Follow us @WheatnTweet!I Confess: Weekend Poll
By: wheatmeisterDecember 22, 2012
What is the role of bishop in confession? What should it be?
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I’d say it depends on the sin and the person- not just severity-based, but how capable the person is at the repentance process and moving on. To me, visiting the bishop in such cases is not because the sin CAN’T be wiped clean with the bishop, but because he can make it so much easier. It’s his assistance to seek, not his pardon.
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I once wrote a post on this topic:
The law governing confession
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I think it depends on where the person is at with their spiritual growth as well as the severity of the sin. Adultery should be confessed…other sins like pornography, mastubation, drinking alcohol, etc. only need to be confessed (in my opinion) if there is an ongoing problem and they need guidance/counseling.
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The problem is that for all our talk about personal revelation, we can’t seem to repent on our own and trust that we can tell if we’ve been forgiven. Hence bishops and branch presidents having to deal with stuff over and over again that they’d rather not.
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The choices are all wrong.
The Lord defines in Doctrine & Covenants and through modern prophets what should be confessed. In addition to that, what individuals feel they should confess, they should confess. The bishop’s role is to provide loving support to the penitent during the repentance process, and to provide disciplinary action when required (as defined by the Lord and His prophets).
Generally there is value for youth to confess in order to receive instruction and support in their process of establishing healthy paths in their lives.
For adults who have transgressed temple covenants, the bishop’s role is support and to provide judgment and discipline.
My MP (and Brigham Young) taught us that sins that are committed privately may be repented of privately. (That does not mean that the transgressor may continue indefinitely in sin, however.)
One of the reasons that sexual sin is so serious is that restitution is impossible in that one cannot return what one has taken, so to speak.
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“One of the reasons that sexual sin is so serious is that restitution is impossible in that one cannot return what one has taken, so to speak.”
?
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I think the confession started because some leaders liked to hear sexual details.
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I truly don’t know. Due to our culture’s obsession with sex it makes sense that one can’t repent on their own for such minor things as masturbating, as the guilt factor would be too high for the average member until someone superior states “You’ve been forgiven.”
If anything, we gotta fix how we teach repentance as the only times I hear about it are in reference to meeting with a bishop. Any other mention is a vague “Jesus died for our sins” shout-out during testimony meeting.
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