FATHER FATTORE: Catholic Confession Explained
Dear Faithful in Christ and Mary!
The Gospel for this first Sunday after Easter recounts several important matters. Besides assuring the Apostles that He had truly risen from the dead, Jesus also imparted to them something which they must not have received earlier, namely, the power to forgive sins. Also, Jesus affirms the mission of the Apostles: as the Father had sent Jesus, so now Jesus sends His Apostles.
The mission of Jesus was to lead all the elect back to the Father. Although all have erred and sinned, and although Jesus died for the redemption of all mankind, it is equally true that not all will be saved. And to ensure the salvation of the elect, Jesus gives them the power to forgive sins. This power to forgive sins is not identical to the power of binding and loosing, which Jesus promised to St. Peter.
When Jesus spoke to St. Peter of building His Church upon him, the Rock, He gave Peter and all his legitimate successors the power to bind and to loose. This does not necessarily contain within it the power to forgive sins.
In fact, the Apostles never attempted to forgive sin prior to Christ's appearance to them. They worked miracles and cast out devils in the name of Jesus, but as yet, they did not attempt to take upon themselves the mission of Jesus Christ.
It was necessary that Jesus give them this mission, which was identical to His, as Jesus Himself affirms, "As the Father has sent me, I also send you.."
And Jesus wished to express the identity between His mission and that of His Apostles by telling them that, "He who hears you, hears Me."
Therefore, any discrepancy in the message heard between that which Christ and the Holy Ghost have taught through the Church, and whatever proceeds from Her Ministers cannot reflect error in the Church, but in the messenger.
It is perfectly true that only God can forgive sin. It is also perfectly true that God can delegate this power to His chosen representatives. To deny this is to deny God Himself!
The keys are a symbol of authority
He who holds the key controls the coming and going. The keeper of the keys controls who shall enter, and within the Church, it is Peter who has the power to permit or to forbid. Obviously, sin is something that is not within the power of the keys. A pope cannot permit sin, nor does he have any power to forbid it. God has already forbidden sin, and Jesus has clearly taught what is sinful and what is not.
It may seem contradictory to say that a pope cannot forbid sin. Nevertheless it is true.
How can anyone prevent another person from deliberately choosing to sin? Can a pope prevent a cardinal, bishop, priest, religious or layperson from committing sin? What power does he have to accomplish this wonderful feat?
If he had such power, surely he would have used it long ago to prevent the various expressions of injustice that haunts this world. If he has this power, how would he use it? Clearly, even a saintly pope is powerless to prevent sin.
Therefore, even though our Lord gave the fullness of authority to St. Peter as His Vicar on earth, Peter did not yet receive that power to forgive sins, which was later given to all the Apostles, when Jesus appeared to them behind locked doors and said to them, "Peace be to you. As the Father has sent me, I also send you.."
When He had said this, He breathed on them, and He said to them, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them, and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.."
(John 20, 21-23).
Jesus later expressed His choice of Peter to be His Vicar by asking him whether or not he, Peter, loved Him more than the others..
Jesus repeated this question two more times, but the second and third time He did not add the words more than these others..
Peter's final resort was to appeal to Christ's divinity, and he thereby indicates Christ's divinity by saying, "Lord, thou knowest all things, thou knowest that I love thee.."
(John 21, 17).
Why would Jesus ask such a question as a condition for making him the chief of the Apostles?
The reason is this: the greater the love, the greater will be the loyalty; and the greater the love, the more grace is given to the one loving.
Jesus breathed upon the Apostles as an outward sign of the inward reality that was being communicated to them, namely, a certain power of the Holy Ghost that would work the charity and compassion of Jesus Himself through the Apostles and them only.
The Holy Ghost had been given to those of the Old Testament so that they may live holy lives, and help others by their example and preaching.
In the New Testament, the Holy Ghost is given after the Resurrection, in a manner to help many instead of a few. We should be persuaded that this great gift to sinful mankind is something not to be taken lightly.
As St. Gregory the Great says of the Apostles and their successors, the bishops:
"It is pleasing to contemplate these Disciples, led to such a height of glory, called to such burdens of humility. Behold now they have
become, not alone fearless regarding themselves, but sharers in the authority of the Heavenly Judge, so that on behalf of God they
withhold forgiveness for the sins of some, and pardon those of others. Their place in the Church the Bishops now hold, and they who
succeed to their power of ruling receive authority to bind and to loose."
"Great indeed is the honor, but great likewise the burdens of that honor. And truly grievous is it, that one who knows not how to rule
himself, should become the judge of the life of another. Let us honor those from whose hands we receive the Body and Blood of our
Lord, Jesus Christ, and from whom alone we receive the forgiveness of our sins.
Let us be assured that those who depart from the Apostolic rules by allowing women to serve in the sanctuary are not of the Roman
Catholic Church, and no one of the faithful may participate in such desecrations of the Holy of Holies."
Pidamos a la Virgen Nuestra Señora, la gracia de ser fieles a la Fe de siempre.
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