The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1918-01-26

ana without disguise before the priests
of God, unburdening their conscience,
and seeking a salutary remedy, how
ever small and pardonable their fail
ing may have been" Ode Lapsis, p.
1907. Here we have Confession "be-
fore the priests, seeking a salutary
remedy" that is the remedy of re-
mission. In another place on the
same page, ST. Cyprian writes: Il
entreat you, my brethren, let all con-
fess their faults, while he that has.
offended enjoys life; while his con-
fession can be received, and while the
satisfaction and pardon impaired by
the priests are acceptable before God"
The satisfaction and pardon impaired
by the priests of the Church were
deemed the satisfaction and pardon
of God, for they are said to be ac-
ceptable before Cod ST. Cyprian,
who was Bishop of Carthage, died in
the year 258; so our readers can see
how nearly his time touches back to
that of the Apostles.
Origen speaks of sinners becoming
their own accusers; of the qualities
required for the hearing of confes-
sions; and he makes it plain that
public confession, when it was prac-
ticed, followed after private confess
sion. Again, he says: "They who
are not holy die in their sins; the
holy do penance; they feel their
wounds; are sensible of their fail
ings; look for the priest; implore
health, and through him seek to be
purified (Homil. x in Num-. Origen
died in the year 254 and the above
statement accurately described just
what is done on confession afternoons
and evenings today in every Catholic
Church in the world.
If says Origen, eve discover our
sins, not only to God, but to those
who may apply remedy to our
wounds and iniquities, our sins will
be effaced by Him Who said: 1 have
blotted out thy iniquities as a cloud,
and thy sins as a mist Us. Xiv.
22). (Homil. xvii in Luc). st. Basil
teaches that we must not really con
fess our sins to everybody, but that
''the confession of sins must be made
to such persons as have power to ap-
ply a remedy" TN Regul. brev.
Quaest. ccxxix; tom. ill., And he says ::
Necessarily our sins must be con-
fessed to those to whom has been
committed the dispensation of the
mysteries of Cod Qn Regul. brew.
Quaest. cclxxxviii.) st. Basil died in
the year 379. ST. Ephrem of Odessa,
in his work on the priesthood, says:
"The exalted dignity of the priest
hood is far above our understanding
and the power of speech. The remis-
sion of sins is not granted to mortals,
but through the ministry of the
priest" st. Ephrem died little later
than st. Basil st. Pacianus, answer
ing the objections of the Novatian
heretics, objections heard in our own
times, said: But God alone, you
Novatians will say, can grant the par
don of sins. That is true; but what
He does by His ministers, is done by
His Apostles? What you shall bind
on earth shall be bound in Heaven;
and what you shall loose on earth
shall be loosed in Heaven And why
this If sinners might be bound only
and not loosed?" Our readers will
notice that in the time of ST. Pacian-
us, who was Bishop of Barcelona and
died about the year 800, some of the
same objections to our Catholic doc
trine of Confession were being made
by the Novatian heretics; heretics
whose other ideas are repudiated by
Protestants, and whose sect has dis
appeared off the earth. The sanity
bishop then turned to another objec-
ton which is also heard today; that
the Apostles alone had this power.
Then" says he, sthey alone had
power to baptize, to confer the Holy
Spirit, and to purify the Gentiles from
their sins; for in the same place where
He gives them power to administer
the Sacrament of Baptism, He also
gives them the power to loose sinners.
Either, then, these two powers were
peculiarly reserved to the Apostles,
or they are both continued to their
successors; and, therefore, since it is
certain that the power of baptism
and JUNCTION is descended to the bish-
ops, to them has likewise come the
power of binding and loosing." (Ep.
x ad SYMPHONY The casket