The present time is a time of great temptation. The spirit of the modern world is trying to seduce us, corrupt us, and entice us all into carnal sins. It is also very difficult to resist this. And every time it becomes more and more difficult.
“The ordeals of fornication are terrible and vile... few souls go through them unhindered, since the world lies in evil...”
- the ordeal of blessed Theodora. The ordeal of fornication.
One of the most terrible sins is fornication. Fornication is one of the seven deadly sins in the Orthodox Church. Photo: suharewa.ru
From childhood, children become accustomed to seeing only all kinds of lustful temptations around them. Children absorb them very quickly, and they also begin to register on a subconscious level. When they grow up, then without any resistance, they voluntarily fall into these sinful networks.
Sin is a thought, a desire that contradicts God's commandments
Sin is a thought, desire, decision, attraction that contradicts the Divine moral law, as well as God's commandments. Sin is also the cause of the perversion of human nature due to man’s falling away from God, his fall into an unnatural state.
Why do people sin? The Monk Ambrose of Optina answered this question:
“...Or because they don’t know what to do and what to avoid; or, if they know, they forget, then they become lazy and despondent.”
Venerable Ambrose of Optina.
Photo: icons.pstgu.ru Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh spoke about who a sinner is:
“Who is a sinner? The one who broke the law of God in the first place. A sinner is one who lives in such a way that he becomes alien to God, who is ashamed in the face of God, who disgraces God in front of other people. This is a person divided in himself, separated from his neighbor, removed from God. The sinner has lost touch with God, with his conscience, with his own life, with the life of his neighbor. Each of us can say that he is like that. It is not that we discover that we have committed one particularly heinous sin and repent of it. It's about our lifestyle."
Anthony of Sourozh
Metropolitan
Chapter 20. Pastoral assistance in preparation for Repentance and Confession
I. In relation to God and the Church:
1) Lack of faith, doubt
in the truth of Holy Scripture and Tradition (that is, in the dogmas of the Church, its canons, the legality and correctness of the hierarchy, the performance of worship, the authority of the writings of the Holy Fathers). Renunciation of faith in God out of fear of people and concern for earthly well-being.
Lack of faith is the absence of complete deep conviction in any Christian truth or the acceptance of this truth only with the mind, but not with the heart. This sinful state arises out of doubt or lack of zeal for the true knowledge of God. Lack of faith is to the heart what doubt is to the mind. It relaxes the heart on the path of fulfilling the will of God. Confession helps to drive out lack of faith and strengthen the heart.
Doubt is a thought that violates (obviously and vaguely) the conviction in the truth of the teachings of Christ and His Church in general and in particular, for example, doubts in the Gospel commandments, doubts in dogmas, that is, any member of the Creed, in the holiness of some saint recognized by the Church or events of Sacred history celebrated in the Church, in the inspiration of the Holy Fathers; doubt in the veneration of holy icons and relics of holy saints, in the invisible Divine presence in worship and in the Sacraments.
In life, one must learn to distinguish between “empty” doubts aroused by demons, the environment (the world) and one’s own sin-darkened mind - such doubts must be rejected by an act of will - and real spiritual problems that must be resolved based on complete trust in God and His Church , forcing oneself to complete self-disclosure before the Lord in the presence of a confessor. It is better to confess all doubts: both those that were rejected by the inner spiritual eye, and especially those that were accepted in the heart and gave rise to confusion and despondency there. In this way the mind is purified and enlightened and faith is strengthened.
Doubt can arise on the basis of excessive trust in oneself, being carried away by other people’s opinions, and little zeal for the awareness of one’s faith. The fruit of doubt is relaxation in following the path of Salvation, contradiction to the will of God.
2) Passivity (little zeal, lack of effort) in the knowledge of Christian truth, the teachings of Christ and His Church. Lack of desire (if there is such an opportunity) to read the Holy Scriptures, the works of the holy fathers, to ponder and comprehend with the heart the dogmas of faith, to understand the meaning of worship. This sin arises from mental laziness or excessive fear of falling into any doubt. As a result, the truths of faith are learned superficially, thoughtlessly, mechanically, and in the end a person’s ability to effectively and consciously fulfill the will of God in life is undermined.
