Priest forgot to give absolution

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Bookcat said:
Basically you do not realize it so there is nothing one can do per se (and God knows that and takes that into account). So presuming your contrition etc… in the next Confession those sins would be absolved “indirectly”.
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That makes sense. Thank you.
 
DaniMetzinger said:
That makes sense. Thank you.
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Your welcome.

Similar to if someone forgets a mortal sin or a mortal sin simply never occurs to them in their examine --but was contrite etc and intended to confess them all --such is also absolved indirectly with the absolution of the ones they confessed.

If they remember it --they are obliged to confess it in the next confession *

In case of a Priest who forgets to absolve the person and the person did not realize it -it would be similar (in the next confession)…though different …as described above.

(*I will add that “some” of those who struggle with scrupulosity may be in a different boat --they can start wanting to confess all sorts of things not needful to confess -their confessor can guide them…)
 
Ancient1 said:
Well that is all very interesting and quite a philosophy, however, it does not change the fact that the Sacrament of Penance includes Absolution (normally), which is a specific formula the priest must verbally articulate in the presence of the penitent. The priest can love, forgive, mentally ruminate, will and intend Absolution, even throwing in some power of positive thinking, BUT if he does not GIVE (with the spoken words) Absolution, no Absolution exists. Matter and Form, my dear fellow, even men and women agree on that.
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I think you missed the point.
But let’s follow your line of thought and go mad (my emphasis):
BUT if he does not GIVE (with the spoken words) Absolution, no Absolution exists.
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If the priest lost his tongue with a disease (like cancer, God forbid!) or accident, there is no absolution?
 
Pfaffenhoffen said:
I think you missed the point.
But let’s follow your line of thought and go mad (my emphasis):

If the priest lost his tongue with a disease (like cancer, God forbid!) or accident, there is no absolution?
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Absolution is to be given orally.

Can things happen that prevent a Priest from being able to celebrate the Sacraments? Yes.

To give a good example --A Priest (or anyone for that matter) who is say paralyzed and cannot move…would not be able to baptize…
 
Bookcat said:
Sacraments require correct matter and form. If the Priest did not give absolution --due to forgetting for example – no sacrament occurred. This the nature of Sacraments.

The difference made is there was no absolution given. No sins were absolved. No Sacrament occurred.

But as noted it can be that the Priest said the form quietly during the persons act of contrition.

(now of course God knows the person went to confession and the Priest just forgot --so he takes that into account…though if the person knows the Priest did not give absolution they need to seek out a Priest (that one or another))
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If the Priest did not give absolution --due to forgetting for example – no sacrament occurred.
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Boy, how could he forget?

But let get crazy: Suppose he did not say the formula, which is absolutely crazy for the priest says that by habit. having heard already tens of thousands of confessions. It is like forgetting to brake the car to stop or to forget to put the trousers or the shoes to leave the house in a snowy day !!!

But let us imagine that the unthinkable happens. Let us be detailed. The priest forgives or is forgiving. If he is there to forgive, if the penitent is there to be forgiven, the fact that the formula was not said because the priest had an heart attack makes the confession invalid. No. God does not live on formulas or on rituals. God lives in spirit, in truth and in forgiveness. To say that God withholds forgiveness because He himself called the priest to Himself is a God that I do not see in the Gospels.

If I am wrong someone must explain how the fellow who was in the bottom of the Synagogue saying: Have mercy on me, poor sinner, was justified according to the words of Jesus Christ, and the Pharisee not.

My view.
 
DaniMetzinger said:
So I suppose if you know you were not given absolution you should seek out absolution for those sins. If you didn’t notice and the priest didn’t notice but you thought you were absolved, what then. In the case that there was no absolution I mean.
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So, forgiveness would depend not on God’s Will but on me being aware of the formula or not. Pretty crazy.

That is why the most active group here is “OCD/Scrupulosity Group”.
 
Pfaffenhoffen said:
Boy, how could he forget?

