I am doing more reflecting on Private Confession, about the power of Private Confession and Forgiveness. I have been thinking a great deal about what our Roman Catholic brothers and sisters call the “Sacrament of Reconciliation.”
Luther fell short of calling Reconciliation a Sacrament, but just barely short. So why is it that we don't make use of this gift? Not just Lutherans, but my Roman Catholic brothers and sisters do not often make use of this gift. It is interesting that I have more folks who are traditionally outside of the Church ask about reconciliation than people inside the life of the congregation. I wonder why that is?
Is it because that we are embarrassed to admit to a brother or sister, especially to our Pastor or Priest that we have sinned? Trust me, so has Pastor or Father. Is it because we are afraid to admit to God our sins? Trust me, God knows. Or is it because if we give voice to our sin then we have to shine the light into our own hearts and see the darkness that has taken up residence?
Seeking the Rite of Reconciliation (trusting Luther I will stop a little short of calling it a Sacrament, but just barely) is difficult, it can be frightening, intimidating, overwhelming. However, that is nothing new. Do you remember the story of Adam and Eve in the garden after eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil? They hid themselves from God, and then instead of admitting what God already knew to be true, they sought to place blame. Do we feel that same sense of shame too? I believe that we can feel too. We think that God loves us more when we're doing good. We can even try to make ourselves believe God doesn't know about our wrongdoing. But God knows or sin and invites us to “approach his throne of grace with boldness” (Hebrews 4:16)
What we need to remember is that God's love outweighs our sin. ALWAYS! God shows us God's love in the Story of the Prodigal Son. Do you remember the story? To me the most amazing part is not that the younger son squanders his inheritance, or the older son resents the father's response. What amazes me is what happens between the prodigal and the father. The son is heading for home, telling himself that he is going to confess to his father that “I am not worthy to be called your son: make me as one of your hired servants.” He repeats this on his journey home, then the father sees him and runs out to greet him before the words “I'm sorry” ever come from the sons mouth. God, like the father in the story is waiting and watching for us to come home, to trust his promise of mercy and forgiveness.
I believe that the early church and the reformers have given us clear instruction. Luther said, “For this reason I have a high regard for private confession, for here God's word and absolution are spoken privately and individually to each believer for the forgiveness of his sins, and as often as he desires it he may have recourse to it for this forgiveness, and also for comfort, counsel, and guidance. Thus it is a precious, useful thing for souls, as long as no one is driven to it with laws and commandments but sinners are left free to make use of it, each according to his own need, when and where he wishes; just as we are free to obtain counsel and comfort, guidance and instruction when and where our need or our inclination moves us. And as long as one is not forced to enumerate all sins but only those which oppress him most grievously.”
That being said I have been asked if I am available to hear confession. The answer is an unequivocal yes. If you wish to to have private conversation about this please feel free to email me at frdave0507@gmail.com
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The seeds for why Lutherans don't use private confession are sown within your post. Note a couple of things:
ReplyDelete1. Luther downgraded it from sacrament to whatever. Now it can be ignored...
2. Confession/reconiliation is a messy, frightening, soul baring experience--who really wants to enter this arena...voluntarily?
3. "...but sinners are left free to make us of it..." is the kiss of death. Now it has become a choice, an option. That being the case, with points #1 and 2 above, why bother? What benefits are going to entice a sin addict to make this move? None!
Could it be that we (sinners) need a little Law to 'motivate' us into the confessional? Might Luther's fear of abuse have gutted the very rite he so clearly sees as helpful and useful?
Anonymous- you asked a question that caught my attention "What benefits are going to entice a sin addict to make this move? None!"
ReplyDeleteAs a person who is in recovery for addiction (an eating disorder is the primary way it presented itself in me) I have some thoughts about 'sin addiction' and what might entice a sin addict to move to confession.
I must confess that in the most difficult throes of the addiction, whether it was through food or occasionally alcohol, there were times I experienced the addiction being uncontrollable. No matter how ashamed I was of my behavior, or how I could see that it was harming me and potentially harming others, I could not stop it when it was happening. By all logic, it should have destroyed me.
Psychologically, I have learned that the drive to get help and to recover is a part of people, even those with the most difficult addictions. There is a part inside of us, protected by the psyche in some way that wants what is best for us- that wants us to live. If that part can find support and help before the addiction destroys the person, recovery can be very possible albeit very difficult.
Shifting to theological thinking, Luther declared that Christians were "Simul iustus et peccator" - "At the same time righteous and a sinner". Through baptism we are united with Christ in his death and resurrection, and through the gift of the Holy Spirit we begin the journey of being sanctified.
