One eminent and highly intelligent Catholic writer made these observations: “As Catholics, it is essential to speak our sins to Christ through the priest in persona Christi that we might develop habits of examining our consciences, confessing our sins, receiving sacramental grace, resolving to improve, and receiving the real grace of the sacrament of Penance. Such habits alert us to our vanities and ego and in turn inspire in us reverence and humility.”
We would agree that it is a good habit to use the tool of introspection; 2 Corinthians 13:5 gives us this admonition: “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Prove yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.” This is particularly required of the people of God to do before they take the Passover: “But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup” (1 Corinthians 11:28), but it should also be an ongoing process throughout the year.
But what is the Sacrament of PENANCE? It is worth spending some time on this whole matter as it is quite revealing about how the largest Christian mainstream group managed to come to this incorrect conclusion through the misunderstanding of Scripture. On the website yourcatholicguide, we read the following: “Penance is the sacrament by which sins committed after Baptism are forgiven through the absolution of the priest.”
First of all, let us look at the question of baptism. On the website catholicdoors, we read: “In the Roman Catholic Church, most believers are baptized by pouring (also known as infusion). At the same time, Catholics know that immersion (also known as dunking) and sprinkling are valid ways of baptizing… in A.D. 1311, the Catholic Church proclaimed ‘Baptism is to be administered by tribe immersion or aspersion.” “Aspersion” means “sprinkling.”
We have a free booklet entitled “Baptism – A Requirement for Salvation?”, which covers this matter in detail, showing that baptism by total immersion is the correct and only valid format.
Secondly, let us look at whether the assertion is biblical that “Penance is the sacrament by which sins committed after Baptism are forgiven through the absolution of the priest.”
Wikipedia gives us the definition of “In persona Christi”: “In persona Christi is a Latin phrase meaning ‘in the person of Christ’, an important concept in Roman Catholicism and, in varying degrees, to other Christian traditions, such as Lutheranism and Anglicanism. In Catholic theology, a priest is In persona Christi because, in the sacraments he administers, it is God and Christ who act through the instrumentality of the priest.”
This explanation is not totally accurate. The Catholic teaching is not only that the priest acts on behalf of Christ, but that it is the living Christ who is present and acts. In other words, the priest acts in the person of Christ. In that sense, he becomes Christ. When the priest absolves the penitent, he doesn’t say, “God absolves you from your sins” but rather “I absolve you from your sins,” because he is acting in the person of Christ at that moment.
With a priest being involved, the word “absolution” comes into play. The definition of absolution is “An absolving, or setting free from guilt, sin, or penalty; forgiveness of an offense” (The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language).
At the time of Christ, Jews condemned Him when He forgave sins. In Mark 2:7, we read: “Why does this Man speak blasphemies like this? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” In Luke 5:21, we read: “And the scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, “Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” When He was on earth, Jesus did forgive sins (see Matthew 9:2; Mark 2:10; Luke 5:24; 7:48-49) as He was the Son of God. It is claimed that Christ gave the apostles the authority to forgive sins, while others deny this.
We read in John 20:21-23: “Then Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace to you! As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.’ And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’”
The passage in John 20 is in direct connection with the power and authority to bind and loose, which Christ conferred on His ministers. We state the following in our Q&A on that topic https://www.eternalgod.org/question-and-answer-70/:
“We are told in Matthew 16:19, that Christ gave Peter the ‘keys of the kingdom of heaven’… Christ continues to say that whatever ‘thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven’ (Authorized Version). Christ addresses Peter in this passage, as the word ‘thou,’ a singular word, shows. However, in Matthew 18:18, Christ does not only speak to Peter, when He says: ‘Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever YE shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever YE shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven (Authorized Version).’ While the word ‘thou’ (in Matthew 16:19) refers to just one person, the word ‘ye’ (in Matthew 18:18) refers to more than one person.
“In Matthew 18:15-17, Christ had just explained the proper procedure regarding an unrepentant brother or sister. If he or she does not hear ‘the church,’ that is, the ministry, ‘let him be unto THEE as an heathen man and a publican.’ It is the church, through its ministry, which will make the decision to disassociate from such a person. Such a decision involves, of course, a judgment whether or not the person is repentant and whether or not the sins of the person are forgiven. And so, we read in John 20:22-23 (Authorized Version): ‘And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive YE the Holy [Spirit]: Whose soever sins YE remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins YE retain, they are retained.’
“The ministry has been given the authority from God, to ‘bind and loose,’ and to ‘remit’ and ‘retain’ sin. It is critical that we understand correctly the scope of this authority. When returning to Matthew 16:19, we find, in the New King James Bible, the following annotation in the margin: ‘Or, “will have been bound… will have been loosed.”’ The Ryrie Study Bible explains: ‘Lit., “shall have been bound… shall have been loosed.” Heaven, not the apostles, initiates all binding and loosing, while the apostles announce these things…”
“The New American Standard Bible translates Matthew 16:19, as follows: ‘…and whatever you shall bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you shall loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven’…
“Regarding John 20:23, the Ryrie Study Bible states: ‘Since only God can forgive sins (Mark 2:7), the disciples and the Church are here given the authority to declare what God does when a man either accepts or rejects His Son.’ We might also add that Christ had announced to them that they would soon receive the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us wisdom and discernment, and enables especially the ministry, when used correctly, to ascertain whether a person is repentant or not…
“The New Bible Commentary: Revised… adds the following remarks: ‘The promise does not of course mean that God will be bound by anything that Peter says (cf. Gal. 2:11), but that things done according to the will of Christ will have binding validity….’
