Why should you confess your sins to a priest rather than directly to God?

Answer 1

This is because Jesus Christ said to his apostles, who were the fist priests, "If you forgive their sins, they shall be forgiven. If you hold them bound, they shall be held bound." The sacrament of Confession was provided by Christ in order that men might have their sins forgiven as well as providing the assurance that they were.

The Church believes that there is such a thing as perfect contrition, that is, that someone can feel so sorry for their sins - that being their motivation is that they are sorry for having offended the loving God - that they can be purged. This type of contrition is known as "perfect contrition", however, it is extremely hard to achieve since often people fear going to hell or other repercussions or have other motives. In fact, without divine assistance, perfect contrition is impossible. In order that these imperfections might not impede the purging of sins, Christ instituted Confession, a means by which people confess their sins to God through His vehicle, the priest. The priest can then apply Christ's redemptive graces, given to the sacrament that "sins may be forgiven" and the person leaves with not only the spiritual assurance but the verbal assurance that their sins have been forgiven.

Answer 2

To be saved and go to heaven requires eating the Body of Christ, else you have no life in you:Then Jesus said to them: Amen, amen I say unto you: Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, you shall not have life in you. John 6:53

To worthily receive the Body and Blood of Christ, you must be in a state of grace (have no serious sin on your soul), thus, you must be absolved of your sins in confession.For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh judgment to himself, not discerning the body of the Lord. 1 Corinthians 11:29

Our Blessed Lord, Jesus Christ, gave His apostles His power to forgive sins:Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained. John 20:23

Thus, the Church, in following the guidance of her Head and Savior, Jesus Christ, requires confession of all those over the age of reason. It should be regular confession (every week to every month) but the Church requires an absolute minimum of once a year. The priest is the representative of Our Blessed Lord, it is through His priests that He communicates sanctifying grace to each and every person throughout space and time.

Answer 3

Roman Catholic AnswerThis is the normal way in which Jesus has set up His Church to forgive sins. Penance is one of the seven sacraments, and confession to a priest is an essential part of the sacrament:

from the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

1455 The confession (or disclosure) of sins, even from a simply human point of view, frees us and facilitates our reconciliation with others. Through such an admission man looks squarely at the sins he is guilty of, takes responsibility for them, and thereby opens himself again to 'God and to the communion of the church in order to make a new future possible.

1456 Confession to a priest is an essential part of the sacrament of Penance: "All mortal sins of which penitents after a diligent self-examination are conscious must be recounted by them in confession, even if they are most secret and have been committed against the last two precepts of the Decalogue; for these sins sometimes wound the soul more grievously and are more dangerous than those which are committed openly.

When Christ's faithful strive to confess all the sins that they can remember, they undoubtedly place all of them before the divine mercy for pardon. But those who fail to do so and knowingly withhold some, place nothing before the divine goodness for remission through the mediation of the priest, "for if the sick person is too ashamed to show his wound to the doctor, the medicine cannot heal what it does not know."

Answer 4

Roman Catholic AnswerThis is the normal way in which Jesus has set up His Church to forgive sins. Penance is one of the seven sacraments, and confession to a priest is an essential part of the sacrament:

from the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

1455 The confession (or disclosure) of sins, even from a simply human point of view, frees us and facilitates our reconciliation with others. Through such an admission man looks squarely at the sins he is guilty of, takes responsibility for them, and thereby opens himself again to 'God and to the communion of the church in order to make a new future possible.

1456 Confession to a priest is an essential part of the sacrament of Penance: "All mortal sins of which penitents after a diligent self-examination are conscious must be recounted by them in confession, even if they are most secret and have been committed against the last two precepts of the Decalogue; for these sins sometimes wound the soul more grievously and are more dangerous than those which are committed openly.

When Christ's faithful strive to confess all the sins that they can remember, they undoubtedly place all of them before the divine mercy for pardon. But those who fail to do so and knowingly withhold some, place nothing before the divine goodness for remission through the mediation of the priest, "for if the sick person is too ashamed to show his wound to the doctor, the medicine cannot heal what it does not know."

Answer 5

It is the sign of changing ourselves througn people through whom confess our sins.The one who confess really repent his sins and we must do it right away on this world.

Answer 6

well you see because god isn't real and the priests know that so they use themselves as scapegoats to distract you from that fact