text: It is God, and God alone, Who forgives sins and God does not need the Sacrament of Reconciliation, much less a priest's absolution, to do that.  As soon as we determine we have committed a sin (especially, a serious sin) we ask God's forgiveness and trust that God has forgiven us.  Then, especially for a serious sin, we receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation to acknowledge our sinfulness and the damage we have done to the body of Christ, and to receive the graces of the Sacrament.  God's forgiveness, however, does not require "sacramental absolution".