Posted on 09/22/2007 6:09:42 AM PDT by NYer
Americans are flocking to confess their sins as Protestant churches have joined their Catholic counterparts in modernising the sacrament of penance.
Thousands of people are attending confession at weekends and just as many are posting their repentance on videos that are played back to congregations or shared on websites such as YouTube.
New technology is fuelling the boom, but so is clever marketing by Churches that are portraying confession as a form of self-improvement — always popular with Americans — rather than some sort of punishment.
Church leaders also attribute the boom to the fashion for self-analysis peddled by daytime television programmes such as The Jerry Springer Show and to a wider theological trend in which Christians are looking for firmer moral guidance.
Some Protestant churches are trying to make confession less forbidding, allowing people to shred their sins in paper shredders, for example.
In a shopping mall in Colorado Springs, three Catholic priests are available to hear confessions six days a week in a small office equipped with a box of tissues and the Ten Commandments.
The priests say they hear 8,000 confessions a year, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The Pope ordered priests to make confession a priority in February, but the changing attitude of Protestant denominations is more surprising.
Although some theologians say that Martin Luther opposed private confession to a priest, the Missouri Synod of the Lutheran Church – which has 2.5 million members – voted this summer to revive the ritual after ignoring it for a century.
The Catholic Church opposes group confessions and those conducted on the internet but some of its US parishes have had considerable success with special confession events.
More than 5,000 people attended a "reconciliation weekend" in Orlando, Florida. A "24 Hours of Grace" penitence open house held by five parishes in Chicago drew 2,500 people. A rotating team of 70 priests listened to their confessions.
Bishop Thomas Wenski of Orlando sent out 190,000 pamphlets in March asking local Catholics to confess.
He told the Journal: "Every day on Jerry Springer we see people confessing their sins in public and, certainly, the confessional is a lot healthier than that show."
Protestant denominations are less averse to using new technology in their confession drives. More than 7,700 people have posted their sins on ivescrewedup.com, a confession website launched by the evangelical Flamingo Road Church in Florida.
The XXX Church, an anti-pornography Christian group, videotaped members confessing their use of pornography and put the video on YouTube. It has since been watched 15,000 times.
Jordy Acklin, 21, a student who appeared in the video, said: "There's a reason why they talk about confession in the Bible – you're not supposed to keep it inside you. The weight just goes off your shoulders."
Thanks, NYer. Well-written.
First off, how would you know if the priest is in a state of sin?
Assuming he was (since you can't determine it), the validity of the Sacrament does not depend upon the holiness of the minister. As long as the matter and form are correctly used, that is, the sign is correctly placed as Christ instituted it, by someone who is empowered to place that sign, and as long as the correct intention, to do as Christ or the Church desires, is present, the Sacrament is valid. However, a priest who would administer a Sacrament while being personally in a state of mortal sin, would himself be committing an additional mortal sin of sacrilege.
Which now raises another question: "What constitutes a mortal sin?"
Question for you! What does WRT signify?
Yes! Matt. 9:6 and Mark 2:10 show us that Christ forgave sins as a man (not God) to convince us that the "Son of man" has authority to forgive sins on earth. Luke 5:24 also points out that Jesus' authority to forgive sins is as a man, not God. The Gospel writers record this to convince us that God has given this authority to men. This authority has been transferred from Christ to the apostles and their successors.
Three words -- The Holy Spirit.
But the grace would come to us through the visible things that we deal with daily.
Objects do not transport grace. That is idol-worship and nothing more.
The Holy Spirit confers grace by supernaturally regenerating the hearts and renewing the minds of God's children so that they are able to understand spiritual things, the things of God. And the Holy Spirit does this in the exact measure God ordains.
For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." -- 1 Corinthians 2:10-14
"Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost" -- Titus 3:5 "But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
Men vainly worship Him with silver and gold and empty rituals and idols of their own making, all to their detriment.
Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not: They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not: They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat. They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them." -- Psalm 115:3-8"But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.
Put your trust in Jesus Christ alone, the only mediator between God and men. He has already accomplished what you struggle for.
What you say and what your 'brethern say seems to be two different things...
These bogus "confession" practices (confessing and praying directly to Jesus) don't have the safeguards (or the validity) of the Real Thing.
It doesn't ... that's just the point. It's as bogus as igniting them on a barbeque. Only a priest can forgive sins - in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
God can not, or will not forgive your sins unless you go thru a Catholic priest...This of course is heresy...But as long as you confess to Jesus, you're covered...
It's interesting how that the Catholic church has convinced it's members that only the priestly class can understand the scriptures...They will pick out a verse, or two, write untold numbers of pages, chapters and books on the verse as to what it means, and then convince you that their assertation is somehow biblical...And it then gets repeated as actual truth...
Millions up millions of Protestant Christians who actually read the scriptures, precept upon precept, line upon line, do, and have known better to fall for the tactics of your church...
If you want salvation, you go directly to God...If you want forgiveness of your sins, you go directly to God, the giver of these 'gifts'...