3) Heresies and superstitions
Heresy is a false teaching relating to the spiritual world and communication with it, rejected by the Church as being in clear contradiction with Holy Scripture and Tradition.
Personal pride, excessive trust in one’s own mind and personal spiritual experience often leads to heresy. The reason for heretical opinions and judgments may also be insufficient knowledge of the teachings of the Church, or theological ignorance.
Superstition is a separate opinion about the practical aspects of spiritual life, going beyond the framework of Holy Tradition and church faith, often rooted in pagan remnants (magic, witchcraft, fortune telling, omens) and parasitic on the church body. This includes popular beliefs, rituals and signs associated with church holidays and days of remembrance of certain saints, the use of sacred church objects and even the Holy Gifts for blasphemous magical purposes. Superstitions are weeds in the spiritual field, drowning out the sprouts of spirituality and true faith. Parasitizing the human soul, they absorb its energy, distort the spiritual path, and obscure the Truth of Christ. Superstitions arise as a result of ignorance of the teachings of the Church and blind trust in false non-Christian sources and traditions.
4) Ritualism
Adherence to the letter of Scripture and Tradition, attaching importance only to the external side of church life while forgetting its meaning and purpose - these vices are united under the name of ritualism. Belief in the saving significance of only the exact fulfillment of ritual actions in themselves, without taking into account their inner spiritual meaning, testifies to the inferiority of faith and a decrease in reverence for God, forgetting that a Christian must serve God in the renewal of the spirit, and not according to the old letter (Rom. 7:6). Ritualism arises due to insufficient understanding of the Good News of Christ, and He gave us the ability to be ministers of the New Testament, not of the letter, but of the Spirit, because the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life (2 Cor. 3:6). Ritualism testifies to an inadequate perception of the teachings of the Church, which does not correspond to its greatness, or to an unreasonable zeal for service, which does not correspond to the will of God. Ritualism, which is quite widespread among the church people, entails superstition, legalism, pride, and division.
5) Distrust of God
This sin is expressed in the lack of confidence that the primary cause of all external and internal life circumstances is the Lord, who desires our true good. Distrust of God is caused by the fact that a person has not become sufficiently accustomed to the Gospel Revelation, has not felt its main component: voluntary suffering, crucifixion, death and Resurrection of the Son of God.
From distrust of God arise such sins as lack of constant gratitude to Him, despondency, despair (especially in illness, sorrow), cowardice in circumstances, fear of the future, vain attempts to insure against suffering and avoid trials, and in case of failure - hidden or open murmur on God and His Providence for himself. The opposite virtue is placing one’s hopes and hopes on God, fully accepting His Providence for oneself.
6) Murmuring against God
This sin is a consequence of distrust in God, which can lead to complete falling away from the Church, loss of faith, apostasy and opposition to God. The opposite virtue to this sin is humility before God’s Providence for oneself.
7) Ingratitude to God
A person often turns to God in times of trials, sorrows and illnesses, asking to soften or even get rid of them; on the contrary, during periods of external well-being, he forgets about Him, not realizing that he is using His good gift, and does not thank him for it. The opposite virtue is constant gratitude to the Heavenly Father for the trials, consolations, spiritual joys and earthly happiness He sends.
Little zeal (or its complete absence) for communion with God and spiritual life.
Salvation is fellowship with God in Christ in the eternal future life. Earthly life for the acquisition of the grace of the Holy Spirit, the revelation in oneself of the Kingdom of Heaven, the Inhabitation of God, and Sonship of God. Achieving this goal depends on God, but God will not constantly be with a person if he does not show all his zeal, love, intelligence to get closer to Him. The whole life of a Christian is directed towards this goal. If you have no love for prayer as a way of communion with God, for the temple, for participation in the Sacraments, then this is a sign of a lack of zeal for communion with God.