In another Q&A on John 20:23, https://www.eternalgod.org/i-am-having-trouble-understanding-john-2020-23-did-jesus-give-the-apostles-and-the-church-the-power-to-forgive-sin/ we state the following:
“[It] is critically important to understand… that Peter and the rest of the apostles were given authority to baptize in the name of Jesus Christ and to lay hands on those baptized for the receiving of God’s Holy Spirit. They did not forgive those repenting of sins, but they were guided by God to see in people fruits worthy of repentance and those who did not have them—such as with Simon (Acts 8:18-24). John the Baptist was guided by God as well (Matthew 3:8). But they did not give the Holy Spirit, for this was done by God (Acts 5:32)…
“When Ananias and Sapphira lied to Peter, they died (Acts 5:1-11). To Ananias, Peter said, ‘“…You have not lied to men but to God”’ (verse 4); to Sapphira, Peter said, “‘How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.”’ Then immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. And the young men came in and found her dead, and carrying her out, buried her by her husband. So great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things’ (verses 9-11).
“Peter dealt with the sin of lying and there were consequences; however, it was not he who caused the death of Ananias or Sapphira—it was God…
“In the two letters to the Corinthians, Paul addressed a grievous sin being committed and knowingly condoned by others: ‘It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles–that a man has his father’s wife! And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you’ (1 Corinthians 5:1-2).
“Paul directed that this person be expelled from the Church, and it was to be done by the authority of Christ. That meant the sin was to be judged based on God’s Law: ‘In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when you are gathered together, along with my spirit, with the power of our Lord Jesus Christ, deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus’ (1 Corinthians 5:4-5).
“Because Paul decisively confronted sin by disfellowshipping the man, the sinning individual repented! In this poignant example, Paul ‘retained’ the man’s sins through applying the Law of God. When there was repentance, the man was ‘forgiven’… God uses His Church to lead people to repentance of sins. Now, though, and unlike the priestly administration in ancient Israel, because of the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ, upon true repentance, God will forgive a person’s sins.”
There is a fundamental distinction between trespasses and sins. Trespass is against another human being, but sin is against God. It is true that we should confess our trespasses to one another (James 5:16). But this does not apply to confessing our sins to others.
We wrote the following in a Q&A on the topic of confessing our sins to others https://www.eternalgod.org/q-a-3815/:
“The Bible teaches that we are to confess our sins to God. We read in 1 John 1:8-9, ‘If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.’ Other Scriptures clarify that such confession must be made to God. Romans 14:10-12 states, ‘But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ. For it is written: “As I live, says the LORD, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God.” So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.’
“We read that the people came to John the Baptist, ‘confessing their sins’ (Matthew 3:6). Note, however, it does not say that they were confessing their sins to John. Other Scriptures tell us that confession of sins is to be made to God.
“The practice taught by some religions to confess our sins to a human mediator to obtain forgiveness by that person is not Biblical. We are taught that we have only one Mediator and Advocate between God and man who makes intercession for us before God the Father — Jesus Christ (1 Timothy 2:5; 1 John 2:1-2; Hebrews 7:25). It is God who forgives sin (Mark 2:7; Isaiah 43:25; Acts 5:31). David understood that sin, in the final analysis, is against God (Psalm 51:3-4), as God gave us His law which defines for us sinful conduct (James 4:12).
“John 20:23 does not justify a different conclusion… This passage does not teach confession to a priest… Jesus’ words in John 20:23 — as well as in Matthew 16:19 and Matthew 18:18 — are not to be understood as saying that God’s ministers are free to ‘forgive’ sins — or to refuse to grant forgiveness — and that God is bound by such a decision. Rather, the passages, correctly translated, convey the thought that God inspires His ministers to make those decisions, and whatever they bind on earth HAS ALREADY BEEN bound by God in heaven.
“We should therefore generally not ‘confess’ or tell our sins to others. There is, however, one exception to this rule. We are being told in James 5:16 that we are to ‘confess [our] trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that [we] may be healed.’ The Greek word for ‘trespass,’ paraptoma, is used in numerous additional passages, for instance in Galatians 6:1; Ephesians 2:1; 2:5; or 2 Corinthians 5:19. It is consistently and correctly translated in the New King James Bible as ‘trespasses’ in those passages. We are told in Colossians 2:13 that God, upon our repentance, forgives us all of our ‘trespasses.’ We are also told that if we forgive men their ‘trespasses,’ our Father will forgive us our ‘trespasses’ as well, but if we do not forgive men their ‘trespasses,’ our Father will not forgive us our ‘trespasses,’ either (Matthew 6:14-15; compare Matthew 18:35).
