Whenever several of my good Catholic friends would get together, one friend used to joke about starting up an online confessional. AbsolveMeNow.com or something like that was his standing joke. He even mentioned it jokingly to our priest who of course told him that it wouldn't be valid. (and since has the backing of bishops on this.)
Too bad he didn't see the ecumenical cross-over possibility, as now evangelical Christians are flocking to an online confession website.
It is interesting to see how our separated brethren so often re-discover the faith. Although they are missing the sacramental aspect, they are seeking to fill that need for truth.
Fr. Christopher Layden, said that he’s not surprised by people’s desire to confess their sins, but said that what the Catholic Church offers is even more profound. “There is something cathartic about revealing ourselves to another in individual, especially when that individual is acting in the person of Christ. We need to hear that we are forgiven, and Christ offers that in a very real and personal way.”
And that is a profound difference. I had the recent experience to be once again thankful I am Catholic. Our family recently took the Saturday afternoon to head to confession. I love watching my two oldest children come out with the weight off their shoulders. But for me, it was an unemotional experience. I didn't get the normal elation of being forgiven. But since I can trust in the teaching of Christ passed on through his Church and I hear the words of absolution, my dry lack of emotion is just that. Lack of emotion, not lack of forgiveness. I can know it even if I don't feel it.
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