Life & Beliefs
A Lovely Matter I Liked About The Apostolic Churches Existence
Some people said when we reached an age when we kept ourselves indoors, went home straight after work, and preferred to be quieter, we had an old soul.
An old soul like me at 40 would automatically sit in spiritual places like the cathedrals, shrines, monastery, or dargahs. As long as I could be quiet by myself and did some meditative chants.
As I contemplated about life while I spoke to Mother Mary who Muslims called Meryem, I found safety, security, love, and peace.
Thus, I loved to share with you a lovely thing I liked about the apostolic catholic churches or cathedrals.
Let me begin.
Confession Released Us From Feeling Trapped Or Stucked
“Pray for me, Father. For I have sinned…”
We always seen confession in movies. The priest sat behind a window supposedly unable to see who spoke to him.
Because behind the veils, the doors, the walls, or the windows, nobody knew who sinned. That prevented a heart to judge others like a thrash.
I didn’t understand the beauty of confession until I watched The Pope.
When both the fathers-priests listened to each other’s confession, they absolved the sins. They absolved the past. They proclaimed the forgiveness of God there and then.
We were absolved from our sins, forgiven, and no longer dwelled in it. New page began. New day began.
Because there was no more condemnation since the day Jesus rose to the right side of our Heavenly Father, therefore nobody had rights to condemn anyone.
I remembered my friend in Madrid, Alberto, mentioned the devils did not make us shy from committing sins. However, once we committed sins, we would be shy and embarrassed to admit or confess it. The devil fled to say it wasn’t his fault.
The ordeal for the devils? They wanted us trapped. The guilt hid deep inside us. It became our weakness over time.
In my country, the confession room would be opened 45 minutes before mass.
In the cathedral I visited, there was a confession room. However, I had not seen anyone knocked its door. The rector was in the rectory office. Whereas in another church, the confession session was on-going before mass.
These days, I had seen people approached the father-priest directly and talked to them after mass. I believed that confession could be face-to-face with them or following the traditions, between confession rooms.
“Father, pray for me as I have sinned…I (say what you had been guilty or sinned for)…”
Sometimes, being fortunate enough, the priest encouraged the people with a few simple reminders.
“Sin no more my dear child/sister. I absolved all your sins in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy spirit…”
The priest had the authority of believing in forgiveness. The power to believe.
What made this faith extra ordinary was the power of believing even if our eyes did not literally see.
We moved on. We needed to be better. Everyday shouldn’t be the same, but better. That was why I always seen the verses like… Truth sets you free.
Some people wondered again and again “…but Lissa…you seek forgiveness from the Almighty Father in Heaven. The father in catholic churches is not God!”
True. You prayed and asked God for forgiveness, and the next day you remembered again what you did wrong. You prayed again. You remembered time and again out of nowhere. You still remained in shackle of the devils, a bondage.
That had been the reason for God appointed men as leaders of the church. They existed in front of us, just as human as we had been all this while, to affirmed for us.
We always needed affirmation — love, trust, sense of belonging, ec cetera.
The father of the cathedrals had been there all along to absolve what our mind and weakness couldn’t.
We felt relieved. The church father had been appointed as the head of the house. They did not replace our biological father or in-laws. But they had been blessed to us as one of our fathers.
As they blessed us… May it be with your spirit, Fathers…
These days I assigned time for personal reflection. I believed in the communion of saints. I believed in the affirmation from people appointed to give good news and not caused others to run away from the beauty of faith. I stood as the different one within my family and society.
But I would remember as much as I could…blessed are those…you would know if you read the Be-atitudes.
Go for your confession. It set you free within.
💌 N.A 💌
