Does the Church have a role in our confession of sins?
Is confession personal or does the Church have a role in it?
The standard Protestant position is that confession of our sins should be personal with no intermediary between God and the sinner. Also confession should occur as soon as we recognize sin. I believe this is why confessing to a Pastor or Priest for absolution is not allowed in most Protestant denominations.
I think there is something to be said for a routine of repentance and absolution. A practicing Catholic may be more aware of their sin because there is a time set aside for examining themselves. At the same time repentance to a Priest carries great risk. We might begin to subconsciously think the absolution comes from the Priest and not from God. We may even hold back on confessing sin to God until we have a Priest available.
My Church takes a middle position on repentance and absolution that has helped me to practice repentance regularly.
We set aside 5 minutes each week before Communion for repentance. We sit in our pews and silently confess our sins to God at the same time. After that the Pastor will read several verses guaranteeing forgiveness to those who confess (1 John 5-10). He will then say "Go in peace, your sins are forgiven".
I've found that this weekly time for repentance has led me to seek repentance more often throughout the week. It's also made Communion more meaningful as I take it in light of my forgiveness.
3 comments:
Honey, I think you are such a wonderful writer. And I love setting with you and watching you as you eyes just wonder off sometimes. I can almost feel the wheels in your brain turning, because you are always thinking of something intellectually intelligent to say.
You know I have always felt that confession in the church should be personal between you and the Lord. But, in some cases confiding in an elder of the church or perhaps your pastor is the right thing to do. But, when Christ died for us He bridged the gap. The Holy Spirit intercedes on our behalf. I have always prayed to our Father like He was my best friend. I have never been able to say these flowery prayers that some say. And I am sure they mean every word. But, I am very simple when I pray. I praise him for His mighty deeds, love and mercy He bestows upon us, and I lift up concerns on behalf of those I know need prayer, and I ask for forgiveness and repent, and then I thank Him as I close.
I am not sure if any of this is making any sense, I feel terrible, as you already know, and the Benadryl is making my thoughts fuzzy.
I enjoy reading your blog and getting a small glimpse into your amazing mind, and I fall in love with you all over again.
First comment from my wife!
I agree Sadie, I think simple prayers are almost always best. I benefit from having something weekly in Church to reinforce a habit of confession. Otherwise I start getting spiritually lazy.
I think we have very similiar backgrounds. So let me just tell you what a surprise it was a couple of years ago when my world sort of, shall we say, started crashing in around me and I went - by great necessity - for a week of "prayer counseling." Everytime I started seeing the sickening sin of pride in me and how my own sin had caused so much of the place I'd landed, my counselor would invite me to take the time to actually repent on the spot.
It was agonizing and I hated how the Holy Spirit was revealing it in front of some one, but the cool thing was, after I'd repent, the prayer counselor would tell me, "Because of what Jesus Christ did on the cross and by the authority of the Word of God I can tell you that now that you have repented, your sins are forgiven." WOW! That was powerful!
I finally understood a little about the priesthood of the believers and how we have the God-given ability to help people get set free from their sin and self-condemnation. I look for times I can do the same for others now!
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