What you says sounds like a very good mixture of Faith and Logic...see my profile for a commentary on that. I am going to try to stick asmuch to the facts as possible.
You say, "Your statement that "God honors what the Church promises" is as wrong as it is possible to be wrong."
But then we have the Bible itself: Matthew 16:18-19
"And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it.
I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
Sounds very much like God has to honor the promises of the Church on earth, don't you agree?
You also say that, "it is not even necessary for a priest to act as intermediary." I am pretty certain you need the priest. The Church is not going permit Do It Yourself shops to cut into its business. I don't have the time to research it more fully, but this is what Wikipedia has to say on the subject:
Roman Catholicism
Main article: Sacrament of Penance (Catholic Church)
In the Catholic Church, the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation (formerly called Confession), consists of three parts: contritio, confessio and satisfactio...In this Sacrament, the penitent (repentant sinner, known as confessant) accuses himself of his sins to an ordained priest (known as confessor). The priest may then offer advice and imposes a particular penance to be performed. The penitent then prays an Act of Contrition, the priest administers absolution, thus formally forgiving the penitent of his sins, and finally sends him out with words of dismissal...
It seems that having a priest to bestow Absolution is a must, especially when taking the Matthew 16:19 into account. But if you can provide a valid link, say from the Vatican or some Cardinal who says DIY confession can get you off the hook, then I will concede the point. |
