The priest, at the time of confession, is like a procurator

Whoever has ever heard someone say, “I will not confess to a man, a priest, a sinner. Never!”. Besides these people, there are those who do not confess out of shame; others, because they feel that they do not have to confess, in fact, the reasons are many. But of all the reasons, the most serious (or perhaps that is part of all the others) is the lack of knowledge .

What do you think about knowing the real importance of confession?

Every human being needs to share with the another something complicated, such as a mistake. You have noticed that when you do something wrong, you always look for someone and then say: “Do not tell anyone.” So you end up saying everything to that person. Is not it true that often, after talking, you feel a little lighter? It is, more or less, what happens with confession, but with some advantages.

You do not need to ask the priest

The first advantage of confession is that you do not need to ask the priest for secrecy, because he can not tell anyone, no matter what. Second, when you talk to anybody, you still have a great deal of guilt weighing on you, but when you confess to the priest, you are actually confessing to Jesus.

The priest is like a procurator

The priest, at the time of confession, is like a procurator. When someone is sick and can not go to the bank or resolve legal situations, he makes a proxy and the procurator can act civilly in the name of the patient. So it is with the priest. It does not matter if the person who has the power of attorney has money in the bank, what really matters is if the person who created the power of attorney has money in the bank;and to us who did the power of attorney was Jesus, and He is rich in holiness and mercy. Therefore confessed sin , with repentance in the heart, is forgiven sin. Moreover, the Lord himself told us to seek the priests and the Church in order to confess ourselves (cf. Jn 20,2

The priest has no power by himself

As our late Father Leo said: “Whoever confesses is acquitted; and he who does not confess is absorbed. “ Do not be absorbed by evil, by the past, by sins; do not expect the priest’s holiness to confess, for, however holy he may be, he can never have the power by himself to forgive you. The priest is constituted by Jesus and is the “procurator,” who has the power of the mercy of God.Seek the priest, do not be ashamed or afraid, for confession is the act by which you accuse yourself, but you are not accused; it is exposed, but it is not exposed; by words, condemns, but is not condemned. He enters as a confessed defendant and is acquitted by the procurator of the Lord’s Mercy.

God bless you!

Father Sóstenes Vieira, missionary of the Canção Nova Community.