10/29/11

Slow Journey Away From Rome – Auricular Confession

Following is a Guest Post by Suzanne, who is currently strugging with her Catholic faith. I thank her for her valuable contribution.


The issue of confession is what first began to make me question Catholicism—and I am 30 and have been a willing and devout Catholic my whole life, until a few months ago. I have come to believe that the requirement of individual sacramental confession (auricular confession) puts artificial bounds on Jesus’ forgiveness. Auricular confession can be a great chosen path, and should be available as a choice—for example if someone wants to talk privately about a recurring sin; however, the absolute sacramental requirement for the sole particular ritual is misplaced in many situations.

The type of situation that has been described on this site—getting too close to your confessor—is clearly a danger, both because of the privacy of the confessional and the vulnerability of the confessor, and the stringency of celibacy (which I do not find wrong in itself, but it must be acknowledged that lifelong celibacy is a special condition that should be protected by not adding temptation)—for even a priest devoted to keeping proper boundaries might find himself sorely tempted when confronted with the intimacy that auricular confession requires.

There is something amiss in a system that exclusively requires priestly confession, and I am thinking in particular of, for example, a 14 year old girl who is struggling with sexual sins like masturbation. Imagine the difficulty of a 14 year old girl confessing that sin, out loud, to a priest who is probably twice her age. But the alternative is to risk burning in hell.  Is this kind of choice between deep embarrassment and hellfire really the reason why Jesus came? The "secret" confession available (with the screen) is an illusion, because our priests know us and they know our voices. And how difficult must it be for priests to hear parishioners detailing their sexual sins over and over, when they are vowed to be celibate!

The specific rite of auricular confession is not as old as the church itself and in fact it is much newer. When I turned 30 this year, I began to question why I, a grown woman, must tell my most embarrassing deeds to a priest—who I may have gone to college with, who I drank with at parties—and have him hand out penance to me when he knows nothing about the strains of being a mother, being a woman, being a wife—any of it.

Many Protestant churches offer a general confession, where parishioners admit and confess their specific sins to God in their heart, and the priest offers the Protestant version of "absolution." This option exists in the Catholic church as well, but it is rarely offered. I believe many more souls would actually confess and repent of their sins if this option were offered, because it preserves the dignity and modesty of the individual. I personally feel that this is particularly true in the case of young girls, although any demographic may have serious issues with confessing to a priest, for many reasons.

In my prayer and study I begin to know Jesus as the One who is with us in these dark times—the continual process of sanctification—and He is with us whether we sinned two minutes ago or two years ago. God is God of the desert as well as God of the mountaintop.

8 comments:

Conrad said...

Suzanne, the reservations you have about the requirement of confession are assuredly valid. I’d like to add a few points.

As you say, the specific rite of auricular confession is not as old as the church. For the first seven centuries, all confessions were public! The Church created confession so as to welcome back the sinner who had distanced himself from the church by one or more of the “big four” sins (apostasy, idolatry, murder or adultery) that effecxtively isolated them from the Christian community. These were sins that were already widely known, so it was not a matter of revealing skeletons in the closet, but rather one of asking for forgiveness from the community and (re)acceptance into it. The sinner made his confession to the bishop, and the bishop, in the name of the Christian community and after a suitable “penance” had been performed as a test of sincerity, absolved him and welcomed him back into the fold. That made lots of sense!

In succeeding centuries the process went through metamorphosis, and the original institute is hardly recognizable today. The focus shifted from communal reconciliation to personal sanctification. Public confession gave way to private confession, thanks to the ingenuity of the Irish Benedictine monks, who, in the 8th century, utilized it to assure the sinner that his/her sins were forgiven, a practice that met resistance and stern prohibition from Rome. In other words, private confession was not even available to Christians for most of the first millenium. If private confession is so absolutely necessary, as the neo-conservatives in the Church today insist, it would mean that the Church denied a necessary means of salvation to Christians for at least 700 years!

With the development of sacramental theology in the twelfth century, emphasis continued to shift away from communal reconciliation and toward increase of personal grace. In time, the confessional came to be called a tribunal, or courtroom, in which the priest was a judge and the penitent put himself on trial. Salutary penance, originally imposed to prove the penitent's sincerity, now came to be assigned as a remedy for sin and, perhaps unfortunately, as a penalty, to offset the remaining "punishment due to sin." The secrecy of the confessional effectively obliterated the aspect of reconciliation with the community, belying its recent description as the “Sacrament of Reconciliation.”

