South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1914-10-16


In speaking/of The Forgiveness Of
Sins last erening, Father Conway
said In part:
NO theme. perhaps. IS dearer TO
the heart OF the Catholic priest, save
only the real presence Of Jesus christ
in the sacrament of the altar, than
the sacrament of pelance.
Sin is one great evil that con-
fronts US today. Everywhere we meet
that power OF hell which wins men
away from all that is pure and good
and holy, which entices men from
the service Of God and the standards
OF Jesus Christ. to join under the
promise OF pleasure the service OF
satan and the standard OF hell"
Father Conway took up arguments
against confession brought forward
by uon-CathOlics The following
specified questions often asked by
them he answered as follows:
why not go TO God directly? Be
cause 10 Us not the way established by
Christ Why does not a soldier re-
port TO his general Because the
army regulations demand that he re-
port 20 his immediate officer. Why
pay our taxes 20 the king? Because
it is not the law.
How can "a sin be pardoned by
merely telling it2 1t can not be.
Forgiveness is only given 10 those
who repent with a supernatural sor-
row for the past, promising never 10
offend again, to make good the evil
done and TO avoid in The future all
danger Of SHINING. Judas confessed
his sin, but. unrepentant, he did not
obtain forgiveness
Makes Sin Difficult
Does not the confession OF sin
make sin easy2 on the contrary, il
makes sin more difficult IL is quite
easy TO kneel down in ones room and
confess 10 God; but TO confess 10 a
fellow mortal who will insist on a
strong purpose of amendment and by
whom promise is strictly enacted TO
AVOID the dangers of sin requires
strong determination.
us it not an incentive to SIM BY
no means BY il thousands of souls
are kept from sin by advice given in
good season. BY It thousands are
won back from lives Of lust and
drunkenness If II were, why then
are Catholic parents so glad to have
their boys and girls go frequently TO
confession and why do they grieve,
knowing something is wrong, when
they do not go2 Even nOn-Catholics
tormented by unconfessed sins, will
ask a Catholic priest 10 listen to
their story of sorrow. 1t frequently
happens so during our series OF lee
lures 10 nOn-CathOlics.
Indeed confession is natural to
the human heart In this lies the
beauty and power Of all true friend
ship, that a man can tell all his Sc
crets to a friend. 1t is the JOY and
comfort of every Catholic priest TO
know that at the hour OF his death he
has in the divine plan prevented
"a rd fr-nr N 4 %
ing far from Christs love and led
back thousands Of his stray sheep
Catholic and nOn-CathOlic-to taste
again the sweetness of the Savior's
pardon in his sacrament of mercy"
His ScripturaI Basis.
The preacher here drew the atten-
tion of his audience to what he held
TO be the scriptural basis Of the prac-
tice Of auricular confession, quoting
from the Bible.
"The Catholic" he said. "confesses
his sins to a priest because he knows
that Jesus Christ commanded him TO
do so by the institution of the sacra-
ment of penance That the Savior
gave the power 10 pardon sin to his
apostles is clear from John Xxx, 21-
%. as the Father hath sent me. l
also send you. When he had said
this he breathed on them. and he
said to them receive We the Holy
Ghost Whose sins YOU shall forgive
they are forgiven them and whose
sins you shall retain they are re-
tanned.
He frequently pardoned sinners
their Offenses-Magdalen, the woman
in adultery; the thief on the cross,
and the man sick of the palsy. In
the last instance he insisted on this
power Of forgiveness of the Son of
God, despite the objection of the
scribes and their accusations and
and performed a miracle
to prove IT, Remembering then that
Christ was the Son of Cod and that
his mission was the salvation OF sin
ne~s, the meaning OF his words is evil
dent.
Did we not know the wonderful
power of prejudice TO read into the
Scriptures its own false views and
theories. we would not understand
how any believer in the word OF God
could deny that Jesus Christ gave to
the apostles the power OF forgiving
sins in his name. Indeed the Scrip
lures are so clear that some have
granted that the apostles had the
power Of pardoning sins. but they
hold that this power died with them.
But this is unreasonable. Useless in
deed would have been so mighty
power if lis exercise were to he linn
tied TO the sinners of the first century
No. as long as sin will last-that is,
until the end of the world-sO long
must this God-given remedy for sin
exist.
Makes Comparison.
1.-THE Catholic Interpretation of the
twentieth chapter Of John viii per-
haps be more clear to you by a COM
parisOn Suppose today that IN
prison Of the Philippines a number Of
prisoners convicted of various crimes
under the Spanish rule were still con-
fined and that there was question of
the justice or the exceeding severity
of their sentences. Pres Wilson in
formed of this, determines 10 send 10
Manila / y commissioners with full
power TO investigate the charges
made You hear him say i'm the white
house to these I . men: All necessary
power I'm this case is given me by the
people of these United States. As they
have chosen me 20 represent them, SO
q II a.