To say that auricular confession purifies the soul is not less ridiculous and silly than to say that the white robe of the virgin, or the lily of the valley, will become whiter by being dipped into a bottle of black ink.

Has not the Pope's celibate, by studying his books before he goes to the confessional-box, corrupted his own heart, and plunged his mind, memory, and soul into an atmosphere of impurity which would have been intolerable even to the people of Sodom?

We ask it not only in the name of religion, but of common sense. How can that man, whose heart and memory are just made the reservoir of all the grossest impurities the world has ever known, help others to be chaste and pure?

The idolaters of India believe that they will be purified from their sins by drinking the water with which they have just washed the feet of their priests.

What monstrous doctrine! The souls of men purified by the water which has washed the feet of a miserable, sinful man! Is there any religion more monstrous and diabolical than the Brahmin religion?

Yes, there is one more monstrous, deceitful, and contaminating than that.

It is the religion which teaches that the soul of man is purified by a few magical words (called absolution), which come from the lips of a miserable sinner, whose heart and intelligence have just been filled by the unmentionable impurities of Dens, Liguori, Debreyne, Kenrick, &c., &c. For if the poor Indian's soul is not purified by the drinking of the holy (?) water which has touched the feet of his priest, at least that soul cannot be contaminated by it. But who does not clearly see that the drinking of the vile questions of the confessor contaminate, defile, and d.a.m.n the soul?

Who has not been filled with deep compa.s.sion and pity for those poor idolaters of Hindustan who believe that they will secure to themselves a happy pa.s.sage to the next life if they have the good luck to die when holding in their hands the tail of a cow? But there are people among us who are not less worthy of our supreme compa.s.sion and pity, for they hope that they will be purified from their sins and be for ever happy if a few magical words (called absolution) fall upon their souls from the polluted lips of a miserable sinner sent by the Pope of Rome. The dirty tail of a cow and the magical words of a confessor to purify the souls and wash away the sins of the world are equally inventions of the Devil. Both religions come from Satan, for they equally subst.i.tute the magical power of vile creatures for the blood of Christ to save the guilty children of Adam. They both ignore that the blood of the Lamb _alone_ cleanseth us from all sin.

Yes! auricular confession is a public act of idolatry, it is asking from a man what G.o.d _alone_, through His Son Jesus, can grant: forgiveness of sins. Has the Saviour of the world ever said to sinners, "Go to this or that man for repentance, pardon, and peace"? No; but He has said to all sinners, "Come unto Me." And from that day to the end of the world all the echoes of heaven and earth will repeat these words of the merciful Saviour to all the lost children of Adam, 'Come unto Me.'

When Christ gave to His disciples the power of the keys in these words, "Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Matt. xviii. 18), He had just explained His mind by saying, "If thy brother shall trespa.s.s against thee" (v. 15). The Son of G.o.d Himself in that solemn hour protested against the stupendous imposture of Rome by telling us positively that that power of binding and loosing, forgiving and retaining sins, was _only_ in reference to sins committed against _each other_. Peter had correctly understood his Master's words when he asked, "How oft shall my brother sin _against me_ and I forgive him?"

And in order that His true disciples might not be shaken by the sophisms of Rome, or by the glittering nonsense of that band of silly half-Popish sect called Tractarians, or Ritualists, the merciful Saviour gave the admirable parable of the poor servant, which He closed by what He has so often repeated, "So likewise shall my Heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespa.s.ses."

(Matt. xviii. 35).

Not long before, He had again mercifully given us his whole mind about the obligation and _power_ which every one of His disciples had of forgiving "For if ye forgive even their trespa.s.ses, your Heavenly Father will also forgive you: but if ye forgive not men their trespa.s.ses, neither will your Father forgive your trespa.s.ses" (Matt. vi. 14, 15).

"Be ye therefore merciful as your father also is merciful, forgive and ye shall be forgiven" (Luke vi. 36, 37).

Auricular Confession, as the Rev. Dr. Wainwright has so eloquently put it in his "Confession not Auricular," is a diabolical caricature of the forgiveness of sin through the blood of Christ, just as the impious dogma of Transubstantiation is a monstrous caricature of the salvation of the world through His death.

The Romanists and their ugly tail, the Ritualistic party in the Episcopal Church, make a great noise about the words of our Saviour in St. John: "Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them: and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained" (John xx. 23).

But again, our Saviour had Himself, once for all, explained what He meant by forgiving and retaining sins--(Matt. xviii. 35; Matt. vi. 14, 15; Luke vi. 36, 37).

n.o.body but wilfully-blind men could misunderstand Him. Besides that, the Holy Ghost Himself has mercifully taken care that we should not be deceived by the lying traditions of men on that important subject, when in St. Luke He gave us the explanation of the meaning of John xx. 23, by telling us, "Thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." (Luke xxiv. 46, 47).

In order that we may better understand the words of our Saviour in St. John xx. 23, let us put them face to face with his own explanations (Luke xxiv.

46, 47):--

LUKE XXIV. JOHN XX.

33. And they rose up the same hour, 18. Mary Magdalene came and told and returned to Jerusalem, and the disciples that she had seen the found the eleven gathered together, Lord, and that he had spoken these and them that were with them, things unto her.

