Forgive

Hi Gabe, I felt like making two comments about your post which I hope will be helpful in the LONG RUN. Definately, your interaction with the Preist went great. He sounded like a wise and fair man. 1) Only God can 'absolve us of our sins'. I tell you this not to dilute what your preist said, but to arm you for the future when you do not always encounter such a forgiving environment. Every single mention of the word forgive in the bible, surrounds either forgiving ONE ANOTHER when we wrong someone, or GOD forgiving us. In 1 John 1:9 it says: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." So, I want you to understand that in confessing your sin to God and your preist, GOD forgave you. 2) More importantly, your preist recognized the difference between attraction to boys and sexual contact with them. The bible makes no mention of people's orientations, only their actions. Therefore, your 'being a pedophile' is not a sin. Your acting on it in certain ways might be. So, try not to feel guilty for who you ARE. Just develop a strong conviction for what you will DO. You are not alone. Love, Ben