Answering an Anti-Catholic on Confession and Intercession

The Patriarch Isaac blessing Jacob

CATHOLIC TRADITION - Confessing sins to a priest. Petitioning saints and Mary.

Obviously these doctrines are supported by the Sacred Scriptures.

WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS - We are to confess our sins and needs to God alone.

Your statement is a very nice slogan but it is illogical and UNBIBLICAL. Where is that in Sacred Scriptures? That statement that we confess our sins to God alone is Satanic because it destroys the order of nature that God establish:

1. It will put into hell all guidance counsellors.

2. It will put into hell all parents who are the first guidance counsellors of their kids and to whom we confess or confide our secrets, mistakes and sins.

3. It will put to hell all people who are admitting their mistakes to another person whom they hurt or have committed sins against.

4. It will put into hell all people who are saying 'Sorry' to another person.

IF WE HAVE TO CONFESS OUR SINS TO GOD ALONE THEN ALL OF THE ABOVE WILL GO TO HELL.

It directly violates the Sacred Scriptures from the Old to the New Testament:

Leviticus 5:5-6 [King James Version] "And it shall be, when he shall be guilty in one of these things, that he shall CONFESS that he hath sinned in that thing: And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD for his sin which he hath sinned, a female from the flock, a lamb or a kid of the goats, for a sin offering; and THE PRIEST SHALL MAKE AN ATONEMENT FOR HIM CONCERNING HIS SIN."

Ha, ha, ha... Imagine, WORD FOR WORD the sinner was commanded by God the Father to confess his sin by going to THE PRIEST for the Atonement of his sin. I am wondering if this Anti-Catholic who posted this question in this Blog in one of the posts comments really read the Bible. Especially since the necessity of going to the priest is repeatedly commanded by God the Father since the Old Testament [Lev 4:26, 31, 35/ 5:13/ 6:7].

That command to CONFESS is very categorical and explicit. It is by oral admission and by act of repentance through sins offering under the leadership of the Minister of God - the priest. So, the Catholic practice is very very BIBLICAL.

Joshua 7:19 [KJV] "And Joshua said unto Achan, My son, give, I PRAY THEE, glory to the LORD God of Israel, and make CONFESSION unto him; and TELL ME NOW WHAT THOU HAST DONE; HIDE IT NOT FROM ME."

Ha, ha, ha... CONFESSION, word for word. Ha, ha, ha...

Much more:

1. Joshua the leader of the People of God exercises spiritual fatherhood by calling Achan 'MY SON'. Just a verse up Josh 7:18 "Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah..." show that Achan is not the biological son of Joshua. Yet Joshua exercised fatherhood over him, treating him as a son and giving him moral and spiritual command TO CONFESS WHAT HE HAS DONE.

2. Joshua clarified that the Confession must be to the Lord, as the Catholic Church teaches, but

3. Joshua also insists that the sin or the deed must be told to him. It must not me hidden from the leader of the people of God.

Confession then is a must but it must be done to God through or by telling our sins to the priest or minister of God.

This is further elucidated by King Hezekiah when he explained the duties of Levites or priests:

2 Chronicles 30:22 [KJV] "And Hezekiah spake comfortably unto all the Levites that taught the GOOD KNOWLEDGE fo the LORD: and that they did eat throughout THE FEAST SEVEN DAYS, offiring peace offerings, and MAKING CONFESSION TO THE LORD GOD of their fathers."

These are handed on by Jesus to the Apostles:

1. To be teachers of faith of the people

2. To keep the feasts

3. To offer peace offerings

4. To make CONFESSION to the LORD God

In the book of Ezra, it is further clarified that confession of sin is done in the House of the Lord. And even before the Congregation present with people weeping together:

Ezra 10:1 [KJV] "Now when Ezra had prayed and when he had confessed, weeping and casting himself down before the house of God, there assembled unto him out of Israel a very great congregation of men and women and children: for the people wept very sore."

These scenario is very common among Catholics inside the Catholic houses of worships during Good Friday, evening of Holy Thursday or during retreats or recollections which usually end in Confessions and the Holy Mass.

This example of Ezra also show that public Confession is Biblical which is also done by the Catholic Church every Mass when it gathers the congregation. Led by the minister the Catholics pray: "I confess to Almighty God..."

In Nehemiah 1:6 and Daniel 9:20 these two prophets confessed their sins and the sins of their people. These are perfect example of prayer of intercession and petition on behalf of others:

Nehemiah 1:6 [KJV] "Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, AND CONFESS THE SINS OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, which we have sinned against thee; both I and my father's house have sinned." [Here the prophet intercedes for the sins of his people and his family. The sins of the people were confessed to God but not directly, it was done through the intercession or prayer of petition by the prophet Nehemiah.]

During the time of the Prophet Daniel the Temple was destroyed and they were in exiles. He confessed not only his sins but the sins of the people which is another beautiful example of Intercession Prayer:

Daniel 9:20 [KJV] "And while I was speaking and praying, and CONFESSING MY SIN and THE SIN OF MY PEOPLE Israel, and presenting my supplication before the LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God." [Confession is directed to God but the intercession of the leader of the people or the minister of God is also essentially important and practiced by the God's faithful people from time immemorial.]

The anti-catholics are deceived by this statement regularly occuring in the book of Psalms and in the other parts of the Bible:

Psalm 32:5 [KJV] "I will CONFESS my transgressions unto the Lord; and THOU forgavest the iniquity of my sin."

