Priests say more Catholics returning to confession

Daily Bulletin ^ | March 25, 2007 | Selicia Kennedy-Ross

[Kolokotronis]

"I also like the Catholic way of absolution when the Priest says "I hereby absolve you of your sins."

I have always thought that the "Absolvo te" of the Latin Rite absolution is a good example of the different views about the Mysteria of The Church which prevail in the Latin West and the Greek East.

Here's the Greek absolution form:

"My spiritual child, who have made your confession to my humble person: I, humble and sinful, have no power to put away sins on earth unless God does it. But, trusting in the divnely uttered pronouncement that was addressed to the Apostles after the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, saying, "If you remit the sins of any persons, they are remitted; if you you retain the sins of any persons, they have been retained"--in that import we also boldly say: As many offences as you have owned up to to my mosst humble lowliness, and as many as you have failed to say either though ignorance or forgetfulness--of whatever kin--may GOD absolve you both in the present age and in the age to come."

[Then bidding the penitent to kneel, the priest places his tole and hand over the head of the penitent, and touching it in four places in the form of a Cross, says the following Prayer of Absolution]:

"May GOD, Who through Nathan the Prophet forgave David when he confessed his sins; and Peter, who wept bitterly over his denial; and the harlot who shed tears on His feet; and the Publican and the Prodigal; may the very same God, through sinful me, absolve you of all transgressions both in the present age and in the age to come; and may He let you stand uncondemned before His dread Judgment Seat. As for the sins that you have confessed, have no further anxiety about them; go in peace.
The Grace of the all-holy Spirit, through me, least of all, has exonerated and forgiven you. At the prayers of our holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ, God, have mercy and save us. Ameen."

Very different from the West, isn't it.

[ichabod1]

Yes, different words... spells it out more clearly, at least to the eyes of those who would bash us on this site. But the theology is the same.

[Kolokotronis]

" But the theology is the same."

Is it? Doesn't the "Absolvo te of the Latin Rite demonstrate that the absolution is coming from the priest whereas in the Orthodox formulation it is clear that absolution is from God? This has implications for the fundamental difference between the nature of the grace conferred by the sacrament, created (Latin) and uncreated (Orthodox).

[ichabod1]

No, it's very clear, at least to the catechized, that any authority to retain or remit sins by the priest is granted under the gospel passage that you quoted. It is true he says the words "I absolve you", but if anyone doesn't understand that the absolution is granted by God then they are poorly catechized. All sin is against God, forgiveness can only come from God.

Now, as to whether the Holy Spirit procedes from the Father AND the Son, on that we'll have to agree to disagree.

[Kolokotronis]

"It is true he says the words "I absolve you", but if anyone doesn't understand that the absolution is granted by God then they are poorly catechized. All sin is against God, forgiveness can only come from God."

That's not the point. The question is whether the sacrament "creates" grace which is then imparted by The Church in the person of the priest or if the grace is uncreated as an essence of God and flows through the sacrament in the presence of the priest. Notions of created grace, like the impression created by the near absence of an epiklesis in certain Latin Rite liturgies, make sacraments into magic and priests into magicians.

"Now, as to whether the Holy Spirit procedes from the Father AND the Son, on that we'll have to agree to disagree."

Your theologians have determined that the Creed without the filioque innovation is "normative" and should be the prefered wording used for catchesis purposes. There may be those who still think the filioque is theologically correct as traditionally taught, but I suspect that they are few and far between. That said, because of the official explanation which the Latin Church now gives for the filioque, it is no longer proper to call it heretical, or so your hierarchs and mine have determined, which is good enough for me. The Eastern Rite Churches in communion with Rome, save perhaps for the Maronites, do not use the filioque.

[Mad Dawg]

Okay, where do I go to find more on this? Do I HAVE to buy a complete Aquinas? Ouch! I never thought of a new grace but a new instance of grace, the "same old" grace applied to me here and now, and the absolvo as just kind of like the clerk's stamp. But that is just an unexamined notion.

[Kolokotronis]

Read +Gregory Palamas. I don't think Aquinas quite appreciated the distinction.

[ArrogantBustard]

Present form:
"God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen."

"Traditional" form:
Absolution: "Dominus noster Jesus Christus te absolvat; et ego auctoritate ipsius te absolvo ab omni vinculo excommunicationis (sespensionis) et interdicti in quantum possum et tu indiges. [making the Sign of the Cross:] Deinde, ego te absolvo a peccatis tuis in nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen."

Translation: "May our Lord Jesus Christ absolve you; and by His authority I absolve you from every bond of excommunication and interdict, so far as my power allows and your needs require. [making the Sign of the Cross:] Thereupon, I absolve you of your sins in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen."

Post-absolution prayer: "Passio Domini nostri Jesu Christi, merita Beatae Mariae Virginis et omnium sanctorum, quidquid boni feceris vel mail sustinueris sint tibi in remissionem peccatorum, augmentum gratiae et praemium vitae aeternae."

Translation: "May the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the merits of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of all the saints obtain for you that whatever good you do or whatever evil you bear might merit for you the remission of your sins, the increase of grace and the reward of everlasting life."





I don't see how either form suggests that "Grace" is created.

[Kolokotronis]

"I don't see how either form suggests that "Grace" is created."

After Great Lent, and since this seems to come up from time to time, I'll post a C/O caucus thread about the created/uncreated grace issue so we can get into it in detail. The issue is with the "Absolvo te" and and that absolution is from the Church. The words of absolution in confession are just a single example. Really the apparent lack of an epiklesis in some Latin Rite Liturgies is a better example of what I am talking about as is the Latin "Treasury of Merit" concept. Let's discuss all of this after Pascha. It will be interesting if a bit arcane.