The practice of confession is making a comeback, according to a recent WSJ article. Christians of all theological stripes are apparently finding that confessing sin is good for the soul. Much of the new enthusiasm for confession is coming from Protestants, who see confession as a way of introducing accountability and discipline in their church communities and personal lives.
It’s an interesting article that dives a bit into the history of confession as a Christian practice. And it’s got me wondering:
Do you confess your sins regularly to other people?
If so, who do you confess to—a small group from church? Close friends? Your pastor or priest? Have you ever made a public (as in, standing in front of the whole congregation, or something like that) confession of sin?
If so, why do you do so—and is it something that you’ve found valuable to your spiritual life?
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September 27, 2007 at 15:39
Since I asked the question, I’ll give my own answer. I don’t currently confess sin regularly to other people. In the past I have been in small groups at church where confession/accountability was encouraged. I found it spiritually helpful, but also incredibly difficult given my introverted personality.
At the church I grew up in, every great now and then somebody would make a public confession of sin before the whole congregation. Usually it was a sin that was affecting the whole congregation, or which was causing a lot of unhealthy gossip and needed to be publicly addressed. In most cases the public confession turned out to be a very good thing, and spurred a lot of support and encouragement from the church for the person confessing the sin. (I expected gossip to increase after a confession like that, but gossip actually seemed to die off when somebody made a public confession.)
September 27, 2007 at 16:11
I confess to a priest, and I try to go once a month or so. I didn’t always do this. I just rediscovered the value of this about a year ago, after not having confessed in 15-20 years.
I have found a physical type of relief from participating in the confession. The feeling of moving forward with a clean slate has no equal. Yes, I can confess to God directly, but having a priest standing in persona Christe gives the human touch that this mortal needs. Your mileage may vary.
September 27, 2007 at 16:54
Does anyone have biblical examples of people confessing sins to other people?
September 27, 2007 at 21:09
I struggle with confessing them except on Relevant Magazines prayer wall. Something about people not knowing you makes it easier. As a pastor I have even thought about going to a priest just to talk to someone about it sometimes. Kinda weird but well… at least it’s not typed and lost in oblivion.
I wonder of those of us who confess on a board or prayer wall when we don’t have to put our name to it really confess or more repent from it at all?
September 28, 2007 at 02:37
I definitely confess my sins to certain core friends; these are the ones that I trust wholeheartedly. I have a reunion group that I meet with weekly for sharing our struggles and joys and just talk about life. We pray for one another. I also do this with my pastor, who is also one of my closest friends.
The thing with struggles with sin is that they are hardly ever overcome on our own. The bible repeatedly talks about holding one another up and praying for one another – because it is a necessity. It can be daunting to share your sins with others (I know!), but when you find people that you can open up to, take the opportunity. I think that you will quickly realize how important it is.
Sin thrives in darkness; only when we bring it out into the light can it be overcome. Satan has us believe that nobody else is going through what we are going through and we should be shameful and not let anyone else know. He is truly the father of lies.
September 28, 2007 at 09:14
James chapter five (vs 16 IIRC).
I think this has been elluded to already, but community is something that is lacking America and the Christian community which fosters openness and confession — or so my officemate and I have discussed more than once.
September 28, 2007 at 10:00
I confess specific sins to those who my sins affected; and I ask for their forgiveness, letting them know that I understand they may choose to not trust me again and are under no obligation to forgive me at that exact second or restore fellowship with me.
I have confessed sins publicly in a small group type setting & in a larger Bible study setting; these sins are not specifically named (as in “I did such and such and was wrong for my action and would like to make it right…”) but more general (as in, “I have been rebellious” or “I have not been loving”).
September 28, 2007 at 11:46
Jeffrey asked,
“Does anyone have biblical examples of people confessing sins to other people?”
James 5:16
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
The apostle Paul called himself the worst of sinners.
Sin is an archery term by the way. None of us even makes it on the target. We all fall short of Gods standard.
Peace,
Linda
September 28, 2007 at 19:39
I think something that is also extremely important is to have a good Christian accountability partner. One of my best friends is my accountability partner. This is something that you can not only confess your sins to (James 5:16) but also someone who will hold you accountable. This is especially helpful to those who have addictions (drug, sexual, pornography, etc.) I would only recommend that you have a same-sex accountability partner.
I believe we must first and foremost confess our sins to God only on the basis of the shed blood of Christ for forgiveness of sin and second follow the guidelines in James 5:16 which gives support within the body of Christ, helps to mortify sin through that support (this is only possible through the Holy Spirit) and provides a means of not harboring or hiding sin.
Just my two cents….
October 1, 2007 at 09:04
Confession to others is truly lacking in my walk. I have been part of small groups in the past where I felt free to confess. But right now, because most of my time is spent ministering to others, I don’t have the opportunity to be in a small group. I’m praying about that, because I see it as a need. I do confess to God, but the need to confess to other Christians is real.
When I see sensational news stories of Christian leaders falling prey to temptations, I see the importance of true accountability. Satan loves for us to think we are alone in our temptations and loves for us to be afraid to confess. He knows that that feeling is what will lead us to fall.
I probably wouldn’t feel comfortable confessing to my pastor, but an accountability partner—someone who is my peer and my friend—would be an answer to prayer right now.