B Penitence
Stories from the four churches
At St Ann's the Reader invites the congregation to kneel or sit in order to make their confession. The Reader waits for the people to settle down before inviting them to call to mind their sins against God and against their neighbour. After a time of silence for reflection, a sentence of Scripture is read aloud, the people are invited to confess their sins and one of the twenty-two authorized forms of Confession is used (pages 81-90 below). The president prays for forgiveness using an authorized Absolution in the ' us' form.
The Confession at St Bartholomew's during Holy Communion is said after the Prayers of Intercession. The priest invites the people to sit or kneel and, after a pause, reads a seasonal sentence calling the people to repentance and to make their confession. A responsive song is used to give space for reflection and to set the mood before the Confession is said. As it is Lent, the responsive seasonal Confession, 'Lord Jesus Christ we confess we have failed you …', is used, the priest first reminding the congregation of the response: Lord, forgive us: Christ have mercy. After the Confession, the priest pronounces the Absolution.
The congregation at St Christopher's remain standing for the Confession, which takes place immediately after the introduction to worship. The Prayers of Penitence are introduced with the Summary of the Law, followed by a Kyrie Confession, with appropriate insertions (see pages 91-94). At the Absolution, the sign of the cross is made by all, signalling their acceptance of God's forgiveness in Christ.
At St Dodo's it is the monthly 'Family Service' and the minister has decided to use the Confession at the top of page 129 in Common Worship. No indication is given as to whether the congregation should sit or kneel, so there is confusion as people look around to see what to do. After a pause while the minister finds the service sheet, the people are asked to find their sheets on which is printed the Confession.The minister invites the congregation to be quiet and remember their sins before God in silence, but without waiting begins to list in a rather harsh tone a number of sins on which the people may care to reflect and starts the Confession, inserting these sins into it. The Absolution is mumbled inaudibly while the minister continues to kneel in the stall.
How can the penitential prayers have more impact on the congregation?
At St Ann's they have been having some
teaching about sin and forgiveness. One of the results has been
exploration of other ways of bringing home the reality of sin
and the power of God's forgiveness. Among other things, they
have tried:
* The use of images, objects, or
simple drama related to the Confession.
* A Kyrie Confession led by two
people standing with their backs to each other, each offering a
bidding in turn.
* Changing posture, so that the
congregation kneels for the Confession and stands for the
Absolution.They have found that this not only reflects, but
creates, an inner attitude.
* The use of dim lighting to create a
penitential atmosphere.They found this could be achieved very
simply by lowering or switching off the lighting after the
introduction, and switching it on again at the
absolution.
* The burning of incense or aromatic
oils to make the congregation smell 'sweeter', and the
sprinkling of water over the people as a sign of cleansing.
Where is the best place in a service for confession?
At St Christopher's several weeks are being
devoted to teaching on repentance, confession and forgiveness.
As a result the worship group has recommended that the
Confession be used at different points in the service:
* In both A Service of the Word and
Order One Holy Communion, the usual place for the Prayers of
Penitence is going to be - as in the Common Worship books-
after the Greeting (and Prayer of Preparation, if it is used)
in the Gathering part of the service. But as it is also
possible for it to come later in the service, those who plan
the worship will pick up when there is a need, for example, to
respond to a sermon with penitence, and put the Confession
after the sermon or with the intercessions.
* A Service of the Word opens up the
possibility of Penitence coming towards the end of the service,
as its climax. There might be some occasions in the
traditionally penitential seasons of Lent or Advent when this
might work well.
* The worship planning group will
also look for occasional opportunities for using material for
corporate preparation for confession. This might be done in
silence; whilst sentences or passages of Scripture are read
aloud; or by the singing of a suitable hymn or song, either
corporately or by a solo voice.The material in A Form of
Preparation on pages 161-165 of Common Worship will
also provide a resource for this.
How to introduce the Confession
The minister at St Dodo's had been on a
diocesan day on 'Preparing forWorship in Advent' but ignored
all the points made there about the importance of introducing
the Confession properly. As the handout said:
* The purpose of the Invitation to Confession is to
encourage people to call their sins to mind and to give them
space to do so.
* There should be time for silent
reflection between the Invitation and the Confession. This may
be a significant period of silence, with a structure indicated
by the leader.
* Words for the Invitation to
Confession are provided for each part of the year in the
Seasonal Provisions pages in Common Worship (page
300ff.), but any suitable words may be used, and other options
are provided in New Patterns for Worship. Looking at
the examples there will help those constructing their own
invitations.
* Words taken from one of the
readings may be suitable, but care needs to be taken that the
words will not be misunderstood when heard outside their
biblical context. This is one example, using Matthew 1.21 as
the inspiration for a Christmas invitation to confession:
Hear the words of the angel to Joseph:
' You shall call his name Jesus,
for he will save his people from their sins.'
Therefore let us [kneel/stand and] seek the forgiveness of God
through Jesus the Saviour of the world.
Can forms of confession and absolution be written for special occasions?
Only forms of confession and absolution which have been authorized may be used. This includes all those in the Holy Communion services and in the Confession and Absolution section of Common Worship (page 122f.), as well as the forms in The Book of Common Prayer. The reason for this is that the issue of penitence and reconciliation is a controversial one in the Church of England. Limiting the options in controversial areas such as this is intended to promote unity and avoid unnecessary division. The best way to incorporate words designed for a particular occasion, if one of the seasonal thematic confessions is not suitable, is to use the Kyrie option, which provides for the insertion of 'short penitential sentences' between the petitions of the Kyrie.
How are Kyrie Confessions constructed?
The note at the top of page 133 in Common Worship indicates that the Kyries may replace any form of confession, provided that the sentences inserted between the petitions are of a penitential character. Examples are given on page 133f. and pages 277-278 of Common Worship, and more can be found here. The appointed psalms and readings might be the first place to look for suitable sentences from the Bible. The use of a concordance, in book or electronic form, may be useful in leading to other biblical sentences, though it should be noted that the sentences do not have to come from the Bible. The sentences should not be too long, and the three should match each other in length and pattern. As the rubric in Common Worship, page 170, makes clear, if the Kyrie has been used as the confession, it should not be used again before or after the absolution.
Here is an example of a Kyrie Confession for Holy Week, which is clearly linked to a particular passage of Scripture:
We watch at a distance,
and are slow to follow Christ in the way of the cross.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.We warm our hands by the fire,
and are afraid to be counted among his disciples.
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.We run away,
and fail to share the pain of Christ's suffering.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Does it matter which absolution is used?
If possible, an absolution should be chosen which reflects the style (in language, length and theme) of the confession, and also of the occasion or season. A penitential service, in Advent or Lent, for instance, may need the kind of confession and absolution which gives people more space for reflection. In this section, absolutions are suggested for each confession to assist in this choice, but any authorized absolution may be used. The printing of any of these absolutions in either the 'you' or 'us' form has no doctrinal or other significance. In each case, either a 'you' or 'us' form can be used (though those not ordained priest should use the 'us' form).Words in italics indicate the points where changes may be necessary.
© The Archbishops' Council of the Church of England, 2000-2004