"judicial Act" Of The Priest In Confession

[ICTHUS]

COUNCIL OF TRENT, SESSION 14, CHAPTER 6

THE MINISTER OF THIS SACRAMENT AND ABSOLUTION

        With regard to the minister of this sacrament, the holy council declares false and absolutely foreign to the truth of the Gospel all doctrines which perniciously extend the ministry of the keys to all other men besides bishops and priests,32 in the belief that those words of the Lord: Whatsoever you shall bind upon earth, shall be bound also in heaven, and whatsoever you shall loose upon earth, shall be loosed also in heaven; 33 and, Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them, and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained,34 were, contrary to the institution of this sacrament, addressed indifferently and indiscriminately to all the faithful of Christ in such manner that everyone has the power of forgiving sins, public ones by way of rebuke, if the one rebuked complies, and secret ones by way of a voluntary confession made to anyone.35 It [the council]teaches furthermore that even priests who are in mortal sin exercise, through the power of the Holy Ghost conferred in ordination,36 as ministers of Christ the office of forgiving sins, and that the opinion of those is erroneous who maintain that bad priests do not possess this power. But although the absolution of the priest is the dispensation of another's bounty, yet it is not a bare ministry only, either of proclaiming the Gospel or of declaring that sins are forgiven, but it is after the manner of a judicial act,37 by which sentence is pronounced by him as by a judge. The penitent, therefore, ought not so flatter himself on his own faith as to think that even though he have no contrition and there be wanting on the part of the priest the intention to act earnestly and absolve effectively, he is nevertheless really and in the sight of God absolved by reason of faith alone. For faith without penance effects no remission of sins, and he would be most negligent of his salvation who, knowing that a priest absolved him jokingly, would not diligently seek another who would act earnestly.

Note the bold. I dont understand how the priest acts as a Judge in the confessional, pronouncing sentence. Our sentence, - Death - is remitted on the Cross by Christ, but by the merits of the Keys, the priest absolves our sin. I dont understand, however, how he is a judge.

Anyone care to shed some light on this for me?

[cmotherofpirl]

If you are not sorry and indicate you will go on repeating the same sin, the priest doesn't have to absolve you of the sin.

You are to have a firm resolve not to repeat a sin. Coming in and saying "Yeah well, I did this and that Oh well."

Remember priests have the power to loose and bind. THat is where the judging comes in.

[Aloysius]

#1 in accordance w/ new debate table rules, this should either have been in the open mic as just a question for someone to answer or in the back alley if u plan on it being debated, am i right?

#2 good job explainin CMOM

[PedroX]

Just to follow up what C'mom said

Absolution is a dropping of the charges. Its releasing us from the penalty. Judges find people not guilty, as well as giving sentences. In the confessional they are acting in Alter Christos, in place of Christ. Just as God/Christ judges us for our sins and either releases us or punishes us, so to does the priest.

Aloysious, I don't think think that this is traditional versus modern, but maybe I'm confused.

peace...

[Aloysius]

i think this is an alright thread

i just don't think it should be in the debate table cause id be a Catholic vs. Catholic debate, it shouldve been a ? on open mic where ppl could just answer and discuss, not debate.

that's just what i thought, maybe i'm the once that's confused though :blink: