Absolution is a traditional theological term for the forgiveness experienced in the traditional Churches in the Sacrament A sacrament, as defined in Hexam's Concise Dictionary of Religion is what Roman Catholics believe to be "a rite in which God is uniquely active." Augustine of Hippo defined a Christian sacrament as "a visible sign of an invisible reality." The Anglican Book of Common Prayer speaks of them as "an outward and visible sign of of Reconciliation.

Roman Catholic Church

Absolution is an integral part of the sacrament of penance and reconciliation In Christian faith and practice , confession is similar to a criminal confession -- an admission of one's guilt. The practice is conducted between a confessor and a priest, often within a confessional box or booth. Confession of one's sins, or at least of one's sinfulness, is seen by most churches as a pre-requisite for becoming a Christian. The penitent makes a sacramental confession of all mortal sins Mortal sin, according to the beliefs of the Catholic Church is a sin that, unless confessed and absolved (or at least sacramental confession is willed if not available), condemns a person's soul to Hell after death. These sins are considered "mortal" because they constitute a rupture in a person's link to God's saving grace: the person's to a priest A priest or priestess is a person having the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities. Their office or position is the priesthood, a term which may also apply to such persons collectively and prays an act of contrition The Act of Contrition is a prayer recited by the penitent during the Latin Rite Roman Catholic sacrament of Confession. The priest then assigns a penance Penance is repentance of sins as well as the proper name of the Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Orthodox Christian Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation/Confession. The word penance derives from Old French and Latin poenitentia, both of which derive from the same root meaning repentance, the desire to be forgiven; . Penance and repentance, similar and imparts absolution in the name of the Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity teaches the unity of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as three persons in one Godhead. The doctrine states that God is the Triune God, existing as three persons, or in the Greek hypostases, but one being. Each of the persons is understood as having the one identical essence or nature, not merely similar natures, on behalf of the Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church,[note 1] is the world's largest Christian church, and claims over a billion members, representing approximately half of all Christians[note 2] and one-sixth of the world's population. The Catholic Church is a communion of the Western Rite and 22 autonomous Eastern Catholic Churches (:

"God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen."

Before the Second Vatican Council, and still practiced in traditionalist parishes, absolution was given in Latin, followed by another Latin prayer by the priest:

Absolution: "Dominus noster Jesus Christus te absolvat; et ego auctoritate ipsius te absolvo ab omni vinculo excommunicationis (suspensionis) et interdicti in quantum possum et tu indiges. [making the Sign of the Cross:] Deinde, ego te absolvo a peccatis tuis in nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen."

Translation: "May our Lord Jesus Christ absolve you; and by His authority I absolve you from every bond of excommunication (suspension) and interdict, so far as my power allows and your needs require. [making the Sign of the Cross:] Thereupon, I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen."

Post-absolution prayer: "Passio Domini nostri Jesu Christi, merita Beatae Mariae Virginis et omnium sanctorum, quidquid boni feceris vel mali sustinueris sint tibi in remissionem peccatorum, augmentum gratiae et praemium vitae aeternae. Amen."

Translation: "May the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the merits of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of all the saints and also whatever good you do or evil you endure merit for you the remission of your sins, the increase of grace and the reward of everlasting life. Amen."

Absolution forgives the guilt Guilt is a cognitive or an emotional experience that occurs when a person realizes or believes - whether justified or not - that he or she has violated a moral standard, and is responsible for that violation. It is closely related to the concept of remorse associated with the penitent's sins, and removes the eternal punishment (Hell In many religious traditions, Hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife, often in the underworld. Religions with a linear divine history often depict Hell as endless . Religions with a cyclic history often depict Hell as an intermediary period between incarnations (for example, see Chinese Diyu)) associated with mortal sins Mortal sin, according to the beliefs of the Catholic Church is a sin that, unless confessed and absolved (or at least sacramental confession is willed if not available), condemns a person's soul to Hell after death. These sins are considered "mortal" because they constitute a rupture in a person's link to God's saving grace: the person's. The penitent is still responsible for the temporal punishment (Purgatory Purgatory is the condition or process of purification in which the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven. This is an idea that has ancient roots and is well-attested in early Christian literature, while the conception of purgatory as a geographically situated place is largely the achievement of medieval Christian) associated with the confessed sins, unless an indulgence An indulgence, in Roman Catholic theology, is the full or partial remission of temporal punishment due for sins which have already been forgiven. The indulgence is granted by the church after the sinner has confessed and received absolution. The belief is that indulgences draw on the storehouse of merit acquired by Jesus' sacrifice and the virtues is applied.

