"I forgive thee of thy sins"?

[Crusading_Canuk]

Last Sunday before I served at Mass, I made my confession to the priest (I have another confessor, and I believe the first time I confessed to this priest). The day before I confessed, although I made an “impure” joke to a friend later that evening. So I wasn’t sure if that was a mortal sin, and decided to be “safe instead of sorry”. When I confessed, the priest said that he “forgave” me of my sins instead of " absolve". I received Communion, although I have doubts over the validity of the confession (and whether or not I was in a state of mortal sin in the first place, but that’s another matter). So my question is this; was the confession valid and did I commit sacrilege upon the Blessed Sacrament?

 

[Trishie]

You received Communion in good faith but have wondered since?

As the priest is speaking “in persona Christi” [in the Person of Christ], ‘I forgive’ is said not by him but by Jesus, in whom he was speaking. As a man he can say or do nothing in the Sacrament. Only in the person of Jesus can a priest speak in Confession. Within this truth, your absolution was genuine. However please tell him of your concern and of the difficulty his choice of word causes you and can cause others, and ask him please to use the word ‘absolve’. Hopefully he will understand that it is a serious matter to leave persons in an agony of doubt and guilt, especially when they have confessed serious sin. I’m sad that you have gone through this mental distress. There is good reason for prescribed structure in the Sacraments.