The Forum is NOT the Confessional

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Rob2

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The Sacrament of Confession/Reconciliation is an encounter .

It is a sacramental encounter between penitent , priest , and God .

The penitent is there because of the grace of Baptism to be reconciled with God and the Church because he/she has fallen in some way .

The priest is there because by the grace of his ordination he is to meet the penitent in his/her sinfulness , to listen and where necessary through the wisdom which he possesses through his priesthood to judge and give guidance to the penitent . Above all the priest is there to absolve sin .

The other person present is God , because it is a sacrament , and the sacraments are special means given to us by Jesus to encounter God . Noting the words used in this sacrament , I would say that all three persons of the Trinity are present .

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Since joining CAF I have been disturbed by some of the threads .

People have come along and admitted to sinning .
Then other members have come along with advice .
I know this is done in good will , but in many cases advice is given which should not be .
General principles are imparted , and the particular circumstances of the one admitting sin are not taken into account . In reality it can’t be done on a forum .
Advice is given which may be inappropriate in a particular case .
Advice is given which may lead some to feeling guilty , to take on board opinions which are not fitting for him/her but may be fine for another .
These can be very delicate circumstances , and there is a possibility of damage being done , especially to those who are prone to be sensitive .

We are not equipped on the forum to take on the priestly role of the confessor with all that goes with that role .

I would like to see those who come to the forum as if it were the confessional to be , in love , gently told this is not the place .

With encouragement we should advise them to take what is troubling them to the Sacrament of Confession , the God-given means where they will find the wisdom and guidance and forgiveness they seek .
 
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May the Holy Spirit guide us in our responses to such posts.
Our God please flood those who come with sin on their conscience,
and those who respond,
to guide appropriately, and to pray for these souls in their anxiety and need.
 
Some of the questions and threads about Confession here are unbelievably common sense but perhaps these CAF members may just want some opinions and (name removed by moderator)uts to affirm them of their doubt. That would be probably helpful for them personally. On the other hand, there are a few posters who seem to persist in making similar threads, thus not sure what they really want anyway.
 
I think the problem is with the internet and our lack of personal knowledge of one another because of distance, not with confessing. The New Testament clearly encourages us to confess our sins to each other, not only to a priest.
 
I say let the moderators be the moderators and if you don’t like a thread either report it or move on.
 
i would go ahead & agree with that;

BUT there seems to be a lot of young people (minors) posting here

MANY of the thread issues here need to be taken to the confessional (as per the point of OP) and not discussed on a catholic website
 
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Overall I would agree with the OP, but with the caveat of loving kindness and guidance to those who suffer from scrupulosity (especially in relation to the Sacrament of Reconciliation). Those of us who were crippled by scrupulosity probably all remember the pain and anguish that it brought, and the need for the reassurance and encouragement that maybe we were unable to receive within our parish. The forum is a place where someone can open up when desperation strikes, especially at night when their priest is hopefully having a good nights sleep.
 
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If done appropriately, “admonishing the sinner” is a Spiritual Work of Mercy.

But I would agree that posts do not have to be specific or graphic. And also that anybody responding should research and give a well-thought answer first.
 
bobperk said:
If done appropriately, “admonishing the sinner” is a Spiritual Work of Mercy.
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That is generally not relevant for times when people freely confess their sins in a repentant way. The father of the prodigal son did not take 30 minutes to lecture him, when the son returned.
 
Unfortunately, Rob, you are not going to make this issue go away by posting your opinion on it here.

I think many people who post here already agree with you that the “is this a sin?” threads should not be posted and that the person involved (who often is a minor and/ or suffering from scruples) should take their concerns to confession, or otherwise speak with a priest.
However, we cannot control what people choose to post or ask.

When you see such a thread, you can certainly respond with, “You need to go to confession and ask a priest about this. It’s not really something that a bunch of Internet strangers on a forum can help you with.”

Or you can choose to ignore the thread, or if it violates TOS, flag it.

You can’t control what other people choose to post except for flagging if it violates TOS. It’s doubtful that your opinion expressed here is going to make someone who wants to “give advice” see it your way - and don’t forget that some of the people who post on this forum aren’t even Catholics.
 
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Rob2 said:
Since joining CAF I have been disturbed by some of the threads .