Suzanne, you’re also right on in your implication that today’s catechesis about confession limits the forgiveness that Jesus wants to impart. Mainly, the disproportionate emphasis on confession tends to give the impression that it is the only means of obtaining forgiveness of sin, ignoring all the liturgical texts and biblical passages that speak about forgiveness. Since sin is essentially a denial of love, and love is the very antithesis of sin, love forgives sin immediately and without need of any ecclesiastical procedure or intervention, as surely as the rising sun dispels the darkness of night!

I think mandated confession should be limited to its original purpose: reconciliation of the sinner to the Christian community when the sinner has isolated himself from the community by his sin. If the sin is public, so should be the conversion and the absolution. Though private confession could still be an option for the forgiveness of secret sins, they can be effectively erased simply by turning away from evil and doing good. (See Isaiah 1:16-18, Acts 10:43, Luke 7:47, 1 Pt. 4:8, et al.)

Conrad

Conrad said...

Suzanne, the reservations you have about the requirement of confession are assuredly valid. I’d like to add a few points.

As you say, the specific rite of auricular confession is not as old as the church. For the first seven centuries, all confessions were public! The Church created confession so as to welcome back the sinner who had distanced himself from the church by one or more of the “big four” sins (apostasy, idolatry, murder or adultery) that effecxtively isolated them from the Christian community. These were sins that were already widely known, so it was not a matter of revealing skeletons in the closet, but rather one of asking for forgiveness from the community and (re)acceptance into it. The sinner made his confession to the bishop, and the bishop, in the name of the Christian community and after a suitable “penance” had been performed as a test of sincerity, absolved him and welcomed him back into the fold. That made lots of sense!

In succeeding centuries the process went through metamorphosis, and the original institute is hardly recognizable today. The focus shifted from communal reconciliation to personal sanctification. Public confession gave way to private confession, thanks to the ingenuity of the Irish Benedictine monks, who, in the 8th century, utilized it to assure the sinner that his/her sins were forgiven, a practice that met resistance and stern prohibition from Rome. In other words, private confession was not even available to Christians for most of the first millenium. If private confession is so absolutely necessary, as the neo-conservatives in the Church today insist, it would mean that the Church denied a necessary means of salvation to Christians for at least 700 years!

With the development of sacramental theology in the twelfth century, emphasis continued to shift away from communal reconciliation and toward increase of personal grace. In time, the confessional came to be called a tribunal, or courtroom, in which the priest was a judge and the penitent put himself on trial. Salutary penance, originally imposed to prove the penitent's sincerity, now came to be assigned as a remedy for sin and, perhaps unfortunately, as a penalty, to offset the remaining "punishment due to sin." The secrecy of the confessional effectively obliterated the aspect of reconciliation with the community, belying its recent description as the “Sacrament of Reconciliation.”

Suzanne, you’re also right on in your implication that today’s catechesis about confession limits the forgiveness that Jesus wants to impart. Mainly, the disproportionate emphasis on confession tends to give the impression that it is the only means of obtaining forgiveness of sin, ignoring all the liturgical texts and biblical passages that speak about forgiveness. Since sin is essentially a denial of love, and love is the very antithesis of sin, love forgives sin immediately and without need of any ecclesiastical procedure or intervention, as surely as the rising sun dispels the darkness of night!

I think mandated confession should be limited to its original purpose: reconciliation of the sinner to the Christian community when the sinner has isolated himself from the community by his sin. If the sin is public, so should be the conversion and the absolution. Though private confession could still be an option for the forgiveness of secret sins, they can be effectively erased simply by turning away from evil and doing good. (See Isaiah 1:16-18, Acts 10:43, Luke 7:47, 1 Pt. 4:8, et al.)

Conrad

Anonymous said...