General absolution, where all eligible Catholics gathered at a given area are granted absolution for sins without prior individual confession to a priest, is lawfully granted in only 2 circumstances: (1) there is imminent danger of death and there is no time for a priest or priests to hear the confessions of the individual penitents, (2) a serious need is present, that is, the number of penitents is so large that there are not sufficient priests to hear the individual confessions properly within a reasonable time (generally considered to be 1 month) so that the Catholics, through no fault of their own, would be forced to be deprived of the sacrament or communion. The diocesan bishop A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. The office of bishop is a ministerial office within Christianity, synonymous with elder, pastor, and presbyter; the other office being deacon. Within the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox must give prior permission before general absolution may be given under this circumstance. It is important to note that the occurrence of a large number of penitents, such as may occur on a pilgrimage or at penitential services is not considered as sufficient to permit general absolution. Circumstance 2 is thus envisaged more for mission territories where priests may visit certain villages only a few times a year.

For a valid reception of general absolution, the penitent must be contrite for all his mortal sins and have the resolution to confess at the next earliest opportunity each of those mortal sins that is forgiven in general absolution. Anyone receiving general absolution is also required to make a complete, individual confession to a priest as soon as possible before receiving general absolution again. A contemporary example of general absolution was the Three Mile Island nuclear accident Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station is a civilian nuclear power plant located on Three Mile Island in the Susquehanna River, in Londonderry Township, Dauphin County, south of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States. It has two separate generators, known as TMI-1 and TMI-2. The plant is best known for having been the site of the worst, where general absolution was granted to all Catholics endangered by the incident.

The French form absoute is used in English for the absolution of the dead The Absolution of the dead is a series of Roman Catholic prayers for pardon that are said over the body of a deceased Catholic following a Requiem Mass and before burial. The absolution of the dead does not forgive sins or confer the sacramental absolution of the Sacrament of Penance. Rather, it is a series of prayers to God that the person's soul, a series of prayers said after the Requiem Mass. The absolution of the dead does not forgive sins or confer the sacramental absolution of the Sacrament of Penance. Rather, it is a series of prayers to God that the person's soul will not have to suffer the temporal punishment in purgatory due for sins which were forgiven during the person's life. The absolution of the dead is only performed in context of the Tridentine Mass The Tridentine Mass is a common name for the form of the Roman Rite Mass contained in the typical editions of the Roman Missal that were published from 1570 to 1962. In this time period, it was the most widely celebrated form of the Catholic liturgy in the world. Following the Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, or Vatican II, was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It opened under Pope John XXIII on October 11, 1962 and closed under Pope Paul VI on December 8, 1965. At least four future pontiffs took part in the council's opening session: Cardinal Giovanni Battista Montini, who, the absolution of the dead was removed from the funeral liturgy of the Mass of Paul VI The Mass of Pope Paul VI is the liturgy of the Catholic Mass of the Roman Rite promulgated by Paul VI in 1969, after the Second Vatican Council . It is the present ordinary or normal form of the Roman Rite of the Mass. For the terms "Novus Ordo" and "Novus Ordo Missae", sometimes applied to it, see below.