People have come along and admitted to sinning .
Then other members have come along with advice .
I know this is done in good will , but in many cases advice is given which should not be .
General principles are imparted , and the particular circumstances of the one admitting sin are not taken into account . In reality it can’t be done on a forum .
Advice is given which may be inappropriate in a particular case .
Advice is given which may lead some to feeling guilty , to take on board opinions which are not fitting for him/her but may be fine for another .
These can be very delicate circumstances , and there is a possibility of damage being done , especially to those who are prone to be sensitive .

We are not equipped on the forum to take on the priestly role of the confessor with all that goes with that role.
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I don’t think anyone believes this forum is the confessional.

But people are free to admit to sins and ask advice from fellow Catholics. The seal applies to the priest only. There are rules to prevent advice of a professional nature from being dispensed.

Sometimes the advice might not be the best advice, but that’s the nature of internet discussions. People come here because they feel they can ask a question anonymously. The caveat is that we’re just ordinary people and the advice is general.
Rob2 said:
I would like to see those who come to the forum as if it were the confessional to be , in love , gently told this is not the place .
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I’ve never seen anybody looking to get forgiveness “from the forum members”. Lots of people ask for advice about kicking certain sins (masturbation is a common one). But I think that many of these people take these things to confession on a regular basis and are simply looking for additional (name removed by moderator)ut.
Rob2 said:
With encouragement we should advise them to take what is troubling them to the Sacrament of Confession
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This is done on a regular basis. I did it myself only last week. But giving advice and suggesting confession are not mutually exclusive.

With all due respect, this is a discussion forum, and I don’t think that rules of the type you’re suggesting should/will be introduced. If these things disturb you then maybe you should ignore them. Or you be the one to suggest confession. But there is no point in stopping people who often feel upset about certain sins from posting to seek advice.
 
Some people seek out - birds of their own feather.
I can see some compassion being exchanged…
but sin has to be called out - pointed out - avoided !

I love when you veterans of this site say “ go talk to a Priest “
That nips things in the bud - pronto -
And - is - the best ‘advice’ to offer.
 
I am not sure I agree. Love the picture. I see nothing wrong with
people asking for help with their sins. Of course, they should go to confession but sometimes some insights share here can, IMO, help. What I don’t like is when someone seems to assume, that if they did what is being discussed it would be a mortal sin, that it is a mortal sin for someone else.
 
Theo2 said:
What I don’t like is when someone seems to assume, that if they did what is being discussed it would be a mortal sin, that it is a mortal sin for someone else.
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Yeah, I made the mistake of saying something was a “mortal sin” on here once and blackfriar who used to post here took issue with that. In hindsight I think he was right. “Mortal sin” can only be determined by the priest in the confessional. And frankly, if you’re in there confessing and repenting of the sin, the priest is more interested in just getting you absolved and maybe giving a small amount of advice than determining whether the sin was or was not mortal.

I think the problem here arises because some people post to the forum kind of wanting to be told something is NOT a mortal sin so they can just keep doing it and going to Communion, and another group of people on the forum are very concerned about people receiving Communion unworthily to the point where if they could designate themselves the Communion Police, they would do so. I think the correct answer is that if you think something might be a mortal sin, you should just go to confession and skip all the discussions trying to figure out what level of sin it is. If there is a reason to tell you it is serious or mortal, the priest will tell you.
 
I try to avoid the “is this a sin” threads because I don’t feel it is appropriate to offer opinions on such matters. If I respond it’s usually to post the 3 criteria that makes a mortal sin and tell them to talk to a priest.

There was one thread that particularly disturbed me this week where the OP was looking for a certain answer and as soon as they got it they just took it and ran with it. They should have consulted their priest.

People’s souls are at stake here, and so are our own if our comments lead someone else into sin.
 
If we answer in good faith, it is not a sin even if we are wrong. We all need to remember that the Holy Spirit can work with the person and lead them to the truth. Even when we are in error.
The person who get the advice also has the responsibility to seek the truth.
 
Tis_Bearself said:
“Mortal sin” can only be determined by the priest in the confessional. And frankly, if you’re in there confessing and repenting of the sin, the priest is more interested in just getting you absolved and maybe giving a small amount of advice than determining whether the sin was or was not mortal.
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Exactly. Once you’re in the confessional, “is it mortal?” ceases to be an issue – “is it absolved?” is all that matters!
 
We would have less complaints about our Priests if we talked to them more than we talked to other laity online.
 
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