In relation to prayer, this manifests itself in the fact that it occurs only under duress, irregular, inattentive, relaxed, with a careless body position, mechanical, limited only to prayers learned by heart or read out. There is no constant memory of God, love and gratitude to Him as the background of all life.
Possible reasons: insensibility of the heart, passivity of the mind, lack of proper preparation for prayer, unwillingness to think through and understand with your heart and mind the meaning of the upcoming prayer work and the content of each petition or word.
Another group of reasons: attachment of the mind, heart and will to earthly things.
In relation to temple worship, this sin is manifested in rare, irregular participation in public worship, in absent-mindedness or talking during the service, walking around the temple, distracting others from prayer with one’s requests or comments, being late for the start of the service and leaving before dismissal and blessing. In general, this sin comes down to inability to feel the special presence of God in the temple during public worship.
Causes of sin: reluctance to enter into prayerful unity with brothers and sisters in Christ due to being burdened with earthly concerns and immersion in the vain affairs of this world, powerlessness in the fight against internal temptations sent by spiritually hostile forces that interfere and hold us back from acquiring the grace of the Holy Spirit, and , finally, pride, an unbrotherly, unloving attitude towards other parishioners, irritation and anger against them.
In relation to the sacrament of Repentance, the sin of indifference manifests itself in rare confessions without proper preparation, in the preference for a general confession to a personal one in order to go through it more painlessly, in the absence of a desire to deeply know oneself, in an incontrite and unhumble spiritual disposition, there is no determination to leave sin, to eradicate vicious inclinations, overcome temptations, instead - the desire to minimize sin, justify oneself, and keep silent about the most shameful actions and thoughts. By thereby committing deception in the face of the Lord Himself, who receives confession, a person aggravates his sins.
The reasons for these phenomena are a lack of understanding of the spiritual meaning of the sacrament of Repentance, complacency, self-pity, vanity, and an unwillingness to internally overcome demonic resistance.
We sin especially gravely against the Most Holy and Life-Giving Mysteries of the Body and Blood of Christ, approaching Holy Communion rarely and without proper preparation, without first cleansing our soul in the sacrament of Repentance, we do not feel the need to receive Communion more often, we do not preserve our purity after Communion, but again fall into vanity and indulge in vices.
The reasons for this are rooted in the fact that we do not reflect on the meaning of the highest Sacrament of the Church, we do not realize its greatness and our sinful unworthiness, the need for healing of soul and body, we do not pay attention to heartfelt insensibility, we do not realize the influence of fallen spirits nesting in our soul, which turn us away from Communion, and therefore we do not resist, but succumb to their temptation, we do not enter into struggle with them, we do not experience reverence and fear of God’s presence in the Holy Gifts, we are not afraid to partake of the Holy Place “in judgment and condemnation,” we do not worry about the constant fulfillment of our will God in life, inattentive to our hearts, subject to vanity, approaching the Holy Chalice with a hard heart, unreconciled with our neighbors.
9) Lack of fear of God and reverence for Him
Careless, absent-minded prayer, irreverent behavior in the temple, before the Shrine, disrespect for the sacred dignity.
Lack of mortal memory in anticipation of the Last Judgment.
10) Disobedience to the will of God
Obvious disagreement with the will of God, expressed in His commandments, Holy Scripture, instructions of the spiritual father, the voice of conscience, reinterpretation of God's will in one's own way, in a sense beneficial to oneself for the purpose of self-justification or condemnation of one's neighbor, placing one's own will above the will of Christ, jealousy not according to reason in ascetic exercises and forcing others to follow themselves, failure to fulfill promises made to God in previous confessions.
11) Self-justification, complacency
Satisfaction with one's spiritual structure or state.
12) Despair from the spectacle of one’s spiritual state and powerlessness to fight sin. In general, self-assessment of one’s own spiritual structure and state; imposing spiritual judgment on oneself in contrast to what the Lord Jesus Christ said: Vengeance is Mine, I will repay (Rom. 12:19).