Eastern Orthodox Church

In the Greek Church

That the Greeks The Orthodox Church of Albania, whose liturgy is conducted in Koine Greek only in certain areas of Albania, has also been described as the Greek Orthodox Church of Albania however this is complicated by tensions between the Greek and Albanian governments over the ethnic Greek minority in Albania the majority of which are followers of the Orthodox have always believed that the Church has power to forgive sin, that they believe it at present, is clear from the formulæ of absolution in vogue among all branches of the Church; also from the decrees of synods which since the Reformation have again and again expressed this belief (Alzog Johann Baptist Alzog , German theologian and Catholic church historian on Cyril Lucaris III, 465; Synod of Constantinople, 1638; Synod of Jassy, 1642; Synod of Jerusalem The Synod of Jerusalem was convened by Greek Orthodox Patriarch Dositheos Notaras in March, 1672. The occasion was the consecration of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, therefore it is also called the Synod of Bethlehem, 1672). In the Synod of Jerusalem the Church reiterates its belief in Seven Sacraments The mystery religions of antiquity were religious cults which required initiation before a participant was accepted. They included Eleusinian Mysteries, Mithraism, the Cult of Isis, and the Cult of Sol Invictus, among them Penance, which the Lord established when He said: "Whose sins you shall forgive they are forgiven them, and whose sins you shall retain they are retained." The formulæ of absolution are generally deprecatory, and if now and then the indicative form appears, it may be traced to Latin sources.

Russian Church

The belief of the Greek Church is naturally also that of the Russian The Russian Orthodox Church ; or The Moscow Patriarchate (Russian: Русская Православная Церковь (Russkaya Pravoslavnaya Tserkov), or Московский Патриархат (Moskovskiy Patriarkhat) (the latter designation being another official name) since 1943, Поместная Российская Православ�. Russian theologians all hold that the Church possesses the power to forgive sins, where there is true repentance and sincere confession. The form in use at present is as follows: "My child, N. N., may our Lord and God Christ Jesus by the mercy of His love absolve thee from thy sins; and I, His unworthy priest, in virtue of the authority committed to me, absolve thee and declare thee absolved of thy sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, Amen."

Anglican Church

In the Anglican Communion The Anglican Communion is an international association of national Anglican churches. There is no single "Anglican Church" with universal juridical authority as each national or regional church has full autonomy. As the name suggests, the Anglican Communion is an association of these churches in full communion with the Church of England, formal, sacramental absolution is given to penitents in the sacrament of penance now formally called the Reconciliation of a Pentitent and colloquially called "confession." There is also a general absolution given after general confessions in the offices of Morning and Evening Prayer and after the general confession in the Eucharist.

Often, physical actions accompany an absolution. A priest or bishop makes the sign of the cross The Sign of the Cross is a ritual hand motion made by members of many branches of Christianity. It may be accompanied by the trinitarian formula. For Christians, the motion symbolizes the Cross on Calvary by tracing the shape of the cross in the air or on one's own body. There are two principal forms, one form used in the Latin-Rite Catholic over the congregation. Those receiving the absolution may make the sign of the cross as well.

At minimum, Anglican prayer books contain a formula of absolution in the daily offices, at the Eucharist The Eucharist, also called Holy Communion or The Lord's Supper and other names, is a Christian sacrament, generally considered to be a commemoration of the Last Supper, the final meal that Jesus Christ shared with his disciples before his arrest and eventual crucifixion. The consecration of bread and a cup within the rite recalls the moment at the, and in the visitation of the sick Anointing of the Sick is distinguished from other forms of religious anointing or "unction" in that it is intended, as its name indicates, for the benefit of a sick person. Other religious anointings occur in relation to other sacraments, in particular baptism, confirmation and ordination, and also in the coronation of a monarch. The first two are general, akin to the liturgical absolution in use in the Roman Church; the third is individual by the very nature of the case. The offices of the earliest Books of Common Prayer The Book of Common Prayer is the common title of a number of prayer books of the Church of England and of other Anglican churches, used throughout the Anglican Communion. The first book, published in 1549 , in the reign of Edward VI, was a product of the English Reformation following the break with Rome. Prayer books, unlike books of prayers, contained an absolution that read both as assurance of pardon, placing the agency with God ("He [God] pardoneth and absolveth all them that truly repent"), and as priestly mediation (God "hath given power and commandment to his ministers to declare and pronounce to his people...the absolution and remission of their sins"). The following is the form of absolution for the sick in the Book of Common Prayer: "OUR Lord Jesus Christ, who hath left power to his Church to absolve all sinners who truly repent and believe in him, of his great mercy forgive thee thine offences: And by his authority committed to me, I absolve thee from all thy sins, In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen." http://www.eskimo.com/~lhowell/bcp1662/occasion/sick_visit.html

