It is a fair question and one that comes up regularly on Catholic Answers Live, which airs weekdays at 5 PM on 94.9 FM Tulsa and is available to stream anytime online. The answer begins with a specific passage in John’s Gospel and unfolds from there into a sacramental theology that has shaped Catholic practice for nearly two thousand years.
The Scriptural Foundation
John 20:22-23
On the evening of the day of the Resurrection, Jesus appears to the disciples and says: “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 20:22–23). This passage is the cornerstone of Catholic teaching on the sacrament of confession. Jesus does not simply announce that sins are forgiven. He gives his disciples an active authority over forgiveness: the power to forgive and the power to retain.
Catholic teaching holds that this authority did not end with the apostles. Through apostolic succession, the authority entrusted to the apostles has been passed on through the bishops and, through them, to ordained priests. When a priest hears confession, he is not exercising his own power. Instead, he is acting as an instrument of the authority Christ gave to the Church.
James 5:16
The Letter of James also touches on confessing sins: “Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed” (James 5:16). The directive here is explicit: confess sins, and do so to another person. Catholic practice gives this directive a sacramental structure, placing it within the ordained ministry of the Church, but the instinct in James is the same: the healing of sin is tied to its acknowledgment before another and to the prayer that follows.
What the Church Teaches
The Priest Acts in the Person of Christ
The Catholic Church teaches that when a priest pronounces absolution, he does so in persona Christi, in the person of Christ. This does not mean the priest claims any power of his own. It means he acts as the instrument through which Christ’s forgiveness reaches the penitent. This is why the form of absolution is spoken in the first person: “I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” The priest speaks as the voice of Christ’s authority, not his own.
The same theology applies in the Mass, where the priest acts in persona Christi in the words of consecration. In both cases, the priest’s person is not the source of what happens. He is the instrument.
The Three Acts of the Penitent
The Catechism describes three acts that belong to the penitent: contrition, confession, and satisfaction. Contrition is genuine sorrow for sin and the resolve not to sin again. Confession is the telling of sins to the priest, and Catholics are required to confess serious sins by name and number. Satisfaction is the penance the priest assigns after absolution: a prayer, an act of charity, or some other work that begins to repair what sin has damaged. It is not a payment for forgiveness, but rather a participation in the restoration that forgiveness makes possible.
What Absolution Does
The Catechism teaches that absolution removes the guilt of sin and reconciles the person to God and to the Church. It also removes the eternal punishment associated with forgiven sins. What may remain after absolution is what the tradition calls temporal punishment: the effects and consequences of sin that are worked out through the penitent’s own acts of reparation, including the assigned penance.
The Sacramental Seal
Everything said in confession is covered by an absolute confidentiality called the sacramental seal. A priest cannot reveal what a penitent has confessed under any circumstances. The Catechism (paragraph 1467) describes this seal as admitting no exceptions. It is, in fact, one of the most absolute forms of confidentiality in any institution.
The Historical Continuity of the Practice
The Early Church
The practice of confessing sins within the life of the Church is not a medieval invention. Early Christian writers reference forms of penitential practice that carry the same basic shape as the sacrament the Church continues to celebrate today. Cyprian of Carthage, writing in the third century, discusses the restoration of those who had lapsed in faith through a formal process involving the Church’s ministers. Ambrose of Milan, writing in the fourth century, speaks explicitly of the priest’s role in forgiving sins through the authority given by Christ.
The early form of the practice was often public, with penitents undergoing a visible process of reconciliation before the whole community. Over the centuries, the practice developed toward the private form familiar today, where the confession takes place between the penitent and the priest alone. The structure changed; the theology did not.
What Actually Happens in Confession
A Practical Walkthrough
For someone unfamiliar with the sacrament, the experience of confession is often quieter than expected. The penitent approaches the priest, either in a confessional or in a face-to-face setting, and begins with a brief formula indicating how long it has been since their last confession. They then name their sins. The priest may offer a brief reflection, and then assigns a penance. The penitent says an act of contrition, expressing sorrow for their sins. Finally, the priest pronounces absolution. The whole encounter is typically brief.
The priest’s role is what the Catechism calls that of a judge and a healer. He applies the Church’s judgment regarding sin and ministers the healing mercy of Christ. Many people describe the experience as one of genuine relief, not because emotions were managed but because something objective happened: the sin was named, the mercy was received, and the weight of it was no longer being carried alone.
Finding Confession in Tulsa
For anyone in the Tulsa area who wants to receive the sacrament, parishes throughout the metro offer regular confession times. St. Michael Catholic Radio also covers questions about the sacrament regularly on its daily programming. The full weekday schedule is at stmichaelsradio.com/programs for anyone who wants to follow along.
Sources
- Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraphs 1422–1498
- New Revised Standard Version of the Bible
- Program schedule sourced from stmichaelsradio.com/programs (captured June 2026)
12 Flashcard Q&As
Q1: Why do Catholics confess sins to a priest rather than directly to God? A: Because Catholic teaching holds that Christ gave the apostles authority to forgive sins (John 20:22–23), and that this authority continues through ordained priests. The priest acts as an instrument of Christ’s forgiveness, not on his own authority.
Q2: What does John 20:22-23 say? A: On the day of the Resurrection, Jesus gives the disciples the Holy Spirit and says: “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” Catholics understand this as the scriptural foundation of the sacrament of confession.
Q3: What does “in persona Christi” mean? A: “In the person of Christ.” When the priest pronounces absolution, he acts as the instrument through which Christ’s forgiveness reaches the penitent. The authority is Christ’s; the priest is the voice through which it is applied.
Q4: What are the three acts of the penitent in confession? A: Contrition (genuine sorrow for sin), confession (telling sins to the priest), and satisfaction (the penance assigned by the priest, which begins to repair what sin has damaged).
Q5: What does the priest say when he grants absolution? A: “I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.” The first-person form reflects the theology that the priest speaks in the person of Christ, not on his own behalf.
Q6: What does absolution actually do? A: It removes the guilt of sin and reconciles the person to God and to the Church. The Catechism teaches that it removes both the guilt and the eternal punishment associated with forgiven sins.
Q7: Is everything said in confession kept secret? A: Yes. The sacramental seal is absolute. A priest cannot reveal what a penitent has confessed under any circumstances whatsoever. The Catechism (paragraph 1467) describes this seal as admitting no exceptions.
Q8: Did the early Church practice confession? A: Yes. Early Christian writers including Cyprian of Carthage (third century) and Ambrose of Milan (fourth century) reference the practice of sacramental penance and the role of the Church’s ministers in reconciling sinners.
Q9: What is the difference between asking God for forgiveness privately and receiving sacramental absolution? A: Catholic teaching holds that both involve real encounters with God’s mercy. Sacramental absolution is a specific action of the Church through which Christ’s forgiveness is applied in a definitive and objective way, through the authority he gave to the apostles.
Q10: How often are Catholics expected to go to confession? A: The Church requires Catholics to confess serious sins at least once a year. Regular confession, even of less serious sins, is encouraged as a practice of ongoing conversion.
Q11: What is the role of the priest in confession? A: The Catechism describes it as that of a judge and a healer. He applies the Church’s judgment regarding sin and ministers the healing mercy of Christ. He does not act on his own authority but in the person of Christ.
Q12: Where can I hear this topic discussed on Catholic radio in Tulsa? A: Catholic Answers Live airs weekdays at 5 PM on 94.9 FM Tulsa and addresses questions about confession regularly. The station is also available to stream at stmichaelsradio.com/listen.
