Greetings in Christ...thanks for your reply, I appreciate your perspective...I did lose you though in this statement:
"Personally, if people think its easier to confess their sins to Almighty God, Lord of heaven and earth - the omnipotent Being who they have directly offended without just cause - instead of confessing to a fallible, mortal man, I seriously question their understaning of the nature of their sin, its gravity, or even their understanding of God's Being. If I had killed a king's son, I would find it much easier to tell one of his servants than the king himself. Unless of course I was either a) not afraid of the king's power or b) didn't think my sin was that bad"
I would contend this example is backwards in that confessing to a servant to the king is the equivalent of confessing to a priest/pastor/minister...You noted it's more difficult to confess to the king (God) which is true. So if it's easier to confess to a servant (priest), than king (God) I don't understand why you would question the understanding of the nature of their sin of those who would confess of their actions to the king? I, like many others who confess to God in private petitions, know the gravity of what I have done. I know I have failed to do what i am to do and have done what I should not. I know I deserve eternal punishment for my transgressions. I know that in your example the king would likely call for justice and my death in return. But I also know that God loves mankind so much that he has promised to forgive me for his Son's sake...that is not to say I think God's power is mute, quite the opposite...I confess and ask for forgiveness because of his power.
Please clarify what you meant by your statement...thanks!
Blessings to you and yours...