Oriental Orthodox Churches

Armenians

Denzinger Heinrich Joseph Dominicus Denzinger was a leading German Catholic theologian and author of the Enchiridion Symbolorum et Definitionum (Handbook of Creeds and Definitions) commonly referred to simply as "Denzinger", in his Ritus Orientalium (1863), gives us a full translation of the penitential ritual used by the Armenians The Armenian Apostolic Church is the world's oldest National Church and is one of the most ancient Christian communities. Armenia was the first country to adopt Christianity as its official religion in 301 AD, in establishing this church. The present version is from the ninth century. The form of absolution is declarative, though it is preceded by a prayer for mercy and for pardon. It is as follows: "May the merciful Lord have pity on thee and forgive thee thy faults; in virtue of my priestly power, by the authority and command of God expressed in these words, 'whatsoever you shall bind on earth shall be hound in heaven', I absolve thee from thy sins, I absolve thee from thy thoughts, from thy words, from thy deeds, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, and I restore thee to the Sacrament of the Holy Church. May all thy good works be for thee an increase of merit, may they be for the glory of life everlasting, Amen."

Copts

Dr. Hyvernat asserts that the liturgical books A liturgical book is a book published by the authority of a church, that contains the text and directions for the liturgy of its official religious services of the Copts The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria is the official name for the largest Christian church in Egypt. The Church belongs to the Oriental Orthodox family of churches, which has been a distinct church body since the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451, when it took a different position over Christological theology from that of the Eastern Orthodox and have no penitential formulæ, nor is this surprising, for they inscribe in the ritual only those things not found in other rituals. Father du Bernat, writing to Père Fleurian (Lettres édifiantes), says, in reference to the Sacrament of Penance among the Copts, that the Copts believe themselves bound to a full confession of their sins. This finished, the priest recites over them the prayer said at the beginning of the Mass, the prayer asking pardon and forgiveness from God; to this is added the so-called "Benediction", which Father Bernat says is like the prayer said in the Latin Church after absolution has been imparted. Dr. Hyvernat, however, asserts that Father Bernat is mistaken when he likens the Benediction to our Passio Domini, for it is like the Latin prayer only inasmuch as it is recited after absolution.

Jacobites

The Syrians Syriac Christianity is an ancient near Eastern Christian group represented by denominations primarily in the Middle East and in Kerala, India. Particularly notable is the liturgical use of ancient Syriac, a dialect most closely related to the Aramaic of Jesus who are united with the Roman See use the declarative form in imparting absolution, a relatively recent formula. The present Jacobite Church The Syriac Orthodox Church is an autocephalous Oriental Orthodox church based in the Middle East, with members spread throughout the world. It parted ways with Eastern Orthodoxy and Roman Catholicism over the Council of Chalcedon in 451, which the Syriac Orthodox Church rejects. It is a major inheritor of Syriac Christianity and has Syriac, a not only holds and has held the power to absolve from sin, but its ritual is expressive of this same power. Denzinger (Ritus Orientalium) has preserved for us a twelfth-century document which gives in full the order of absolution.

Nestorians

The Nestorians Nestorianism is the doctrine that the two individual natures of Christ, the human and the divine, are joined in conjunction rather than in hypostatic union. The doctrine is identified with Nestorius (c. 386–c. 451), Archbishop of Constantinople. This view of Christ was condemned at the First Council of Ephesus in 431, and the conflict over this have at all times believed in the power to absolve in the Sacrament of Penance. Assemani, Renaudot Eusèbe Renaudot , was a French theologian and Orientalist, Badger (Nestorians and their Rituals), also Denzinger, have the fullest information on this point. It is noticeable that their formula of absolution is deprecatory, not indicative.