“The ‘trespasses’ which we need to confess to our brother or sister, in order to obtain his or her ‘forgiveness,’ are those that we have committed against our brother or our sister. Mark 11:25-26 tells us, ‘And whenever you stand praying, if you have anything against anyone, forgive him, that your Father in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses.’ Unresolved problems between brethren might even prevent healing of physical sickness. James 5:16 tells us, ‘Confess your trespasses to one another [with the goal to ‘clear the air’], and pray for one another, THAT you may be healed.’ After all, Christ told Peter to forgive his repenting brother ‘seventy times seven.’ In Peter’s question, the brother had sinned against Peter and had come to him to express to him his sorrow — in other words, to ‘confess’ to Peter his trespass or sin against Peter…
“If we commit a sin or trespass against someone else, resulting in an offense and a problem within our relationship with that other person, we are to ‘confess’ our sin or trespass to that person, asking him or her for forgiveness, with the goal of restoring our relationship… At the same time, the Bible does not teach that we should ‘confess’ or tell others (including a minister) sins that we might have committed against God. God can forgive and forget (Hebrews 8:12) — people, though, being human, have a long memory many times when it comes to the sins of others.”
When we forgive another person for whatever the problem was, we are forgiving their trespass against us and we are admonished not to hold a grudge. Leviticus 19:18 reads: “You shall not take vengeance, nor bear any grudge against the children of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.”
It is very different than God forgiving us. We must understand that there is quite a contrast and distinction between God’s forgiveness and our forgiveness of others. The following verses show that when we receive the forgiveness of God, He blots out the sin and removes the guilt.
We read in Isaiah 43:25:” “I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake; And I will not remember your sins.”
In Psalm 103:3 is further instruction: “Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases,” and verses 10-12: “He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities. For as the heavens are high above the earth, So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him; As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.”
When the Bible speaks about us forgiving others, it is different than God forgiving us. God forgives sins because only He can forgive sins that violate His standards.
Regarding the Roman Catholic priest and his involvement in the “forgiving of sins,” 1 Timothy 2:5 is instructive: “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus.” The Greek word for “Mediator” is “mesites” which means “middle man,” and that is Jesus Christ, not a Roman Catholic priest.
The website catholic.com has a very long explanation about absolution and the following is but a brief extract:
“Absolution (Ab = from; solvere = to free), is the remission of sin, or of the punishment due to sin, granted by the Church… Absolution proper is that act of the priest whereby, in the Sacrament of Penance, he frees man from sin. It presupposes on the part of the penitent, contrition, confession, and promise at least of satisfaction; on the part of the minister, valid reception of the Order of Priesthood and jurisdiction, granted by competent authority, over the person receiving the sacrament. That there is in the Church power to absolve sins committed after baptism the Council of Trent thus declares: ‘But the Lord then principally instituted the Sacrament of Penance, when, being raised from the dead, He breathed upon His disciples saying, ‘Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them, and whose sins you shall retain, they are retained.’ By which action so signal, and words so clear the consent of all the Fathers has ever understood that the power of forgiving and retaining sins was communicated to the Apostles, and to their lawful successors for the reconciling of the faithful who have fallen after baptism.”
As we have explained above, this interpretation is totally wrong and unbiblical. The website of 9marks concurs, stating:
“If absolution from sin is the meaning of Jesus’ words in John 20:23, then we must ponder exactly what His intention was when He gave His followers authority to forgive sin (or not). Did He make them judges and invest in them power to pass judiciary sentence, granting or withholding divine pardon, as the Catholic Church teaches? Or did Jesus make them His ambassadors to proclaim forgiveness through faith in His name, as Christians believe? In other words, can a sinner receive forgiveness directly from God through faith, or must he avail himself of the Catholic priest’s mediation? The Bible is clear: no priest is needed to mediate between God and man, ‘For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus’ (1 Timothy 2:5). The Catholic teaching of absolution is not scriptural.”
In our free booklet “Why This Confusion About Life After Death?,” we cover such matters as “A Catholic Priest Cannot Give Absolution to a Dying Person” and many other erroneous and non-biblical teachings. Quoting briefly from this, we read:
“The Catholic Church believes that a Catholic priest can give absolution to a dying person but this is not biblical. Only God can forgive sins upon true repentance (see Luke 5:21 and Mark 2:7). We read that absolution, in the ecclesiastical sense, implies a remission of sin or its penalties. In the Roman Catholic Church, the power to absolve is vested in the priest as we read above, and he assigns a penance! However, we are NOT to confess our sins to a priest, but to God. Also, this absolution is made in the name of the Trinity which is yet another non-biblical error. There is nothing biblical about this approach at all. As we have seen, the Bible does not teach the Trinity.”
All of this information must surely reveal to those who have eyes to see that, as also in many other matters, the Roman Catholic Church misunderstands what is written in the Word of God. Those of us in the Church of God must not fall into the trap of accepting non-biblical practices. We have the Bible as our guide to life and we read a passage of Scripture where Jesus was praying for His disciples when He said: “I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth” (John 17:15-17).
And God’s Word is what we must live by!
Lead Writers: Brian Gale (United Kingdom) and Norbert Link