But let get crazy: Suppose he did not say the formula, which is absolutely crazy for the priest says that by habit. having heard already tens of thousands of confessions. It is like forgetting to brake the car to stop or to forget to put the trousers or the shoes to leave the house in a snowy day !!!

But let us imagine that the unthinkable happens. Let us be detailed. The priest forgives or is forgiving. If he is there to forgive, if the penitent is there to be forgiven, the fact that the formula was not said because the priest had an heart attack makes the confession invalid. No. God does not live on formulas or on rituals. God lives in spirit, in truth and in forgiveness. To say that God withholds forgiveness because He himself called the priest to Himself is a God that I do not see in the Gospels.

If I am wrong someone must explain how the fellow who was in the bottom of the Synagogue saying: Have mercy on me, poor sinner, was justified according to the words of Jesus Christ, and the Pharisee not.

My view.
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If the the correct matter and form is not present when a Sacrament is attempted —No Sacrament takes place.

If absolution is not given. No absolution takes place. Period.

Not everything is laid out in the Gospels --this is determined by the Church that Jesus Christ gave authority to bind and loose and to teach etc.

Now as to the person being forgiven --that is another story -for forgiveness can happen even prior to the Sacrament via the grace of perfect contrition.

Now as to one who does not realize that the right form was there --one can read my posts above. As to what one is to do if one realizes it --I addressed that above too.
 
Pfaffenhoffen said:
So, forgiveness would depend not on God’s Will but on me being aware of the formula or not. Pretty crazy.

That is why the most active group here is “OCD/Scrupulosity Group”.
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Do not confuse absolution with forgiveness.

And Hearing the form per se does not effect the validity of the absolution. But if the Absolution was not given -well that is like trying to Baptize by just pouring water without anything else…no Sacrament.
 
As one Catechism sicinctly put it:

Q: What is necessary to constitute a sacrament?

A: To constitute a sacrament it is necessary to have the matter, the form, and the minister, who must have the intention to do what the Church does.

Q: What is the form of the sacraments?

A: The form of the sacraments is the words which are pronounced in order to effect the sacrament.
 
The Priest can say “this is my Body” over cake all day…but it remains cake.

Or he can say “This appears to be my Body” over bread and he will have bread.

Or “I bless you in the name of the …” over a penitent and no absolution is given…
 
Pfaffenhoffen said:
So, forgiveness would depend not on God’s Will but on me being aware of the formula or not. Pretty crazy.

That is why the most active group here is “OCD/Scrupulosity Group”.
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He was not speaking to his being aware of the form used…but of a person who does not realize absolution was not in fact given (which I answered in the other posts).
 
Bookcat said:
He was not speaking to his being aware of the form used…but of a person who does not realize absolution was not in fact given (which I answered in the other posts).
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I guess I understood that and I addressed that. I am in favor of the post !!!
 
I once went to confession and the priest spoke so low, I couldn’t hear him.

I said, “I’m sorry, Father, did you absolve me?”. He became quite annoyed and asked, “where were you?”

I told him that I couldn’t hear him at all, so he said the words again and I wished him a nice day. 😃
 
This same thing happen to me. The particular priest I go to sometimes always waits for me to finish saying the act of contrition before he gives me absolution. The manner in which he gives absolution is always as clear as 2 plus 2 equals 4. Yesterday, however, after I thought about it, I have no recollection of actually having received absolution. Rather than suspect him of negligence, I attribute it to my own faulty memory.

It is not unheard of for priests to sometimes forget to absolve penitents. After all they’re human too. I read in an old confessors manual that was published in 1905, that in the event this does happen, if the penitent is in no danger of death, his/her sins are automatically absolved upon the reception of Holy Communion. This of course presupposes that the confession made was worthy. In cases of the priest giving Last Rites to a person in imminent danger of death, there really is no excuse for such negligence. The priest would be obligated to correct this if possible.

archive.org/details/theorypracticeof00schi
Theory and practice of the confessional; a guide in the administration of the sacrament of penance (1905)
 
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