Full resolution (JPEG) - On this page / på denna sida - Part 2. Concerning Confession - 1. Christian Confession - Confession and Self-disclosure - To Whom shall Confession be Made?
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
Below is the raw OCR text
from the above scanned image.
Do you see an error? Proofread the page now!
Här nedan syns maskintolkade texten från faksimilbilden ovan.
Ser du något fel? Korrekturläs sidan nu!
This page has never been proofread. / Denna sida har aldrig korrekturlästs.
CHRISTIAN CONFESSION
clearly he must try to form an opinion about the history of sin
in the life of the individual. His responsibility is in a sense
judicial, yet he is not a judge. In the classical literature
concerning the care of souls he is called ‘a physician of souls’. His
duty is not to apply legalistic criteria to the individual and his
spiritual situation. He must reflect that sin is to be compared
with disease. The sinner is therefore one who is spiritually ill
though not without responsibility for his condition.
To Whom Shall Confession Be Made
The subjective value of confession may greatly depend on to
whom the confession is made. The essential thing, of course, is
that it be someone in whom one has confidence. Sometimes
this may mean no more than the knowledge that the person in
question will respect the promise of secrecy.
Assurance that the confession is being made to a person wise
and experienced in life can be of great importance in some
cases. Naturally one confesses to a person of understanding who
will listen in the right manner; but an individual who has
failed often wants to feel that he is confessing to ‘a real human
being’ in order to be sure, when ‘the arms of humanity are
opened to him’ again, that the sense of forgiveness he feels is
real beyond question because the person through whom it has
been mediated has the breadth of knowledge and depth of
experience needed to apprehend the full significance of all that
has been disclosed. This very natural point of view must be
respected.
But for the person who has broken the laws of fellowship the
significance of confession will be the deeper the more he
reverences fellowship as a spiritual reality. He will feel his need
of someone who is at once a real human being and a Christian:
a true representative of the spiritual fellowship against which
he has sinned.
Among those of the Roman Catholic communion, and indeed,
within many of the evangelical denominations, the opinion is
strongly held that confession is valid only if made to a priest.
Confession is held to be a sacrament which, like the admini- |
stration of Holy Communion at the altar, must be made by one
consecrated according to the rules of apostolic succession.
75
<< prev. page << föreg. sida << >> nästa sida >> next page >>
