Good afternoon all. I haven't been on here for a while so hope everyone is well. My question is thus; As an Anglican, if one were to go to a Roman Catholic Priest for the sacrament of reconciliation and receive absolution, does this theologically restore one's baptismal purity in the Catholic/Universal Church we all say as Anglicans in the creeds? I know a High Church CofE priest who regularly visits a Roman Priest for reconciliation. Interested in everyone's thoughts here. God bless. David. Hull.
My guess is that a personal absolution pronounced by a RC priest would be no less efficacious than a general absolution pronounced by an Anglican priest.
My sense is that where private auricular confession is used in Anglican circles and is accompanied by a liturgical form, the basis of such form, if being based on BCP is more likely to be found in the Visitation of the Sick. Anglicans do not question the validity of Roman Orders, so I would see no reason to even blink with an Anglican Priest having a Roman Confessor. Ultimately grace is grace. There is no first-class and second-class grace. In Anglican understanding, the Ministry of Reconciliation is not about Three Hail Marys and Back on the Street! The key process is reflection, self-awareness, remorse, repentance, and amendment of life.
Anglicans do not question the validity of Roman Orders, so I would see no reason to even blink with an Anglican Priest having a Roman Confessor. S Thanks for your reply. The fact that us Anglicans don't question Roman Orders is fascinating...what a mess the visible Church is in. Only God can sort it out (a quote from my Priest).
Agreed. I think if the current holder of keys had his way, that might change. However, we won't be nasty about it.
We Anglicans accept the validity of Roman Catholic orders. Therefore, if one received absolution from a Roman Catholic priest one's sins would be absolved. However, if Roman Catholic priests were to obey their church's own laws they should not be granting absolution to those who are not Roman Catholics. They can under certain circumstances; however, in a normal situation and where access to one's own clergy are available they are not supposed to do this. I do not know the circumstances regarding the "High Church CofE priest" to whom you refer but I suspect the "Roman Priest" in question is breaking his church's laws.
It's possible that the RCC priest is offering spiritual direction only which is always allowed. Many people will refer to a spiritual director who is a priest as their "confessor" even if they never see that priest for the sacrament of reconciliation. It's also possible that the RCC priest got permission from his bishop to offer the sacrament of reconciliation, which would be allowed (Cannon Law makes a lot of exceptions for "with the permission of the ordinary"). Or you're right and the priest is "going rogue" which certainly isn't unheard of.
I concur. We do not know what is happening and how the individuals concerned employ specific words. I know that RC Canon Law permits many exceptions for a "just cause" and meeting that requirement is a low bar. An RC bishop may have granted one of his priests permission to hear the confession of a non-Catholic. I'm not a canon lawyer, and most definitely not an RC canon lawyer, but if he has I suspect he may be stretching the boundaries of the law a bit. I believe RC sacraments are to be given when the subject is unable to recieve them from their own church. I'm not sure an Anglican would have problems in accessing the sacraments in her/his own church. I think the fact the Anglican in question is a priest complicates the matter further. I find it intriguing that an Anglican priest chooses to make confession, if that is what is indeed happening, to a priest of another Christian church.
Strange that confession should be referred to by RCs as a 'sacrament' though. RCs must have a very different definition of 'sacraments' than High Church Anglicans, who, if still Anglican, should hold to the definition in Article 25, since absolution does not have any visible sign or ceremony ordained of God. No elements, no effectual or visible sign of invisible grace. Therefore not containing the essential physical aspects of a sacrament. .
The outward sign is the statement “I absolve you”/“You are absolved/forgiven, etc.”, and the invisible grace is the removal of sin. The Gospels do mention Jesus bestowing such authority on the disciples. Sacramental confession was retained in the Anglican practice of extreme unction, despite the Articles’ apparent statement to the contrary. What Anglicanism actually rejected was the merit system that had as a historical accident become bound up with sacramental practice.
I disagree that it has no visible sign or ceremony ordained by God. I also disagree that it is not a sacrament. However, it is not something I choose to discuss. I find discussions on theological points between Anglicans of different raditions to be fruitless and potentially they lead to heated arguments. I respect those Anglicans who have different beliefs from mine. I hope they will respect mine. I do not wish to be persudaed otherwise.
Yep, they are fruitless... in all these forum posts I've never once seen any apples, pears, cherries, apricots... ... not even a bunch of sour grapes! Actually, I think the best thing that can probably come from such discussions is that future readers, perhaps people who've searched for a forum topic (because they are looking for thoughts or answers on a subject), will be able to see the reasonings for each side of a position and can use the info to draw their own conclusions. But I agree with you that folks should be allowed to avoid participation in such a discussion when they don't wish to.