Dear Suzanne, Perhaps God is challenging you and inviting you to grow into a deeper relationship, one that is based on trust and compassion. I can't imagine loving or trusting a God who you believe would condemn a 14 year old to hell for masturbating (which is quite normal for 14 year olds to do) without confessing to a priest. God created humanity and understands the human condition and is on our side, despite what the current hierarchs tell us. Confession can be healthy and healing but is often used as a method of control. Allow yourself the freedom the God gives you. Use your God-given mind, heart and spirit to discern when you need to draw nearer to Christ and be cleanse through the sacranebt of reconciliation, and when you need simply to stand before God (at Mass or in private prayer) and ask to be forgiven. Then trust that God's love is greater than your sin and be forgiven.

Anonymous said...

Hi Suzanne, I truly do understand where you're coming from. Regarding confession, I base my beliefs on what God's Word instructs us to do. When you read 1 John 1:9 it says to confess your sins to God because He is faithful and just to forgive sin. It also talks about confessing our sins to "one another". To me, “one another” refers to the person(s) I purposely or unintentionally hurt/wronged in some way. I need to ask forgiveness from them as I own up to my thoughtless actions/words. When I struggle with sin in my life, I pray for God’s help to stop those desires that lead me away from Him. He provides a “one another” spiritual friend who understands and to whom we can bare our souls for the purpose of direction and healing. God is God, sin is sin, and well aware of my own actions and/or words, it is at that very moment I cry out to God in shame confessing my wrong-doing, and beg His forgiveness.

According to the Bible, I can rest assured that by faith not only am I forgiven, but He chooses to totally forget too! I love the verse that talks about Him removing our sins as far as the east is from the west. This is way cool! I can’t find anything in the Bible that addresses the need for a human intercessor. To me, forgiveness from our Lord doesn’t come via any ritual, but straight from the “ONE who knows me well” and to Him must I give an account of my wrong-doings. Something as simple as talking with God, one-on-one, about EVERYTHING has evolved into a complicated task of sorts whereby religion dictates the “how to” process. I love my God from the very depths of my being and the Trinity is my best friend and confidant. No person or institution can instruct me to blindly walk by the rules instead of simply walking by His side. It’s been tried again and again, where simple truth, faith, and trust in God has human-strings attached resulting in chaos and great pain.

Suzanne, your answers are all in the same place, God’s Word to us. If things spiritually don’t add up or seem “off” or uncomfortable, weigh TRUTH using the Trinity’s scale. One side holds a simple Bible, the other decades of historical events, unholy methods of operation, man’s interpretations, regulations, and devotion to a hierarchy. Trust your heart and your faith in God to lead you closer to Him. And, yes, question - that is the Holy Spirit’s nudge to find answers from God. Let nothing and no one separate you from God’s unconditional love. You are the daughter of a King – perfectly made in His image. God bless you Suzanne!

Anonymous said...

It is not said in the Bible that masturbation is a sin and in fact many Catholics don't mention it in the confession which makes the confession a sacrilege. On the other hand it is kind of schisophrenic to force oneself to regret something that doesn't really make you any harm. It might actually be good for you (I'm not talking about addiction). I am 99% sure that masturbation will not be considered a deadly sin 50 or 80 years from now. Until then, little boys and girls have to face this huge and undeserved shame on their own...

Anonymous said...

The trouble with "confession" is that most of us don't have much to confess. We are not bad. It is crazy to expect people to "confess" when they haven't done anything wrong.

The focus is on artificial "sins" and unwarranted guilt. Why not focus on the positive? Ask each other "What have we done for others?" or "How can we be of more help?" Maybe, "How can we do better next time," but are we evil? Not most of us. Those who are perceived to be, often there is some underlying cause (mental illness, PTSD, etc.), though not always.

I've never understood "confession." I'm sorry I made my oldest child do this, and I'm glad my other kids don't have to (we are no longer Catholic). It is a sorry message to send to people, imho.

Suzanne said...

This is Suzanne -- Wow! I haven't visited this site in a long time, and I was so blessed by the posts here today. I actually came across this blog again in a random Google search about mourning the loss of Catholicism, because the pain of my loss is coming back again, over a year later. I am so encouraged by your kind messages. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

Masturbation has been my #1 "sin" in the confessional since I was confirmed in 1999. No priest has told me the exact same thing. One declares it venial, one states I have an addiction, one states it's always been mortal and one even copped an attitude with me one session and said there was NOTHING he could do for me. Don't you love Rome? I no longer do and am heading for the Episcopal Church where love is shown to all regardless of what ails them. Trust me, I feel your pain.