However, studying the text and its historical milieu doesn't support the position of those who are attacking the Sacrament of Confession:

1. It doesn't have the word 'ALONE'. It doesn't say "I confess my transgressions unto the Lord ALONE."

2. The addition really distorts the Biblical texts and its meaning. Because it rejects the other Biblical passages showing God asking the people to go to the priests for the atonement of their sins and it rejects the other passages showing that the Prophets or the Man of God can INTERCEDE ON BEHALF OF THE SINS OF THE PEOPLE.

Sorry for you dear Anti-Catholic. Better luck next time.

I John

1:9 If we confess our sins, he [God] is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Ha, ha, ha... Your knowledge and use of Sacred Scriptures are very superficial. Once again that verse doesn't state that we must confess to God alone. Instead, confessing to others first is acceptable to God. This is evident even prior to the coming of the Messiah as shown above and this was practiced by St. John the Baptist and the repentant people of his time:

Mark 1:5 [KJV] "And there went out unto him all the land of Judaea, and they of Jerusalem, and were all baptized of him in the river of Jordan, CONFESSING THEIR SINS." [So, they were going to St. John the Baptist to confess their sins. Of course that confession is directed to God but the intercessory presence of St. John the Baptist was highlighted.]

Your position is too narrow because the Apostles are teaching that even to a non-minister of God, one can confess their sins:

James 5:16 [KJV] "Confess your faults to one another, and pray one for another, that you may be healed."

Ha, ha, ha... So, it pulverizes your position. Imagine, an Apostle is teaching the Christians to confesss their faults to their fellow human beings. That is Confession to a Human Person. Then, he followed it with Intercessory Prayer for each other. Perfectly Catholic. This is further supported by the Lord Jesus when He ordered His followers to settle matters of sin first by personal dialogue:

Matthew 18:15 [KJV] "Moreover, if thy brother shall TRESPASS against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother."

This is a matter of sin. The first thing to do is dialogue. Approach the person. On the part of the sinner he must admit his sin, he must be sorry for it. He must admit and be sorry for it to the one to whom he had transgressed. This is the Biblical Teaching on Sin and Reconciliation. It starts on the human level first, then to the level of the community, then to the level of the Church and then to be elevated to God.

The anti-Catholics violate this order. They eliminate the first and second and third level established by God for the good of His people. That's foul.

Matthew

6:9, 12 After this manner...pray ye: Our Father... forgive us....

You have shamelessly used this passage against us. Let me remind you that we Catholics are the most dedicated religion which recites the OUR FATHER day in and day out. It is part of our Official and Every Act of Worships and Prayers. Something that the Iglesia ni Manalo, Seventh Day Adventist by Ellen Gould White and the Born Again Evangelicals cannot boast of.

You have also forgotten several passages in the Gospel of Matthew:

Matthew 16:19 [KJV] "And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsover thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in haven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."

This is a superlative power given to the Office of Peter. The authority to open and close heaven is handed on to a human person... The Leader of the Church. This is further supported by the succeding verses that shows The Church as the last arbiter on matter of sins here on earth:

Matthew 18:17 [KJV] "And if he shall neglect to hear them, tell it unto THE CHURCH: but if he neglect to hear THE CHURCH, let him be unto thee as an heathen man and a publican."

Take note that in v. 15 prior the issue here is about 'Trespass'... It's about Sin. Then it was followed by the power given to bind and to loose on heaven and earth to the rest of the Apostles, similiar to the one given to Peter in 16:19. See Matthew 18:18.

1 Timothy

2:5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus [not Mary, not saints, not priests, not the pope];

We are not teaching that there are many Mediators between God and Man. What we are teaching is that CHRIST THE ONLY MEDIATOR BETWEEN GOD AND MAN GAVE AUTHORITY TO HIS MINISTERS TO FORGIVE SINS AND TO RECONCILE PEOPLE TO GOD:

John 2o:22-23 [KJV] "And when he (Jesus) had said this, he breathed on them (Apostles), and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost; WHOSE SOEVER SINS YE REMIT, THEY ARE REMITTED UNTO THEM; AND WHOSE SOEVER SINS YE RETAIN, THEY ARE RETAINED."

Which Church is the fulfillment of this Biblical Passage? THE CATHOLIC CHURCH!

The fact that your ministers cannot forgive sins is a proof that you are fake because you do not possess the spiritual powers and authorities handed on by Christ to the leaders of His Church through the Holy Spirit. It only goes to show that you do not have the presence of the Holy Spirit in your ministers. They are useless because they are fake, artificial, self-invented. That is why together with St. Paul our Catholic Ministers of the House of God - the priests can declare:

2 Corinthians 2:10 [KJV] "To whom ye forgive anything, I FORGIVE ALSO: for if I FORGAVE anything, to whom I FORGAVE IT, for your sakes FORGAVE I it IN THE PERSON OF CHRIST."

Ha, ha, ha... THAT'S IT! ST. PAUL FORGIVES IN THE PERSON OF CHRIST. The Apostles from Peter to John the Beloved forgave "In the Person of Christ." Because the Apostles are chosen and empowered by Christ. They are Ministers of Christ. And one of the authorities given to them is to forgive sins in the person of Christ. This is what we call THE APOSTOLIC MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION:

2 Corinthians 5:18 [KJV] "And all things are of God who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and HATH GIVEN TO US THE MINISTRY OF RECONCILIATION."

O ho, ho, ho... Do you have that? No, you don't have that and you even denounce us for having it. Ha, ha, ha... We have that Ministry of Reconciliation and we are proud of it because we, being the True Church, is the recepient of such heavenly gift.

I John 2:1, ...And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.

CORRECT. AMEN TO THAT. BUT JESUS GAVE THE POWER TO FORGIVE SINS TO HUMAN PERSONS - TO THE MINISTERS OF THE CHURCH. Besides, where can you read in the Bible that Confession is to God ALONE? That is the contention which you have not presented me.