Confession

Confession

The sacrament of confession, also known as Holy Repentance or Penance, is a divine mystery of healing in which the penitent openly confesses sins before a priest. The priest serves as a witness and spiritual physician, pronouncing God’s forgiveness and offering guidance for renewal.

Confession is not a merely legal declaration of absolution. It is profoundly therapeutic, spiritual medicine that cleanses the soul of the wounds inflicted by sin, restores broken communion with God and the Church, and imparts grace for ongoing transformation.

The sacramental authority of confession traces directly to Christ’s words to the Apostles on the evening of His Resurrection, when He entrusted them with the power to forgive and retain sins through the gift of the Holy Spirit.

“Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I 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.’” (John 20:21–23)

This apostolic authority is complemented by the exhortation to mutual confession and prayer within the life of the Church, revealing repentance as an act oriented toward healing rather than mere juridical satisfaction.

“Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.” (James 5:16)

These passages reveal confession as a communal and ecclesial act of healing. Sin is understood as a spiritual illness that isolates the person from God and the Church, while confession restores communion through humility, truth, and grace.

Through the priest’s invocation of the Holy Spirit, the soul is healed, forgiven, and reintegrated into divine life. In this way, the Church fulfills her identity as a spiritual hospital, where Christ’s mercy cures the deepest afflictions and restores the faithful to life in Him.