Re: Young Love

Hello James, I appreciate the frankness of your post. I am so sorry about what happened to you in church many years back. What happened was a form of abuse in a way of your trust, but I have no doubt that the preist is dealing with just as difficult a life right now as you and I are. That is, perhaps, why the catholic version of confession falls short. Jesus talked about living in the light (see 1 John 1:5-10) and I'm not convinced that speaking into a secret confessional is very representative of living in the light. Being able to confess our sins to each other is so important because it helps us to see our sin clearly. But the other side of this, is being able to hear anothers sins and to not judge. We feel so much more forgiven when someone can look us in the eye and tell us that God still loves us and forgives us. In my church we simply confess to each other, and we work hard to be sure that people are not judged. This being said, I do have the predicament of not being able to reveal my BL at church. I do confess in a way, confessing 'lust' and 'masterbation' without getting into detail about who I was lusting after. I do look to this forum, and other BL friends as another way to do that. And ultimately, I look to God for my confession as well. A little of each brings a world of good. I pray that your trust in church will be renewed. Remember that our allegiance is to Christ, not to man. You are not alone. Love, Ben