It is the thought that counts

by Fisherman 4 Replies latest social humour

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  Fisherman

  Spain was one of those countries that was more Catholic than the pope. And back in medieval times people had no choice but to go to mass and confession and be good Catholics –or else. Anyway, back in them days, in Spain, when someone went to confess their sins to a priest, it was face to face. The problem was that those Spanish priests were hot-blooded and lost their temper when they heard some of the sins people committed and the priest would sometimes hit or assault the person that was confessing his sins after hearing such a thing, or the sin was so bad that after the confession the sinner would get a beating from the priest -all was not lost, they worked it out.

  And so they invented the confession booth with the partition so that in the event that the priest wanted to hit the penitent, the partition would prevent him from doing so –but there was a catch. On the sinner’s side of the confessional, the church installed a box with a slot to put money in. (In them days there were no hail marys or our father for penance, a sinner had to pay for his sins and that was what that box with the slot was about.

  Anyway, getting back to the story, a certain man went to the church to confess his sins and goes inside the penitent side of the confession booth with the money box, to confess his sins to the Catholic priest, and after the preliminary mumbo jumbo, he starts to confess to the priest that he tried to have immoral sex with some woman and he tells the priest that was not able to – but the priest interrupts and tells him: “Yes my son, but you intended to and it is the thought that counts.” Hence, the priest fined the man a monetary sum that he had to insert into the box. But the box was designed for small Spanish gold coins that could fit through the small slot and this soon to be absolved sinner was of another race and country and the coins he had were silver and much larger than the slot and after several attempts to force the coin into the box, he was not able to. The priest waiting for the payment to fall through to his side of the kiosk asks him: What is the matter?” The man replied:” I am sorry, I tried, but it is the thought that counts, and the man walked away without sin.
  
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  kaik

  In medieval Czech society, the Catholic church accepted payments for any sin regardless what people committed. This was also a reason for Bohemian reformation that started 100 years earlier than in Germany. Back in medieval times, people could literary pay for anything wrong doing, and they were forgiven by the Catholic church. Confessions had also a huge political influence, because church knew much about people's background and use it for blackmail and intelligence gathering.
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  Fisherman

  kaik, your avitar does not dignify your intelligence. My humble opinion.
  
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  prologos

  church knew much about people's background and use it for blackmail and intelligence gathering. and because some elder's wives sit in the ""confession booth" with their husbands, they set the tone for the power games in the congregations, here too, the members "pay the price".
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  kaik

  Confessions in late medieval and early modern Europe had tremendous potential for blackmail and was used extensively by ruling elite to coerce population into compliance. Public confessions by priest in front of the community were popular in Frankish Empire. Once parish churches became established everywhere, Church through confessions acquired opinion on public mood and social issues, while at the same time got a personal file on anyone wrongdoing. Protestant reformation in Central Europe removed confessions as one of the grave violation of biblical doctrines. Poland on the other hand did not experienced Protestant Reformation, and confessions and even pilgrimage to specific confessions became very popular there till 20th century. In Bohemia, Hungary which experienced both Reformation and counter-Reformation, confessions did not had much prominent role in the church and spiritual life.