No matter how sinful, there is still God's Spirit at work. While law may show us the need for confession, I question whether law ever motivates us to return to God. If it did, then why was Christ sent? Ultimately, it is the invitation of the Gospel and the promise of forgiveness and life that would motivate the 'sin addict' to seek the help of confession.
Mandates (my own or others) never did anything to break through my eating disorder. Only invitation and compassion and support brought me to the place where I could choose life.
I believe Luther was ahead of his time in making confession voluntary. I also believe that we have misunderstood the importance of that move and as church leaders not made proper use of this rite as an invitation to life.
Reading these two comments has started a thought process racing through my mind. So, how do we begin this invitation? How do we begin to teach - not just one another - but parishoners and others about the importance of this "third sacrament"? (Melancthon's words not mine)
ReplyDeleteIf we know the value and the importance - how do we become intentional - without making it like the old "law" of registering for Communion. How do we begin to show the value and the importance, not only on a spiritual but also on an emotional and psychological basis.
I have offered reconciliation in every parish I've served - but never really taken the time (had the cahones) to undertake a serious teaching time on this.
Is the next thing a "Lutheran Course" Power Point that we can use in congregations, or just the slow process of talking to folks one on one... I know, if I had more patience I'd be a doctor!
I too have offered private confession/reconciliation in every parish in which I have served. It has always been well-received. Part of the problem in our society is that people want to know that they can trust someone with their "deepest, darkest" secrets. A pastor needs to develop trust with her or his parishioners and let them know that the seal of the confessional is inviolable, and just as importantly, the pastor is not going to treat them any differently post-confession.
ReplyDeleteWhen asked how I feel about people after they have confessed to me, my response is always the same: I feel sad. I feel sad that this person is suffering the torment of whatever sin or doubt they have confessed. Sometimes I feel a sense of our common humanity, because I may have been struggling with the same sin(s) they have confessed. But never have I felt repulsed or offended by what a penitent has confessed to me.
It is much more difficult to open one's self up to another Christian, whether that Christian is or is not ordained. Yet that is the big part of the gift that IS private confession: the sharing of our selves and the admission that we DON'T have it right, and that we DO fall.
One of the problems I have run into with my Lutheran colleagues is that they don't know how to react or what to do when I go to them for confession. I have encountered pastors who are flustered, aggravated, can't do the rite without a book, or who want to turn it into a psych evaluation or a therapy session. For that reason, I tend to shy away from my Lutheran pastor colleagues, not because I do not like them personally, but because they have not a clue what they are doing with the Sacrament (yes, I, like Luther, said it!) of Confession. I most often go to either my Episcopal or Roman Catholic colleagues, who have always received my request for confession warmly.
Confessing to a pastor of the Church is not the only way for absolution and forgiveness to happen, but it is (in my opinion) very powerful. The pastor embodies the Word, and it becomes incredibly personal...to feel the hands laid on one's head, to know that another Christian shares my burden and it is only between us and Christ, and that those words are indeed "for you" bring amazing comfort to a "sin-sick soul."
You ask in your initial post why we don't use this gift? All other arguments aside, maybe it is because we are so busy. I can think of no better example of how the evil one has deluded us, and how our sinfulness has so completely blinded us, than our mistake believe that we can do everything we want and thus so fully stuff our lives that many don't even have time for church. Our sinful condition has been used, tweaked, massaged and masturbated by the evil one to the point that we expect everyone else to understand when we can't do something cuz our busyness has prevented us--like our busyness is a condition we have no control over. Why won't we use this gift--too busy, don't have time, don't want the mess, can't see any benefit that will help my kids lead an even fuller (read busier) life and allow me to live my life through them...
ReplyDeleteOoops. Did I let my rant out. Sorry :-0
Theologia Crucis
The rant is understood and appreciated. I know that Brother Martin had much to say about the Monastic Orders - and rarely was it positive. However, as I look at our society and even times at my own calendar I sometimes wonder by how far are we missing the point.
ReplyDeleteI believe it was Steven Covey that said, "We are not human beings on a spiritual journey, but spiritual beings on a human journey." Yet, time after time we fill our lives with the "human" driven needs of life - often to the neglect of our spiritual needs. I would say that the majority of visitors that come to our doors each week most of them are searching for "that soft still voice" amid the clutter and clatter of our daily life.
Perhaps again, a way to teach about שבת (sabbath) - about the importance of "soul care" - and the need for worship, quiet, peace, and yes confession. Unfortunately, too often we are tempted to seek the newest "marketing program" or "management style" - worrying about the nickles and noses and not about, to borrow from John, "our first love".
This discussion is bringing a joy to my spirit as the original intent of this blog was to have this kind of discussion and conversation that is all too often missing from our daily life.
