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Confession
I would like to know what do u think about confession and especially how often do u confess.
My point of view is that i confess when i feel that i need that so it can be 2 times in the same month or I can stay months without confessing. What about u?
My point of view is that i confess when i feel that i need that so it can be 2 times in the same month or I can stay months without confessing. What about u?
Comments
However according to church we r supposed to confess once every 40 days so that is close to every 1,5 month, which seems reasonable...
And when I did confess regularly.....say once every 2 months or so I used to dread it.....it was like playing the same old tape again...same questions and same answers nothing new.
Therefore, I have stopped confessing.....I mean come on I dont even like my priest (for a good reason).
Anyways....I totally agree with Peter about going to confession and saying the same problems you had 40 days ago. In that case I see no point in going to confession. What do you think? ;)
when we confess, we renew the Holy Spirit within us, and we recieve absolution for the forgivness of our sins, even if its constantly the same sins. we still need forgiveness no matter what. we have to try and be pure so we are ready....
after we confess, we come out clean and white, we're given a chance over to not make the same mistakes and stain oursleves with sin, that's when we work harder on our repetative sins and concentrate on not doing them. because of our human weaknesses, we fall into the same sins, but that doesnt excuse us from needing forgiveness.
it is important to sit with yourself and confess to God and truly repent with the heart before going to abouna and confessing and recieveing absolution, it makes the process smoother and more benificial....
even if sometimes we feel that confession seems 'pointless' or 'unnecessary', we should do it anyways because the divine mystery it holds is beyond us, and we dont know everything about it....
another thing, tell your father of confession that its boring. i did. i told him i feel nothing and that its too repetative and i dont come out of it feeling anything spiritual. he knew what i was talking about and gave me some good advice and spiritual excersises, and now i like confession alot more than i did before and feel its spiritual benefit...
just my thoughts on this....
take care and God Bless...
Confession can be an individual thing. Discuss this with your Confession father. My experience tends to be from repetive to life changing depending where I am in that point in my life. Also the more i learn what the word "sin" means and how it affects my relationship with God and others (since sin is not just a vertical thing-God and i- but also a horizontal thing- the community and i... the Cross+), the more i will feel guilt (underestimated these days) and repentance.
Also if i am confessing the same sins am i really trying hard enuff to stop commiting them? Am i trying to avoid the people,places and things that may tempt me to fall into sin? Do i secretly latch on to my sinful habits becuase i really enjoy them even if i later feel guilty? Am i addicted to certain sins and feel ashamed to confess totally becuase i may feel my Confession father may rebuke me? Am i going thru the motions thinking i am fooling God and all those around me?
These are honest questions to ask ourselves to help improve our walk with Christ. If we feel we cannot face the answers now then ask Rabena (The Lord) to give you the grace and guidance to confront your issues so that He can break the chains that bind you. The Holy Sacrament of Confession is here to help liberate us from the clutches of the devil, death and sin by the advice, love and forgiveness of a fellow recovering sin addict like ourselves who is also experiencing Christ's mercy in his life. Remember, Abouna also goes to Confession to another priest! We all need Christ!
Please pray fro this recovering sinner...ty ;D!
Well anyways what if you don't feel those emotions anymore? What if even after you confess, you still feel really bad inside? Thats how I feel.
Sometimes not only do I worry about my sins but those who have sinned as a cause of me.
I really don't understand this sacrament. I think sinning is inevitable, and I also think that confession is a good way to express your emotions to someone: Abouna, and God. But I don't think that its purpose is only forgiveness of sins. I don't even believe it's good enough for someone to confess all of their sins and be let off the hook.
I guess im answering my own question. I have come to the conclusion that confession is not good enough. On top of knowing all your faults and fixing them, it's also nessassary to stop these sins from occuring in the future. And further more, you should offer to the world. You can't just pray all day, you have to think about others.
that's why sometimes in confession, our FOC gives us advice on how to deal with our sins and to make sure we're not a stumbling block for someone. sometimes we're given 'spiritual exercises ' to help us out and stuff. its important to kno our sins and try to fix them, but also to work on improving oursleves through the advice of our FOC...
confession is quite the mysterious sacrament that our Lord has given us the opportunity to use and enjoy :D
take care and God bless!
nicely said FallenCopt!
that's why sometimes in confession, our FOC gives us advice on how to deal with our sins and to make sure we're not a stumbling block for someone. sometimes we're given 'spiritual exercises ' to help us out and stuff. its important to kno our sins and try to fix them, but also to work on improving oursleves through the advice of our FOC...
just as HH says; in confession we get a "7el" and a "7al": an absolution and a solution lol
Personaly i think when u start really young it becomes very normal 4 u to sit with abouna and tell him about anything.
ok fallencopt about that i had the same problem i mean i kept thinking what if it was like the end of the world tommorow and this and i mistake and then its over i mean will confession help me then? well i asked my FOC about this and he said that there are two parts to confession 1.confession 2.repentance
confession is when you admit and hold it up on yourself and realize that you did something wrong and decided to tell god and gos forgives you
Repentance is when you make an effort not to do it again like for instance i used to continue on thsi one sin sooo much but then what i did was i kept a cross in my pocket everytyme i felt as if i was about to do it
i put my hand in my pocket and rembered the cross i ono thats what my foc said and i have stopped a hard to stop. another thing that will help actually you can... someone once taught me somehing that is really awesome if you continue to say the lords prayer under your breath at anytyme of the day eventually your moth will stop but your heart will keep prayingit really helped me
hope it helps
aghape,
Chris
One can pray constantly. There's a classic Orthodox book specifically about this called," The Way of A Pilgrim". It's not a theological work but a simple story of a Russian peasant who is looking how to pray constantly. You can get it in most bookstores or even online (Amazon.com for example).
The Jesus Prayer is the classic Orthodox prayer said by Orhtodox and Non- Orthodox Christians around the world. Just saying the Holy Name of the Lord Jesus is powerful and can bring peace to one's soul. Plus it can be said anytime, anywhere, without anybody noticing. In times of trouble, temptation, of doubt, for consolation... the Name of Jesus is powerful. It's not a magical charm or a mechanical phrase...its about surrendering our hearts, minds and wills thruout the day by meditating on the Name of Jesus. My signature on the bottom of my post in the Jesus Prayer.
Saying the Our Father also is awesome or a sentence from it or a Psalm or a Bible verse or a word from a chant from Liturgy or a saying from a Holy Father....we are blessed with an arsenal of material to immerse ourselves in the Presence of God and enjoy the peace that only the Lord Jesus Christ can give us!
God Bless you!