Role of priest during confession

[Pancras]

The **priest **has the **faculties to absolve through the Church and it is ** [they are] not dependent on his spiritual state at the time of the confession. He gives absolution after he is convinced of the proper contrition and if allowed to absolve for the particular sin confessed.

The faculties of the priest to absolve the sins of someone else are not predicated on his own state of grace at the time he hears the confession and gives the absolution. This is an important aspect of sacramental theology which is not often discussed, because it is not something that the penitent needs to worry about. This is because even a priest who is in serious need of absolution himself is nonetheless able to give good counsel and forgiveness of sins, just as any other priest is able to do so. It is a matter of the spiritual perfection of the grace involved much more than the personal holiness of the priest. Non-Catholics have a very hard time grasping this principle, though, and I have to cut them some slack because it is not an easy thing to understand by natural means alone.

 

[Tommy999]

Thanks to everyone for taking the time to explain the role of the priest during confession. I feel like I better understand the process now and it makes a lot more sense to me. I have a lot more questions about Catholicism on other subjects. Thank you for your patience and understanding. May God richly bless all of you

 

[po18guy]

I am still a little leery about an imperfect priest having the power of absolution of sins unless I knew for sure that the priest was truly a man of God in the true sense of the word. For example, what happens if a bad priest who is masquerading as a man of God (pedophile, etc) says durng confession that your sins weren’t forgiven. What then?

As we see from the scriptures, Judas held an office. Jesus chose him, even though he was to betray innocent blood into the hands of sinful, lawless men. It is not the qualities of the man in the office, but the power given to that office by Christ. The priest can be a sinful man, even carrying mortal sin on his soul, but the power and authority granted him remain exactly the same.

Jesus said “I will not leave you orphans.” He spoke in that case of the Holy Spirit, but it is by the Holy Spirit that sins are forgiven. The state of our heart is what matters, not the state of the Priest’s heart. We have the contrition, while the Priest has the authority.

 

[Pancras]

Thanks to everyone for taking the time to explain the role of the priest during confession. I feel like I better understand the process now and it makes a lot more sense to me. I have a lot more questions about Catholicism on other subjects. Thank you for your patience and understanding. May God richly bless all of you

Thank you for returning at the end of the thread to acknowledge everyone. You’re much better off asking your questions here, than you are in many other places where the answers you get might be less reliable.