DB+
It does indeed really concern me when I see families who are so incredibly busy that even church becomes another item on a checklist of activities which must be done. I am reminded of a family I know whose children are so "programmed" that they generally do not get home until 8.00 in the evening and THEN they tackle supper (maybe) and then homework. The children are both under ten years of age.
ReplyDeleteThis thread touches on the issue of sabbath. The impression I hear from people when one is being intentionally UN-busy is that the unbusy one is either lazy or has no ambition or drive. In actuality it usually means the unbusy one is the healthier, taking time to heal him-/herself and rest.
There is also a lack of sabbath time in our worship experiences. How many liturgies have we attended where there is no room for silence? No room to just listen. Even when reading the Scriptures, most parishes print them out for the faithful so they can read along, rather than listen, watch, and pray. Every moment of our worship does not have to be filled with something to amuse us, whether it be song, reading, or sermon. God is present in the rest and the quiet as well.
Are we afraid of rest and silence because it does open us up to be aware of our sinfulness? Are we making ourselves so busy that we don't have to think of those places where we fall short? Are we busying ourselves with little projects, groups, tasks, whatever so that we can have mini-successes and pat ourselves on the back, rather than stop and realize that sometimes we DO fail, and that when we do fail, we are called to confess, repent (metanoia) and go and sin no more?
I concur with my brother presbyter way up North ;-) that this discussion is bringing a joy to me as well.
JS+
my priest is rather fond of saying we need to fit our lives around approaching the altar and not the other way around. He also says that prayer begins with silence. i have taken these words to serious heart, and while i have not yet availed myself of private confession, largely because i don't feel i have anything TO confess, i am building my life around staying close to the altar, to receiving the Body and Blood and approaching prayer with silence, in the car, in doing the Daily Office, in the shower, where ever it may be.
ReplyDeleteI would have to agree that the Law does not draw us closer to God. As a former Roman Catholic, I never saw confession as a gift, but instead as something that I MUST do in order to be "eligible" (read WORTHY) to receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion on Sunday morning. Even as a young girl, I understood the disconnect in thinking that confession on Saturday night meant we were sinless on Sunday morning. Perhaps that is why I am enamoured with Luther's concept of "simil justus et pecattor," because before I even knew what Lutheranism was, I instinctively understood that concept.
ReplyDeleteI also recall feeling a compulsion to make up sins as a very young girl because I couldn't think of every thing I had done wrong in the week and I knew that I had to have a good list to tell the priest.
When I first left the RC church, I admit that I did not miss private confession for those reasons. However, the more I have grown in discipleship and my understanding of Luther, the more I miss the gift of private confession. Yes, I have come to view it as a gift. I have a Roman Catholic nun as a spiritual director who will frequently hear my confession, although she will not "officially" pronounce forgiveness. Still - it is as much the confessing as the reminder of forgiveness which she offers that helps me in the intimacy with my Creator.
I have found that many of the Lutherans whom I know are averse to the idea of private confession because it is "too Catholic." We have become so morphed into the cesspool of American Protestantism (Thank you, Carl Braaten for that lovely image!) that we have haplessly abandoned some of the best strengths of our Lutheran heritage.
In the current congregation where I am serving, folks are uncomfortable with ashes on Ash Wednesday and absolution on Maundy Thursday. The excuse is that it is "too Catholic" or "too public." Many have come to regard faith and religion as a private matter and any external and visible sign is regarded as boastful and improper. (Such helpful attitudes when it comes to evangelism, too!)
I have experienced this in both the eastern part of the US and the Midwest. The pietistic inclination and aversion to appearing too Catholic have robbed us of many of the gifts of the tradition which help make the signs of God's forgiveness and love concrete and visible.
I believe that the only answer is continued conversation, education, patience, and example. Perhaps it begins with conversation, education, and offering the gift of the Rite of Reconciliation amongst the rostered leaders of the Lutheran Church. It seems that they are at least mildly more open to pushing the envelope and accepting new experiences. Perhaps as it becomes more acceptable and understood among the clergy, it can be more comfortably offered in our faith communities.
However it is to begin, I am in agreement that recovering this gift would be a good thing. I think the the Rite of Reconciliation helps put the relationship with God on both a more intimate and a more realistic footing. The intimacy comes with the vulnerability and the words of grace. The realistic footing comes as we have to face our limited humanity, our inherent sinfulness, and acknowledge that we are creations of the Creator and NOT God. Our culture sometimes tempts us to lose a sense of that. WHich is WHY we become "too busy" to make church and the relationship with God a priority. We prefer to live in denial of our mortality and dependence. Hearing the words of forgiveness affirmed is as powerful as Luther found the words "given FOR YOU" in communion. It turns the nebulous concept of forgiveness into an individual, life-changing reality. THAT is transformation that is nothing less than the work of the Holy Spirit.