34. Saying, The Lord is risen indeed, and hath appeared to Simon....

36. And as they thus spake, Jesus 19. Then the same day at evening, himself stood in the midst of them, being the first day of the week, and saith unto them, Peace be unto when the doors were shut where the you. disciples were a.s.sembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood 37. But they were terrified and in the midst, and said unto them, affrighted, and supposed that they Peace be unto you.

had seen a spirit.

38. And he said unto them, Why are ye troubled? and why do thoughts arise in your hearts?

39. Behold my hands and my feet, 20. And when he had so said, he that it is I myself: handle me, and shewed unto them his hands and his see; for a spirit hath not flesh side. Then were the disciples glad, and bones, as ye see me have. when they saw the Lord.

40. And when he had thus spoken, he shewed them his hands and his feet.

41. And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?

42. And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb.

43. And he took it, and did eat before them.

44. And he said unto them, These 21. Then said Jesus to them again, are the words which I spake unto Peace be unto you: as my Father you, while I was yet with you, that hath sent me, even so send I you.

all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.

45. Then opened he their 22. And when he had said this, he understanding, that they might breathed on them, and saith unto understand the scriptures, them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost:

46. And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:

47. And that repentance and 23. Whose soever sins ye remit, remission of sin should be preached they are remitted unto them; whose in his name among all nations, soever sins ye retain, they are beginning at Jerusalem. retained.

Three things are evident from comparing the report of St. John and St.

Luke:--

1. They speak of the same event, though one of them gives certain details omitted by the other, as we find in the rest of the gospels.

2. The words of St. John, "Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained," are explained by the Holy Ghost Himself, in St. Luke, as meaning that the apostles shall preach repentance and forgiveness of sins through Christ. It is just what our Saviour has Himself said in St. Matt. ix. 13: "But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice: for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

It is just the same doctrine taught by Peter (Acts ii. 38): "Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost."

Just the same doctrine of the forgiveness of sins, not through auricular confession or absolution, but through the preaching of the Word: "Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins" (Acts xiii. 38).

3. The third thing which is evident is that the Apostles were not alone when Christ appeared and spoke, but that several of His other disciples, even some women, were there.

If the Romanists, then, could prove that Christ established auricular confession, and gave the power of absolution, by what He said in that solemn hour, women as well as men--in fact, every believer in Christ--would be authorized to hear confessions and give absolution. The Holy Ghost was not promised or given only to the Apostles, but to every believer, as we see in Acts i. 15, and ii. 1, 2, 3.

But the Gospel of Christ, as the history of the first ten centuries of Christianity, is the witness that auricular confession and absolution are nothing else but a sacrilegious as well as a most stupendous imposture.

What tremendous efforts the priests of Rome have made these last five centuries, and are still making, to persuade their dupes that the Son of G.o.d was making of them a privileged caste, a caste endowed with the Divine and exclusive power of opening and shutting the gates of Heaven, when He said, "Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven, and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven."

But our adorable Saviour, who perfectly foresaw those diabolical efforts on the part of the priests of Rome, entirely upset every vestige of their foundation by saying immediately, "Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in Heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matt.

xviii. 19, 20).

Would the priests of Rome attempt to make us believe that these words of the 19th and 20th verses are addressed to them exclusively? They have not yet dared to say it. They confess that these words are addressed to all His disciples. But our Saviour positively says that the other words, implicating the so-called power of the priests to hear the confession and give the absolution, are addressed to the _very same persons_--"I say unto you," &c., &c. The _you_ of the 19th and 20th verses is the same _you_ of the 18th. The power of loosing and unloosing is, then, given to all--those who would be offended and would forgive. Then, our Saviour had not in His mind to form a caste of men with any marvellous power over the rest of His disciples. The priests of Rome, then, are impostors, and nothing else, when they say that the power of loosing and unloosing sins was exclusively granted to them.

Instead of going to the confessor, let the Christian go to his merciful G.o.d, through Christ, and say, "Forgive us our trespa.s.ses as we forgive them that trespa.s.s against us." This is the Truth, not as it comes from the Vatican, but as it comes from Calvary, where our debts were paid, with the only condition that we should believe, repent, and love.

Have not the Popes publicly and repeatedly anathematized the sacred principle of Liberty of Conscience? Have they not boldly said, in the teeth of the nations of Europe, that _Liberty_ of Conscience must be destroyed--killed at any cost? Has not the whole world heard the sentence of death to Liberty coming from the lips of the old man of the Vatican? But where is the scaffold on which the doomed Liberty must perish? That scaffold is the confessional-box. Yes, in the confessional, the Pope had his 100,000 high executioners! There they are, day and night, with-sharp daggers in hand, stabbing Liberty to the heart.

In vain will n.o.ble France expel her old tyrants to be free; in vain will she shed the purest blood of her heart to protect and save Liberty! True Liberty cannot live a day there so long as the executioners of the Pope are free to stab her on their 100,000 scaffolds.

In vain chivalrous Spain will call Liberty to give a new life to her people. She cannot set her feet there except to die, so long as the Pope is allowed to strike her in his 50,000 confessionals.