PENTECOST SUNDAY
Acts 2:1-11; 1Cor 12:3b-7, 12-13; Gn20:10-23

THE POWER TO FORGIVE

In one of his teachings, Jesus Christ had declared to the Apostles:  “Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Mt 18:18).  And after his resurrection, in one of his appearance to them, Jesus said: “Receive the Holy Spirit.  Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained” (Jn 20: 22-23).  When he said these words, Jesus officially established the Sacrament of Reconciliation, delegating the power to forgive and retain sins to the Church. This power was not only given to the Apostles, but it was also handed down to their successors - the Bishops and priests, those who are in communion with the Apostles.

In establishing the Sacrament of Reconciliation, Jesus wanted to tell his first ministers and their successors that:  on earth, once they announce the words of absolution “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit” then immediately in heaven, God will forgive those sins, and although our sins were red as scarlet, they will be transformed as white as snow.

In his Letter of Reconciliation and Penance, Pope John Paul affirmed that: “To bring forth the spirit of repentance and conversion for humanity and to offer the gift of reconciliation is the unique mission of the Church in continuing the saving work of The One Who Established it”.

At the time of the early Church, the act of going to confession in order to receive the grace of reconciling with God and healing for the soul was carried out faithfully and sincerely by the early Christians.  There was no need for priests and bishops to remind or persuade the people to go to confession eventhough the works of penance were more extensive and tougher.

Up until the 13th century, for the sake of spiritual fruitfulness, Pope Innocent declared that all Catholics who reach the age of reasoning and maturity must go to confession at least once a year.

Some people questioned:  Why must we confess our sins to a priest?  Why can’t we confess to God directly?

Coming to God to ask for forgiveness of our many sins is the right thing to do.  But the way in which we approach God for forgiveness must be done as Christ had taught us.  What was the reason for Christ to empower his priests with the authority to forgive sins when He himself can forgive us and does not need the help of priests.  Imagine if you are given a key to a house with a sole authority to unlock the door for people to enter.  Would that key and the authority to unlock the door mean anything if you find out that everyone else also has a similar key and they can just go in and out the house any time they want.

Of course Jesus has hundreds of thousands of ways to forgive our sins, but the way He chose to “become man” to save the world and to “choose man” to carry out the forgiveness of sins is a very clear and undeniable decision.  Besides the fact that it was His wish, there are other reasons that are necessary for confessing our sins to a priest.

According to the book Catholicism and Life, these are some of the reasons:

First of all, it is because “there are some sins that can be forgiven and there are certain sins that must be bound” that is why the sinner must confess his/her sins to the priest in order for the priest to determine which sins can be forgiven and which are retained.

Secondly, the act of confessing our sins to a priest can help us be more humble.  It makes us be more aware of not sinning or else if we sin, we will have to go to confession again.

Thirdly, when a person truly feels remorse for his sins, he will receive sanctifying grace from the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  But prior to that, he will hear useful guidance and advice from the priest to help him grow spiritually.

In addition to that, many people have different perspectives about sins – some are too strict and rigid in that they consider almost everything as being sinful, while others are too relaxed in their view of sins, that even the most gravest sins are considered as nothing serious.  Sometimes people even rationalize their sins to ease their conscience or to cover up their sins.  Therefore, without the help of a priest, it’s difficult for people to be really true to themselves and to God.

Finally, when giving his absolution, the priest who represents God will guarantee the forgiveness of sins for the one who confessed.  As for those who confess their sins “directly” to God, who will guarantee that their sins are forgiven?  No one for sure.

Pope John Paul II warned those who think they do not need the Sacrament of Reconciliation this way:  “It is very foolish and prideful for those who deliberately take lightly the means of grace and salvation in which Jesus Christ established, especially for those who think they don’t need the Sacrament of Reconciliation in order for their sins to be forgiven”.

Many people, due to their own misunderstanding or lack of knowledge, disregard confession, but there are also others who have lost their sensitivity to sin such that they don’t feel the need to go to confession.  Some people are ashamed and reluctant to confess their sins to someone else.  G.K. Chesterton, a famous writer who converted to Catholicism wrote:  “There is nothing to be ashamed about our own foolishness…As human beings no one is free from making mistakes, but the most horrible mistake of a person is to assume that he has no sin.”  St. John the Apostle wrote more clearly:  “If we say:  we are without sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” (1Jn1:8).  On the contrary, “If we acknowledge our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing” (1Jn1:9).

One thing that is intertwined with the Sacrament of Reconciliation is the aspect of confidentiality in confession.  This is something that all priest must adhere to.  No priest is allowed to tell a third party anything that they hear in a confession, even if this poses a threat or danger to himself or to national security.

Throughout the history of the Church, many heroic and noble deeds were recorded about the Christians who were willing to shed blood to defend their faith, among these include priests who gave up their lives to preserve the seal of confessional confidentiality.

Father John Nepomucene was a shining example of this matter in the 14th century.  He was the confessor for Queen Jane of Bohemia.  King Wenceslaus was a very suspicious and jealous person.  He wanted to know what and if the Queen had done anything in secret so he asked Father John to tell him what the Queen had confessed.  The king thought that his power and position would influence Father John in revealing the Queen’s confession, but he was mistaken.  This priest of God was determined not to reveal anything.  As a result, he was thrown in a dark dungeon, and one night, they drowned him to death.

Three hundred years later, when people re-opened his tomb, they were shocked to find out that although his body was disintegrated, his tongue remains in the same perfect condition as when he was alive.  Today, at the place where he was killed, people built a shrine, and underneath it, there is an inscription:  “Here lied the witness of the seal of confessional confidentiality”.

There was also the incident about Father Demoulin, a French priest who was accused of murder in the year 1899 and sentenced to life imprisonment.  What actually happened was that the caretaker of the church committed the murder then hid his weapon in Father Demoulin’s room.  To prevent the priest from speaking up, the murderer went and confessed his sins to the priest and admitted that he killed someone.  As a result, because of the seal of confidentiality, Father Demoulin could not reveal who the killer was, so in the end he was sentenced by the court to life imprisonment.

After 25 years, Father Demoulin grew old and weak from the harsh condition of prison life.  The caretaker of the church at this time was dying and on his death bed, he earnestly asked to see a priest.  Before his last breath, he was able to confess in front of everyone in the room about his murderous act from long ago.  He also asked for forgiveness through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, the same sacrament which he took advantage of to put an innocent priest in prison. (x. Catholocism and Life).

Before his ascension into heaven, Jesus bestowed upon the Apostles a priceless gift – the Holy Spirit and the power to forgive sins.  Their mission as well as their successor’s is to produce spiritual fruits for all humanity.  To be humble and open up our hearts to receive the grace of forgiveness, will lead us to peace and true life, even if the claws of death is closing in on us.  By coming to the confessional booth, our spirit will be healed and be filled with joy.

Thy Ngo