13) Lack of spiritual sobriety, constant heartfelt attention, absent-mindedness, sinful oblivion, foolishness.
14) Spiritual pride, attributing to oneself the gifts received from God, the desire for independent possession of any spiritual gifts and energies.
15) Spiritual fornication
attraction to spirits alien to Christ (occultism, eastern mysticism, theosophy). Spiritual life is being in the Holy Spirit.
16) Frivolous and sacrilegious attitude towards God and the Church: using the name of God in jokes, frivolous mention of holy things, curses with the mention of His name, pronouncing the name of God without reverence.
17) Spiritual egoism, spiritual voluptuousness - prayer, participation in the Sacraments only for the sake of receiving spiritual pleasures, consolations and experiences.
18) Impatience in prayer and other spiritual endeavors. This includes failure to follow prayer rules, breaking fasts, eating at the wrong time, and leaving church early without a particularly good reason.
19) A consumerist attitude towards God and the Church, when there is no desire to give anything to the Church, or to work in any way for it. Prayerful request for worldly success, honors, satisfaction of selfish desires and material wealth.
20) Spiritual stinginess, lack of spiritual generosity, the need to convey to others the grace received from God with words of consolation, sympathy, and service to people.
21) Lack of constant concern for doing God’s will
in life. This sin manifests itself when we do serious things without asking for God's blessing, without consulting or asking for the blessing of our spiritual father.
22) Spiritual individualism, a tendency to isolation in prayer (even during the Divine Liturgy), forgetting that we are members of the Catholic Church, members of one mystical Body of Christ. joints with each other.
II. Sins in relation to neighbors.
1)
Condemnation
The tendency to notice, remember and name other people's shortcomings, to commit overt or internal judgment on one's neighbor.
Under the influence of condemnation of one’s neighbor, which is not always noticeable even to oneself, a distorted image of one’s neighbor is formed in the heart. This image then serves as an internal justification for dislike for this person, a disdainful and evil attitude towards him. In the process of Repentance, this false image must be crushed and, on the basis of love, the true image of each neighbor must be recreated in the heart.
2)
Pride, exaltation over one's neighbor, arrogance, “demonic stronghold.” (This most dangerous of sins is considered separately and in detail.)
3)
Self-isolation, alienation from other people.
4)
Neglect of neighbors, indifference. This sin is especially terrible in relation to parents: ingratitude towards them, callousness. If our parents have died, do we remember to remember them in prayer?
5)
Vanity, ambition.
We fall into this sin when we become vain, flaunting our talents, mental and physical, intelligence, education, and when we demonstrate our superficial spirituality, ostentatious churchliness, imaginary piety.
How do we treat our family members, people with whom we often meet or work? Can we tolerate their weaknesses? Do we often get irritated? Are we arrogant, touchy, intolerant of other people's shortcomings, of other people's opinions?
6)
Lust of ambition, the desire to be first, to command.
Do we love to be served? How do we treat people who depend on us at work and at home? Do we like to dominate, to insist on doing our will? Do we have a tendency to interfere in other people's affairs, in other people's personal lives, with persistent advice and instructions? Don't we tend to leave the last word for ourselves, just to disagree with the opinion of another, even if he is right?
7)
People-pleasing is the other side of the sin of covetousness. We fall into it, wanting to please another person, fearing to disgrace ourselves in front of him. Out of people-pleasing intentions, we often fail to expose obvious sin and participate in lies. Have we not indulged in flattery, that is, feigned, exaggerated admiration for a person, trying to gain his favor? Have we adjusted to other people's opinions and tastes for our own benefit? Have you ever been deceitful, dishonest, two-faced, or dishonest at work? Didn't you betray people to save yourself from trouble? Did you place your blame on others? Have you kept other people's secrets?
Reflecting on his past, a Christian preparing for confession must remember all the bad things that he, voluntarily or unwittingly, committed towards his neighbors.
