is the source of sin & strength of sin's death sting,
as noted in Rom 4:15; 5:13; 1Cor 15:56; Heb 9; Jam 1:15.

Mend the faulty law or End the deadly law?
Christ is the end of the law: Romans 10:4

The GRACE of our Lord Jesus Christ with you all. Amen.

Answer 11

if you were raised catholic, you obviously weren't listening or paying attention half the time.

1. Christ gave the apostles power to forgive sins(whatever sins you forgive shall be forgiven, whatever sins you retain shall be retained)

2. you don't pay for confession

3. what? marriage is between a man and a women, the bible isn't to allowing of gay sex.

4. no, your sins are absolved if you're sorry. saying "three hail mary's and the Lord's prayer shows that you're sorry)