May 31, 2019

CONFESSION

James 5:16

Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

Personal challenge

One of the hurdles that I had to overcome while I was in the process of converting to Orthodoxy was the sacrament of confession. I had it ground into me in my protestant years that you do not confess your sin to anyone but God. This is erroneous teaching. Here is an excerpt from my Orthodox Study Bible:

5:16-18 Some allege that confessing sins to God before a priest is not biblical. The ancient Christian custom was to confess your trespasses to one another (v. 16). When a Christian was guilty of sin, the matter was confessed before the whole Church as an act of repentance. As the Church grew, and those not part of the community came to observe, the pressure in such public confession became so great that the priest, instead of the entire community, heard the confession, representing the people. What is not taught in Scripture is a private confession only to God, which refuses to acknowledge sin to the community (1Jonn 1:8, 10). Thus, the Church has effected healing through such works of faith as confession of sins and the power of intercessory prayer.

It is important to know that in Orthodoxy, the priest does not forgive our sins. He hears our confession and our Lord forgives us of our sins. Glory be to God!