Lutheranism

Lutheran churches practice "confession and absolution" with the emphasis on the absolution, which is God's word of forgiveness. While confession of sins is the biblical pattern to be followed (Ps. 32:5: "I said, 'I will confess my transgressions to the LORD'; And You forgave the guilt of my sin."), only holy absolution is held to be specifically instituted by Jesus (Matt. 16:19, John 20:23) in Lutheran theology. The common practice is to follow the rite of corporate confession of sins and absolution before the beginning of the Lutheran Divine Service. (Traditionally, the Divine Service begins with the Introit: the order of corporate confession and absolution is placed before it.) The Lutheran reformers held that a complete enumeration of sins is impossible (Augsburg Confession XI, see Ps. 19:12) and that one's confidence of forgiveness was based on the absolution, God's word, rather than on what the penitent did or might do: the sincerity of the penitent's contrition or act of confession or deeds of satisfaction (penance). Deeds of satisfaction have been completely excluded from the Lutheran rite of confession and absolution. Faith in Jesus' sufficient active and passive satisfaction, implicit in the word of holy absolution, receives the forgiveness of sins and salvation. Traditionally confession and absolution is understood as "return to baptism" (reditus ad baptismum). Therefore baptism is a precondition for the reception of absolution. Generally, private confession and absolution are practiced in the Lutheran tradition only when requested by the penitent or recommended by the confessor or pastor.[1]

Confession and absolution may be either private to the pastor, called the "confessor" with the person confessing known as the "penitent," or corporate with the assembled congregation making a general confession to the pastor in the Divine Service. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries private confession and absolution largely fell into disuse; and, even at the present time, it is generally only used when specifically requested by the penitent or suggested by the confessor.

In his 1529 catechisms, Martin Luther praised private confession (before a pastor or a fellow Christian) "for the sake of absolution," the forgiveness of sins bestowed in an audible, concrete way (see John 20:23; Matthew 16:19; 18:18). The Lutheran reformers held that a complete enumeration of sins is impossible (Augsburg Confession XI with reference to Psalm 19:12) and that one's confidence of forgiveness is not to be based on the sincerity of one's contrition nor on one's doing works of satisfaction imposed by the confessor. The medieval church held confession to be composed of three parts: contritio cordis ("contrition of the heart"), confessio oris ("confession of the mouth"), and satisfactio operis ("satisfaction of deeds"). The Lutheran reformers abolished the "satisfaction of deeds," holding that confession and absolution consist of only two parts (Large Catechism VI, 15): the confession of the penitent and the absolution spoken by the confessor. Faith or trust in Jesus' complete active and passive satisfaction is what receives the forgiveness and salvation won by him and imparted to the penitent by the word of absolution.

The Lutheran Church of Sweden emphasizes the teaching of the Book of Concord that "confession and absolution" is a sacrament (Apology of the Augsburg Confession XIII, 4): sacramental confession to a Lutheran priest is contained in the Swedish massbook.

The Reformed tradition

The earliest Reformers attacked the penitential practice of the medieval church, particularly the confession of sins to a priest. Their opinions expressed in their later theological works do not differ as markedly from the old position as one might suppose.

The Lutheran tenet of justification by faith alone would make all absolution merely declarative, and reduce the pardon granted by the Church to the merest announcement of the Gospel, especially of remission of sins through Christ.

Zwingli held that God alone pardoned sin, and he saw nothing but idolatry in the practice of hoping for pardon from a mere creature. If confession had aught of good it was merely as direction.

John Calvin denied all idea of sacrament when there was question of Penance; but he held that the pardon expressed by the minister of the Church gave to the penitent a greater guarantee of forgiveness. The Confession styled "Helvetian" contents itself with denying the necessity of confession to a priest, but holds that the power granted by Christ to absolve is simply the power to preach to the people the Gospel of Jesus, and as a consequence the remission of sins: "Rite itaque et efficaciter ministri absolvunt dum evangelium Christi et in hoc remissionem peccatorum prædicant."

Sources and references

• This article incorporates text from the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913. - only partially used yet
• John N. Wall. A Dictionary for Episcopalians. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Cowley Publications, 2000.
• Christian Cyclopedia Article on Absolution
• Luther, Martin. Smalcald Articles VIII. Of Confession
• Melanchthon, Philip. The Augsburg Confession Article XI: Of Confession.
• Melanchthon, Philip. The Defense of the Augsburg Confession Article VI: Of Confession and Satisfaction

Categories: Christian liturgy, rites, and worship services | Sacrament of Confession | Christian theology

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