How can you absolve yourself of sin if you don't confess it? I'm guessing you're not a Catholic so there'd be no 'formal' need to confess, but it's still something that may hang heavy on you over time.
Protestants dispense with the priest and just pray directly to God, asking for forgiveness.
Whoa whoa whoa...
Confession is always necessary. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Now I agree -- it is not essential that a clergyperson absolve you. But Catholics who know both their Bible and their Catechism know that the Priest is NOT the one forgiving anything. The church officially teaches that God, in Christ, forgives sin. The Priest is announcing that forgiveness has occurred and is pronouncing absolution to the penitent and to the company of saints.
As someone who embraces both Protestant and Catholic impulses here, I understand both views. But I don't see them as mutually exclusive. I don't need a priest to be forgiven. But involving a priest can often add an element of solemnity and accountability to the matter. (Presuming, of course, the priest is good at his or her job and not merely "phoning it in".)
