"I ask you, dear Catholic brothers and sisters, not to see Confession as a mere attempt at psychological liberation – however legitimate this too might be – but as a sacrament, a liturgical act. Confession is an act of honesty and courage; an act of entrusting ourselves, beyond sin, to the mercy of a loving and forgiving God. It is an act of the prodigal son who returns to his Father and is welcomed by him with the kiss of peace. It is easy, therefore, to understand why 'every confessional is a special and blessed place from which there is born new and uncontaminated a reconciled individual – a reconciled world!' Confession is an act of honesty and courage - an act of entrusting ourselves, beyond sin, to the mercy of a loving and forgiving God." Pope Saint John Paul II