Was it the cause of grief, someone else's misfortune? Didn't he destroy the family? Are you guilty of adultery and have you encouraged someone else to commit this sin through pimping? Did you not take upon yourself the sin of killing an unborn child, did you contribute to it? These sins should only be repented of in personal confession. Was he prone to obscene jokes, anecdotes, and immoral allusions? Didn’t he insult the sanctity of human love with cynicism and outrage?
Breaking the peace
Do we know how to maintain peace in the family, in communication with neighbors, and co-workers? Don't we allow ourselves slander, condemnation, and evil ridicule? Do we know how to curb our tongue, are we not talkative? Are we showing an idle, sinful curiosity about the lives of other people? Are we attentive to the needs and concerns of people? Are we not closing in on ourselves, in our supposedly spiritual problems, turning away people?
9)
Dependency, malice, gloating
Have you envied someone else's success, position, arrangement? Didn't you secretly wish for failure, failure, a sad outcome for other people's affairs? Did you not openly or secretly rejoice at someone else’s misfortune or failure? Did you incite others to evil deeds while remaining outwardly innocent? Have you ever been overly suspicious, seeing only the bad in everyone? Did one person point out the vice (explicit or imaginary) of another person in order to quarrel between them? Have you abused the trust of your neighbor by revealing to others his shortcomings or sins? Did he spread gossip discrediting the wife before the husband or the husband before the wife? Did your behavior cause jealousy of one of the spouses and anger against the other?
10)
Anger, irritability, grumpiness
Can I control my anger? Do I allow swear words and curses in quarrels with neighbors and in raising children? Do I use foul language in normal conversation (to be “like everyone else”)? Is there rudeness, rudeness, impudence, evil mockery, hatred in my behavior?
11)
Unmercifulness, lack of compassion
Am I responsive to requests for help? Are you ready for self-sacrifice and almsgiving? Is it easy for me to lend things or money? Am I not reproaching my debtors? Am I rudely and persistently demanding the return of what I borrowed? Am I not bragging to people about my sacrifices, alms, helping my neighbors, expecting approval and earthly rewards? Wasn't he stingy, afraid of not getting back what he asked for?
Works of mercy should be done in secret, for we do them not for the sake of human glory, but for the sake of love for God and neighbor.
12)
Grudges, unforgiveness of insults, vindictiveness. Excessive demands on others
These sins are contrary to both the spirit and the letter of the Gospel of Christ. Our Lord teaches us to forgive our neighbor’s sins against us up to seventy times seventy times. Without forgiving others, taking revenge on them for an insult, holding in our minds a grudge against another, we cannot hope for the forgiveness of our own sins by the Heavenly Father.
13)
Resistance to evil against oneself
This sin is manifested in obvious resistance to the offender, in repaying evil for evil, when our heart does not want to bear the pain caused to him.
14)
Failure to provide assistance to one's neighbor, the offended, the persecuted
We fall into this sin when, out of cowardice or falsely
Understood humility, we do not stand up for the offended, we do not expose the offender, we do not testify to the truth, we allow evil and injustice to triumph.
How do we bear the misfortune of our neighbor, do we remember the commandment: “Bear one another’s burdens”? Are you always ready to help, sacrificing your peace and well-being? Are we leaving our neighbor in trouble?
III. Sins against oneself and other sinful tendencies that are contrary to the spirit of Christ.
1)
Dejection, despair
Have you given in to despondency and despair? Did you have thoughts of suicide?
2)
Bodily excesses
Didn’t you destroy yourself with excesses of the flesh: overeating, sweet eating, gluttony, eating at the wrong time?
Have you abused your penchant for bodily peace and comfort, sleeping a lot, lying in bed after waking up? Have you indulged in laziness, immobility, lethargy, and relaxation? Are you so partial to a certain way of life that you are unwilling to change it for the sake of your neighbor?
