Didn’t Jesus commit the ‘final forgiveness of sin’ on the cross? Never understood why there has to be a priest involved - in life in the confessional and in death via last rites. John 3:16 makes it pretty darn clear - anyone who believes is forgiven.
While this is true it is also completely off topic.
The discussion is about the laws of the Catholic Church and the attempts of a sodomite to attack that church.
Perhaps, but a priest or pastor visiting at the bedside might be that one last chance for that sinner to know God.
I saw a Baptist minister visit one of my patients who never really fully understood his need for Christ and had many regrets being near his death and all. The pastor spoke to him, and the patient accepted salvation at that point. The patient lingered another day and asked then no further strong measures be done for him as he accepted that he was going to die and felt that he no longer needed to struggle or worry. He slipped away peacefully that night.
I know many Lutherans who would agree with you. I was a Lutheran all my life until recently. There are many things in the Catholic Church I find comforting and that touch aspects of my soul that my Protestant faith never did.
God Bless.
Ah, Jesus died for our sins, but we are still responsible to try to NOT commit then again. You can’t go day to day thinking, well, Jesus already forgave, so it’s okay if I steal a car. I mean, you’d still make your kid go sit in the corner for correction if he stole something wouldn’t you?
As for confession: YES, if one is really sorry for one’s sins and really contrite, and aims not to do it again, God can forgive you. BUT the way He preferred was what Jesus told the apostles in John 20: 21-23 — he gave his apostles to forgive or retain a sin. In other words, if the sins are told, then the priest can be there to offer comfort, advice, forgiveness (through the power of Jesus, of course) — but he will also know, sometimes, through the person’s own words if the person intends to persist. If a person is married, and visits a prostitute, for instance, but says “well, it’s not that big a thing but...” then the priest can correct him!!! If the guy says “I just can’t live with my wife and not visit a prostitute on occasion, she’s bad in bed” [whatever] then the priest would NOT give absolution for the sin because the person intends on persisting.
Advice can be offered in other ways. Some people are too scrupulous. They think EVERY little thing “oh, I put on a pretty blue dress, and I liked my reflection in the mirror, I’m sure I’m going to hell for vanity” the priest can put them right on that. He can make suggestions that may do a person’s soul good. If a person is having trouble with X, he might say: Ah, St. so and so also suffered from that, and he/she was able to find strength in doing Y.
For bible references you might ponder John 20: 21-23 and also Matthew 16: 18-20
We CAtholic are bound to confess our mortal sins to a priest. Now, if we are in danger of death, no priest available, or can’t get to one right away, then yes, we do the best act of contrition we can. If we survive, next time we have a chance, we should go and formally confess. The sacrament gives the healing grace of God, which the priest is empowered and authorized to give.
The following is from the Catechism. Also in church teaching is the idea that Catholics do not judge others and other religions. The consideration is that God judges people (God alone) based on what they know, on what their exposure is.
The Catholic Church does not say that Baptists or Presbyterians or so should confess their sins to a priest.
You can say they do, and you can maybe cite examples of misguided Catholics doing so, or you can impose intentions on the Church and pretend that it does other than what its rules are, but that would be doing what a lot of people do, placing intentions on the Church that are consistent with our corrupt politicians or pretending that Catholics go around saying others are going to Hell for not being and acting Catholic.
The Church teaching is that Catholics are judged as Catholics, that is, once baptized and having had the other sacraments, judgement is that of Catholic. THis guy knows that, but he’s not over the idea that Catholicism is democratic and yelling at people to change it works. It does not.
Catholicism does not say that others must confess to a priest to get to Heaven. it just doesn’t. If you don’t like that Catholics follow the Church teaching and go to a priest for reconciliation, talk to a priest and find out all about what it is you are talking about.
The following quotes Jesus, and it’s from the Catechism (of the Catholic Church, not the Lutheran Church not the Episcopal, etc., who mind their business as the Church does hers):
Reconciliation with the Church
1443 During his public life Jesus not only forgave sins, but also made plain the effect of this forgiveness: he reintegrated forgiven sinners into the community of the People of God from which sin had alienated or even excluded them. A remarkable sign of this is the fact that Jesus receives sinners at his table, a gesture that expresses in an astonishing way both God’s forgiveness and the return to the bosom of the People of God.44
1444 In imparting to his apostles his own power to forgive sins the Lord also gives them the authority to reconcile sinners with the Church. This ecclesial dimension of their task is expressed most notably in Christ’s solemn words to Simon Peter: “I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”45 “The office of binding and loosing which was given to Peter was also assigned to the college of the apostles united to its head.”46
1445 The words bind and loose mean: whomever you exclude from your communion, will be excluded from communion with God; whomever you receive anew into your communion, God will welcome back into his. Reconciliation with the Church is inseparable from reconciliation with God.
I've had protestant pastors pray over the dying in the same way.
Often right after this is done, and the pastor assures the person he is right with God, the person who is fighting death off becomes calm and dies in peace. There is a lot of fear in the dying...
Of course, others go on to recover.
If you are in a coma, this can be done “conditionally”, that God forgives you if you repent your sins (many folks in comas can hear but not communicate). If the priest asked an alert person if he repented and said no, that's the end of the sacrament: no anointing.
Confession to a priest? Well, originally you had to go to the front of church and confess the sin to the congregation and ask for forgiveness. That discouraged a lot of folks, who didn't want to embarrass their families etc, so the Irish in about 500 AD said you could do it in private instead.
And although most American don't go to confession, most pastors (and we docs)do have people confess to sins, and then we help them heal by telling them that if they are sorry, they are forgiven by Christ/god/the flying spaghetti monster for the terrible things they have done.
It is not “necessary” but it is psychologically useful to confess to another person, especially a person who has authority...
Maybe that's why Jesus gave the apostles the power to “forgive” sins (as a stand in for Jesus) on Easter Sunday night.
Id there's no "repent" there's no "believe" --- there's just a self-serving, self-deceiving parody of the faith.