That is understood. The passage in John 20:23 says that Jesus breathed on His apostles and they received the Holy Spirit. If we read the passage in its literal and obvious sense (as the Church directs us to do), then we can conclude that the apostles had the Holy Spirit and the gift of forgiving sins at that point. When Christ spoke about sending Spirit, He was generally speaking about how the Spirit would guide the Church into all truth (Jn 14, 16).
You enjoy quoting Scripture except for those extracts where Jesus actually says the words: Do this!. Why is that?
Jesus hasn't left the Right Hand of the Father since He sat down there...He did stand up once apparently in anticipation of leaving when they murdered Stephen, but He then sat back down...
Born again Christians are filled with God the Holy Spirit 24/7, 365 days per year...We have no need to even think Jesus will, or needs to come to us weekly, or monthly, or yearly...
Can you explain that??? Why a Spirit filled Christian needs the perceived real presence of Jesus each week???
If so, then how do you know which sins are forgiven and which are retained?
In John 20:22 - the Lord "breathes" on the apostles, and then gives them the power to forgive and retain sins. Why do you disagree with His decision?
Because they are ALL forgiven, even before they are committed...
In John 20:22 - the Lord "breathes" on the apostles, and then gives them the power to forgive and retain sins. Why do you disagree with His decision?
I have to be away from the computor til tomorrow...But I'll be back...
This is, in a way, true of all the Sacraments. We should not adopt an overly legalistic, mechanical, and isolating view of the sacraments. We are called to a life of "continual conversion," and God graciously gives us ways to do this through the sacraments, which we OUGHT to do if we understand that we are called by God to do it! But God is ALWAYS free to act in our lives at any time, in any way He wants.
Let me give you an example. Naaman the Syrian and you sincerely want to be cleansed of the dread disease of leprosy.
He gets the impression from his Hebrew slave girl that there is a prophet in Samaria who can help him. He is a great general, from the important and wealthy city of Damascus, and he carries a letter from the king asking for healing.
He journeys on down and encounters Elisha (sort of): actually Elisha did not come out at all. He only sent word to Naaman, “Go and wash in Jordan seven times.”
He gets angry and says that there are a hell of a lot rivers in Damascus, broader and more beautiful and better than this glorified minnow creek of the Jews, the Jordan.
Can't this Israelite God just heal him directly?
Can't this prophet just go zap with a magic wand in the name of God and cleanse him like that?
But seeing as he's in desperate straits with the leprosy and all, he humbles himself in the eyes of all his armed cohort, and dips himself seven times in the Jordan, and --- you know the rest.
The point is, of course God could cure Naaman instantly. But He wanted him to be cured in a better way: in a way that would be definitely humbling, and yet wonderfully effective, and that would not only get rid of his disease but also bind him in a mysterious way to Israel.
The Sacraments--- all of them, including Confession --- are like that. God can wash us, confirm us, feed us, forgive us and all the rest, but He wants to do it in a way that binds us to the whole Body of Christ which is His Church.
If Naaman had said, "Heck with this, I'll go to God directly" --- too proud to go to a man who would prescribe a somewhat humbling, physical procedure -- what would have happened to him?
Your opinion?
You are such a hoot. Amen, to all of it.
Um, I don’t think so. God wants us to be in unity but when that happens, Catholics and Protestants will be doing what HE wants, not what the church proclaims.
We are perfect ONLY when the Lord Jesus Christ comes to dwell in our hearts through receiving Him by faith. People who don’t, are not perfect. God SEES us as perfect through His Son, Jesus. There IS no other way.
I’ve never gone to confession and I KNOW my sins are forgiven because God tells me so through His Word. If I confess my sins to Jesus Christ, I AM forgiven. I don’t need to go to a priest for that to happen. I do confess to a dear friend or two but that’s it besides Jesus (and my husband, of course, who knows my sins before I need to confess them—smile).
Wonderful, Dr. E. Thank you.
My priest states very clearly that if it’s been more than a month then don’t even approach the chalice. He’s not playing either, because he turns people away all the time.
I got a lecture last time, and I felt about this () big!
That sounds outstanding! I wish all priests would do that!
BTW, welcome home!
I don’t know how idiotic the article is.
I think raising the issue at all has some merit.
Certainly I agree that the hierarchical . . . or herarchical (a typo stumbled onto some truth there, it seems) . . . confessors are not any greater benefit on the whole—to the confessee . . . than another fitting brother or sister would be . . . or deacon or pastor . . .
I think the greater spiritual good is when we confess to those we have offended . . . and/or to our spiritual mentors, close friends, accountability partners etc.
In many respects, it seems to me—confessing to a priest—unconnected with the relationship(s) where the offense(s) originally occurred—in a private little booth—is a bit of a cheap shot at confession.
Kind of allows the confessee to go merrily on his way feeling smugly that he’s covered that base and is once again quite square with God. With the magicsterical’s rubber stamp of approval. While the relationship shredded or hindered or wounded is none the better; not any more restored . . . nor any more truly reconciled.
Confession and repentance are for TURNING AROUND AND GOING GOD’S DIRECTION vs our own willful direction.
I think the RC confessional is likely much better than none. But I don’t think it’s all God expects on that score.
QUITE SO. QUITE SO.
Thanks for your persistently edifying comments.
LUB
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