Confessions of Sins to a Priest

Refutation

But there is plenty of evidence in the New Testament for the existence of priests. The word "priest" is of course an English word. The Greek word for "priest" is "πρεσβύτερος" ("presbyteros"). The word "presbyter" appears often in the New Testament. This is the ministerial priesthood. The need for a ministerial priesthood is self-evident. Ministers were necessary to preside over the "breaking of the bread," i.e, the Mass, and the administration of the sacraments. Acts 1:21-26 recounts the selection of Matthias to succeed Judas Iscariot in the "ministry." Acts 6:2-6 recounts the selection of seven new members of this ministerial priesthood. And the act of the "laying on of hands" was the administration of the the sacrament of Ordination, a sacrament that has continued to this day when new priests are made members of the ministerial priesthood by the same act of laying on of hands. "So the Twelve called together the community of the disciples and said, 'It is not right for us to neglect the word of God to serve at table. Brothers, select from among you seven reputable men, filled with the Spirit and wisdom, whom we shall appoint to this task, whereas we shall devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.' The proposal was acceptable to the whole community, so they chose Stephen, a man filled with faith and the holy Spirit, also Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicholas of Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these men to the apostles who prayed and laid hands on them." Acts 9:17-19 tells when St. Paul became a member of the ministerial priesthood, by the laying on of hands. And there are numerous other verses in the New Testament proving the existence of priests.

Catholics believe Christ gave His apostles the power to forgive sins, a power that has been handed down for generations through apostolic succession. The sacrament of reconciliation is Christ's gift to us. The root of all sin is pride; its antidote is humility. Confessing one's sins to God's appointed representative is thoroughly biblical, and calls for tremendous humility. The priest does not act on his own, He acts in the name of God and on behalf of His Church, administering God's forgiveness (absolution). The sacrament of Confession wipes away our sins, increases sanctifying grace in our souls, and reunites us with Christ and His Church. The Church is the extension of Christ's incarnation, and that extension takes place through the sacraments" (Scott Hahn , Swear to God, Page 22)

As Catholics, we confess our sins to God through His minister the priest in the Sacrament of Confession. This does not mean we cannot also confess to God directly. In fact we feel we should do this also. The “advantages” of confessing directing to a priest are: the Church’s 1) guarantee of forgiveness, 2) spiritual counseling, 3) humility, 4) help in overcoming self-deception and rationalization in matters of sin, and most importantly 5) the sacramental grace received. None of the above are provided in private confessions to God. Like St. Paul, who writes in his letter to the Colossians (Col 1:18), Catholics believe the Church is, in a mysterious way, the Body of Christ still living in the world today, therefore God will answer our pleas for forgiveness and mercy with greater compassion, if voiced in union with this Mystical Body of Christ, than if they are voiced privately and independently of the Mystical Body of Christ. Sin also hurts this Mystical Body. Hence confession to IT for forgiveness and reparation is self evident.

As stated above, confessing to a priest is not biblical. In John 20, we read of Christ appearing to the disciples on Easter Sunday. He breathed on the apostles giving them the authority to forgive, and not to forgive. This means they had to hear the sins in order to forgive/not forgive. Jesus then says “as the Father has sent me, so I send you”. This means the apostles are to continue Christ’s mission, the essence of which is the forgiveness of sins. In 2 Corinthians, St. Paul describes the apostles as ambassadors of Christ’s work of reconciliation. In the Epistle of James we read that the presbyters (priests) are called to pray for the sick and forgive their sins. Why are priests called to perform this task? Obviously, the priests have an authority that ordinary Christians do not. It is clear that Christ gave the apostles the power to forgive sins. [http://www.ascensioncatholicparish.org/AskaPriest/tabid/124/Default.aspx]

Confessing our sins to a priest IS found in the Bible. when Christ said, "Who's sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven, and who's sins you shall retain, they are retained" is strong mention of the concept of confessing sins to a priest. For how can a priest know whether to forgive or retain unless he hears a confession. It is simple logic. Why do Protestants ignore the logic? And the same tiresome semantic mistake is again made here: just because the word "priest" does not exist in the Bible does not mean they do not exist. Presbyter means "priest." If Protestants think it means something else, such as "elder," then they are mistaken. What about 2 Corinthians 5:17-20: "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ's behalf: Be reconciled to God." There it is, plain as day -- the MINISTRY of reconciliation. How can this possibly be denied?

But this Protestant argument must take into account the following verses and it fails to do so.

Confession is not a private affair in the Bible.

Matthew 3:6 - "baptized by him ... as they acknowledged their sins"
Acts 19:18 - "believers came forward and openly acknowledged their former practices"
James 5:16 - "confess your sin to one another ... that you may be healed."

Jesus has power to forgive sins.

Matthew 9:1-8 - (Healing of paralytic - "which is easier to say your sins are forgiven or ...") Son of Man has the authority to forgive sins
Mark 2:10 - (Jesus says the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth)
Luke 7:48 - "He said to her, 'Your sins are forgiven.'"
1 John 5:16 - there is sin that is not deadly
See also: - Acts 2:38, 1 Johns 1:9

Jesus gives his power to forgive sins to His priests

Matthew 16:19 - (Jesus gives the apostles the power to bind and loose sins)
Matthew 18:18 - whatever you bind and loose on earth, so it is in heaven
John 20:22 - If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven; if you retain anyone’s sins, they are retained.
John 20:23 - After saying this he breathed on them and said: Receive the Holy Spirit. (recall Genesis 2:7)
2 Corinthians 5:17-20 - "God ... has reconciled us to himself ... given us the ministry of reconciliation"
James 5:14-15 - "presbyters of the church ... pray over him ... he will be forgiven" (prayer of presbyters forgives sin)

See also: - Luke 22:29-30, James 5:16

After forgiveness, the need for reparation can remain.

2 Samuel 12:13-14 - "The LORD ... has forgiven your sin ... but ... child born to you must surely die"
Luke 19:8-9 - (Jesus praises Zacchaeus for his promise of reparation)Penance as satisfaction for sins.

Matthew 3:8 - "Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance."
2 Corinthians 7:10 - "godly sorrow produces a salutary repentance without regret"
See also: - Luke 3:8, Acts 2:38

[Verses obtained from http://www.scripturecatholic.com/]