I understand this fully, but it did not give the Church the right to deal out punishment. If the sin is forgiven, then it is forgotten. So why should a person have to say 10 Hail Marys to receive full forgiveness?
What happens when I commit a sin and no priest is around to confess it to, like if I live in a very remote rural area. Can I not confess my sin to God alone, and ask Him alone for foregiveness?
This makes no sense to me.
Perhaps it would help to explain that there are more than one kind of punishment for sins. The following should help explain:
"…Punishments are Both Temporal and Eternal
The Bible indicates some punishments are eternal, lasting forever, but others are temporal. Eternal punishment is mentioned in Daniel 12:2: “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life and some to shame and everlasting contempt.”
We normally focus on the eternal penalties of sin, because they are the most important, but Scripture indicates temporal penalties are real and go back to the first sin humans committed: "To the woman he said, ‘I will greatly multiply your pain in childbearing; in pain you shall bring forth children (Gen. 3:16).
…Temporal Penalties May Remain When a Sin is Forgiven
When someone repents, God removes his guilt (Is. 1:18) and any eternal punishment (Rom. 5:9), but temporal penalties may remain. One passage demonstrating this is 2 Samuel 12, in which Nathan the prophet confronts David over his adultery:
“Then David said to Nathan, ‘I have sinned against the Lord.’ Nathan answered David: ‘The Lord on his part has forgiven your sin; you shall not die. But since you have utterly spurned the Lord by this deed, the child born to you must surely die’” (2 Sam. 12:13-14). God forgave David but David still had to suffer the loss of his son as well as other temporal punishments (2 Sam. 12:7-12). (For other examples, see: Numbers 14:13-23; 20:12; 27:12-14.)
Protestants realize that, while Jesus paid the price for our sins before God, he did not relieve our obligation to repair what we have done. They fully acknowledge that if you steal someone’s car, you have to give it back; it isn’t enough just to repent. God’s forgiveness (and man’s!) does not include letting you keep the stolen car.
Protestants also admit the principle of temporal penalties for sin, in practice, when discussing death. Scripture says death entered the world through original sin (Gen. 3:22-24, Rom. 5:12). When we first come to God we are forgiven, and when we sin later we are able to be forgiven, yet that does not free us from the penalty of physical death. Even the forgiven die; a penalty remains after our sins are forgiven. This is a temporal penalty since physical death is temporary and we will be resurrected (Dan. 12:2)."
Source:
catholic.com/tracts/primer-on-indulgences
It may also help to keep in mind the image of the Priest as a doctor. The Priest is acting
in the Person of Christ, who is the Great Physician. To quote Tertullian, writing in the 2nd century:
“’[Regarding confession, some] flee from this work as being an exposure of themselves, or they put it off from day to day. I presume they are more mindful of modesty than of salvation, like those who contract a disease in the more shameful parts of the body and shun making themselves known to the physicians; and thus they perish along with their own bashfulness’ (Repentance 10:1 [A.D. 203]).”
Source:
catholic.com/tracts/confession
Here Fr. Hardon describes the importance of the penance prescribed by the Priest:
"It is impossible to exaggerate the importance of performing the penance assigned by the priest in confession.
Why is this so important?
The penance which the confessor imposes partakes of the efficacy of the sacrament of penance. This means that at least some of the temporal punishment incurred by the sinner is infallibly removed by performing the assigned penance.
The prescribed penance is a sobering reminder that where there was sin there must be voluntary acceptance of pain, at least the recitation of certain prescribed prayers.
The assigned penance tells the sinner that he owes God the sacrifice of his own will to make reparation for disobeying the Divine Will. And the more we have sinned, the more we must love God in the future for giving in to self-love in the past.
Every pain we experience is a gift of God’s mercy. We should join these gifts with the penance we receive in confession. This will make our whole life on earth a life of reparation for sin. It is the best preparation for eternity."
Source:
therealpresence.org/archives/Sacraments/Sacraments_004.htm
I hope this helps to explain…
My question though… Is this Sacrament practiced early in Sacred Tradition? Acts 1:8 is somewhat similar to John and Matt 28:18-20 with respect to authority to teach. A Sola argument is “where in the Bible” is this demonstrated besides what Jesus said to the ten. I’m not arguing but need a better understanding. thanks.