Hi there ChristianKnight,
Ok so you know that Jesus gave the Apostles the Authority/Power to forgive sin Right?
Christian Knight I tell you this can you go to the Apostles right now to ask forgivness for you sins?
The answer is No you can not go to the Apostles to forgive you your sins becuase they are not here anymot they are with Jesus Christ in Paradise.
So ChristianKinght, who can you go to today to ask for your sins to be forgiven? I will tell you and that is to their successors.
Look at it this way when your parents die who are they going to leave their House, Car, Money, to, I hope it will be you, right, because you would be your parents successors to take care of the house, cars, money
So the Apostles knew they were going to die, God, knew they would going to die one day. So Apostles had to leave the Authority/Power to forgive our sins to other men of God and these are the Successors.
Or what if the Apostles did not leave the Authority/Power to no one. then there would be no one to forgive us our sins. Yes, we can go to Jesus Christ to forgive us our sins but Jesus Christ wants us all to go to His Church to a priest to forgive us our sins.
ChristianKnight, when you mom and dad got married did they go to a minister to get married? Or did your parents marry themselves?
When you were baptized did you go to a minister to be baptized?
Or did you baptize yourself?
The same is for us who want our sins forgiven and that we also have to see a Minister/Priest and it only can be done in the Catholic Church
God Bless you
Ufamtobie