In Confession We Humble Ourselves Before Another Person
It is only out of delusion we believe we do not need others to see, understand, and treat our spiritual sickness. Anyone who believes that he alone can cure his spiritual diseases has isolated himself from a Mystery of the Church and will come to ruin. Only with the help of others are we saved, for within the Christian faith, salvation comes not in a self-focused void, but in the collective nature that is the Church. The Mystery of Confession, established by Our Lord, is a clear sign of the biblical truth that we need the Church, and we need the Mystery of Confession.
In confession we do not simply regret past evil but recognize the darkened vision of our own condition, in which sin, by separating us from God, has reduced us to a divided, autonomous existence, depriving us of both our natural glory and our true freedom. “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9
The Sacrament of Confession is important because it constitutes the cure of spiritual illness. Since the goal of the Christian life is transformation in Christ, ridding ourselves of the corrupt and diseased fallen self, it must begin with the death of the ego. We humble ourselves before the priest, when we confess our sins, for it is not just that Christ hears us. Christ hears us because of our act of humility in baring our souls in front of another person. Thus, Scripture establishes confession, recounts Christ’s gift of authority to the Apostles and their successors to bestow forgiveness to penitents, and exhorts us to confess even to one another (James 5:16), since through one another we achieve humility and, mystically, this joins us to Christ.
With love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon
Tuesday August 3, 2021 / July 21, 2021
7th Week after Pentecost. Tone five.
Prophet Ezekiel (6th c. B.C.).
Venerable Symeon of Emesa, fool-for-Christ (590), and his fellow faster Venerable John.
New Hieromartyr Peter priest (1938).
Uncovering of the relics of St. Romanus Medved’ the Confessor, priest (1999).
New Hieromartyrs Simo Banjac and Milan Stojisavljevic and his son Martyr Milan of Glamoc, Serbia (1941-1945).
Venerable Onuphrius the Silent of the Kiev Caves (12th c.) and St. Onesimus, recluse of the Kiev Caves (13th c.).
Uncovering of the relics (1649) of Venerable Anna of Kashin (1337).
Martyr Victor of Marseilles.
Martyr Acacius of Constantinople. (Greek).
Venerable Eleutherius of “Dry Hill” (Greek).
St. Parthenius of Radovizlios, bishop (Greek).
St. Anna, mother of Venerable Sabbas the Serbian (Serbia).
Hieromartyr Zoticus of Comana in Armenia (204).
Martyrs Justus, Matthew, and Eugene of the 13 who suffered at Rome together with the Martyrs Trophimus and Theophilus (305).
Martyr Bargabdesian, deacon, at Arbela in Assyria (354)
St. Paul, bishop, and St. John, presbyter, ascetics near Edessa (5th c.).
The Scripture Readings
1 Corinthians 6:20-7:12
20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.
Principles of Marriage
7 Now concerning the things of which you wrote to me:
It is good for a man not to touch a woman. 2 Nevertheless, because of sexual immorality, let each man have his own wife, and let each woman have her own husband. 3 Let the husband render to his wife the affection due her, and likewise also the wife to her husband. 4 The wife does not have authority over her own body, but the husband does.And likewise the husband does not have authority over his own body, but the wife does.5 Do not deprive one another except with consent for a time, that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again so that Satan does not tempt you because of your lack of self-control. 6 But I say this as a concession, not as a commandment. 7 For I wish that all men were even as I myself. But each one has his own gift from God, one in this manner and another in that.
8 But I say to the unmarried and to the widows: It is good for them if they remain even as I am; 9 but if they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.
Keep Your Marriage Vows
10 Now to the married I command, yet not I but the Lord: A wife is not to depart from herhusband. 11 But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife.
12 But to the rest I, not the Lord, say: If any brother has a wife who does not believe, and she is willing to live with him, let him not divorce her.
Matthew 14:1-13
John the Baptist Beheaded
14 At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the report about Jesus 2 and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him.” 3 For Herod had laid hold of John and bound him, and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. 4 Because John had said to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.” 5 And although he wanted to put him to death, he feared the multitude, because they counted him as a prophet.
6 But when Herod’s birthday was celebrated, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod. 7 Therefore he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask.
8 So she, having been prompted by her mother, said, “Give me John the Baptist’s head here on a platter.”
9 And the king was sorry; nevertheless, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he commanded it to be given to her. 10 So he sent and had John beheaded in prison. 11 And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. 12 Then his disciples came and took away the body and buried it, and went and told Jesus.
Feeding the Five Thousand
13 When Jesus heard it, He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself. But when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot from the cities.
Very good post and very timely for a situation I am in.
Thankyou & God bless!
The phrase that always rivets mt attention: “Know that you confess not to me, but to God Himself…” There is a trinity of sorts: God, the priest/witness and the penitent.
Grace flows, if I allow it.
Freedom follows.
I am a member of Alcoholics Anonymous.
When you first com into AA either you have forgotten all about God and just don’t care anymore. Or, you are so angry at God you reject Him outright.
But, still you need a higher power. And in the beginning that Higher Power is anonymous and distant. Sound familiar?
You learn to trust and depend on each other. And in being helped and in helping others you begin to grow closer to others, God and yourself.
I once someone in the AA Program of my difficulties with God. They suggested that I borrow, pray to their God for awhile.
“There is a solution. Almost none of us liked the self-searching, the leveling of our pride, the confession of shortcomings which the process requires for its successful consummation. But we saw that it really worked in others, and we had come to believe in the hopelessness and futility of life as we had been living it. When, therefore, we were approached by those in whom the problem had been solved, there was nothing left for us but to pick up the simple kit of spiritual tools laid at our feet. We have found much of heaven and we have been rocketed into a fourth dimension of existence of which we had not even dreamed.
The great fact is just this, and nothing less: That we have had deep and effective spiritual experiences* which have revolutionized our whole attitude toward life, toward our fellows and toward God’s universe. The central fact of our lives today is the absolute certainty that our Creator has entered into our hearts and lives in a way which is indeed miraculous. He has commenced to accomplish those things for us which we could never do by ourselves.”
Excerpt From
Alcoholics Anonymous, Fourth Edition
Anonymous & Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc.
That was some 15 years ago. I was NO WHERE. I am NOW HERE in The Holy Orthodox Church living The Holy Orthodox Way.
May the Good Shepard, continue to protect and guide you.