Am I not guilty of drunkenness, this most terrible of modern vices, destroying soul and body, bringing evil and suffering to others? How do you fight this vice? Do you help your neighbor to give up on him? Did you not tempt the non-drinker with wine, or give wine to the young and sick?
Are you addicted to smoking, which also destroys your health? Smoking distracts from spiritual life, a cigarette replaces a smoker’s prayer, displaces the consciousness of sins, destroys spiritual chastity, serves as a temptation for others, and harms their health, especially children and adolescents.
3)
Sensual thoughts and temptations
Have we struggled with sensual thoughts? Have you avoided the temptations of the flesh? Have you turned away from seductive sights, conversations, touches? Have you sinned by intemperance of mental and physical feelings, pleasure and procrastination in unclean thoughts, voluptuousness, immodest viewing of persons of the opposite sex, self-defilement? Don't we remember with pleasure our previous sins of the flesh?
4)
Bad faith
Do we force ourselves to serve others? Are we sinning by dishonestly fulfilling our duties in work and raising children? whether we keep our promises to people; Don’t we tempt people by being late to the meeting place or to the house where they are waiting for us, by being forgetful, unobligatory, and frivolous? Are we careful at work, at home, in transport? Are we scattered in our work: forgetting to finish one task, we move on to another? Do we strengthen ourselves in the intention to serve others?
5)
Peacefulness
Don’t we sin by pleasing human passions, mindlessly following the lifestyle and behavior accepted among the people around us, including, although existing in the church environment, but not imbued with the spirit of love, feigning piety, falling into hypocrisy, pharisaism.
6)
Disobedience
Do we sin by disobeying our parents, elders in the family, or bosses at work? Are we not following the advice of our spiritual father, are we avoiding the penance he imposed on us, this spiritual medicine that heals the soul? Do we suppress reproaches of conscience within ourselves, not fulfilling the law of love?
7)
Idleness, wastefulness, attachment to things
Are we wasting our time? Are we using the talents God has given us for good? Are we wasting money without benefiting ourselves and others? Are we not guilty of addiction to the comforts of life, are we not attached to perishable material things, are we not excessively accumulating, “for a rainy day,” food products, clothes, shoes, luxurious furniture, jewelry, thereby not trusting God and His Providence, forgetting that tomorrow we can appear before His Court?
Acquisitiveness
We fall into this sin when we are overly carried away by the accumulation of perishable wealth or seeking human glory in work, in creativity; when, under the pretext of being busy, we refuse to pray and go to church even on Sundays and holidays, we indulge in over-concern and vanity. This leads to captivity of the mind and petrification of the heart.
We sin in word, deed, thought, with all five senses, knowledge and ignorance, voluntarily and involuntarily, in reason and unreason, and there is no way to list all our sins according to their multitude. But we truly repent of them and ask for grace-filled help to remember all our sins, forgotten and therefore unrepentant. We promise to continue to take care of ourselves with God’s help, avoid sin and do deeds of love. But You, Lord, forgive us and forgive us from all sins according to Your mercy and long-suffering, and bless us to partake of Your Holy and Life-giving Mysteries, not for judgment and condemnation, but for the healing of soul and body. Amen.
Confession is usually made either the evening before or before the start of the Divine Liturgy, during the reading of the Hours or Matins. If there are a lot of people in the church, the first part of confession is necessarily general. The priest delivers a sermon on Repentance, names sins, using as a sample the list proposed here, which, of course, can be shortened or supplemented depending on the age and social composition of the confessors. Those who are to come mentally repent before God. After which, everyone in turn approaches the priest and repents of mortal sins not included in the list, if any were committed, and receives penance or remission of sins. The confessor must ensure that none of his flock limit themselves only to general confessions, but certainly intersperse them with personal ones.
When reconciling a person with God, the priest does this not with his own power and will, but with the power and will of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
About obedience to the spiritual father
A spiritual father, or confessor, a believer calls a priest (monastic or married), to whom he regularly and constantly comes to confession or for spiritual advice.
