To whom do you confess your sins? And who forgives or retains them?
Or are you another cherry-picker of the Bible?
[23] Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained. John Chapter 20.
God Himself.
And who forgives or retains them?
Nobody retains them ever.
There is never any record of God retaining any sin of any person.
1 John 1:7-10 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
Do Catholics understand what *faithful and just* mean?
He PROMISES here that if we confess, He will forgive.
Period.
That's it. It's a done deal.
God forgives them, always. He never retains them.
Have you an example of sins being retained?