Just as it is better for a patient to be treated by one doctor who knows his body and illnesses well, so the healing of the spirit will be more successful if a person turns to a permanent confessor. Relationships with him should be built on sincerity, understanding and trust.
There are several rules in the relationship between a Christian and his confessor: 1) a Christian does not take any important step without receiving the blessing of the confessor or, at least, without consulting him; 2) a Christian uses the instructions of his confessor regarding the prayer rule, the frequency of Communion, fasting and deeds of service to people; 3) a Christian brings his life into harmony with the moral norms and requirements of the Church according to the instructions of his confessor; 4) in case of disagreement with his confessor and intention to move to another, he must inform him, explain the reason and receive a blessing.
The principle of a Christian’s unquestioning obedience to his confessor can be fully applied only to the monastic way of life. The monk took a vow of renunciation of his own will and undertakes to fulfill any demand of his confessor.
The parish priest does not offer such a feat to the layman, and does not take upon himself the right to give indisputable instructions. He only recalls the Gospel commandments, guides a person’s spiritual life, and helps him in his inner work. However, someone who believes that the will of God is revealed to him through a confessor can be given according to his faith.
Nevertheless, priests, especially young priests who are beginning their pastoral ministry, should be especially careful in the practice of counseling, so as not to fall into the temptation of domination over the flock or, due to inability and lack of experience, to harm the spiritual state of the parishioner.
Orthodoxy identifies 7 deadly sins
What is included in carnal sins? There are 7 deadly sins:
- pride;
- envy;
- anger;
- despondency;
- greed;
- gluttony;
- voluptuousness.
7 virtues and 7 sins
These are the forbidden sins of man. Sins of the flesh are very dangerous indeed. The severity of precisely such sins is terrible because they poison not only the body, but also the soul. The soul suffers doubly.
After a person repents, it takes a very long time for healing.
It is worth saying that carnal sins scorch the soul with the fire of Gehenna. There is plenty of evidence of an afterlife.
Valentina Romanova, after visiting the next world, said after the accident:
“...I find myself at the edge of the abyss. They tell me: “Look!” The thought flashes: will they really reset it? I cover my face with my palms (so it seemed to me) because of the smell. I almost got sick of it. Now I know: this is what a dead body smells like. I can not see anything. And they again: “Look!” I looked and recoiled in horror. Millions of people! Like tadpoles in a barrel. Sobs, screams, moans. At the deepest bottom there are people of all colors. They... defecate in front of each other. Unbearable stench! I ask: “How did they get here? How to save them? We need some kind of rope. Why are they so indifferent to them? And they answered me: “Here are human vices.” How is this, vices? “Perverts, fornicators, adulterers, child molesters, homosexuals, bestialists...” I didn’t even know such words. They tell me: “The touch of these people brings suffering. They got what they deserved..."
Valentina Romanova
Time corrects everything
– Why do they publish books to help penitents?
- In order to sell them. And this has been the case at all times - along with spiritual literature, all sorts of things are sold. And this must be understood. Church shops sometimes sell things that are then taken away and burned.
And this happens precisely because people come to the Church and immediately begin to act without proper spiritual guidance. They ask for a blessing to write a book - they say, I am both a writer and a believer. And you can receive a blessing by being sophisticated and presenting part of the book, and then adding a certain part - there may be different options.
And there is a blessing for the book, but what kind of character will it be?! But time corrects everything: there are authors who will become saints, ascetics and will exert their colossal influence on the Church and the people of God. And there are books that will die along with the author and, perhaps, will even be a reason for him to feel shame and grief at God’s Judgment.
A person overwhelmed by any carnal passion cannot resist them
A person overwhelmed by any carnal passion cannot resist them. One sin can send a person to hell.
Blessed Theodora said that it is impossible to get around prodigal obstacles without obstacles:
“...at the ordeal of fornication... all fornication, every lustful thought and dream, as well as passionate touches and lustful touches are tortured. The prince of this ordeal sits on his throne, dressed in foul and stinking clothes, sprinkled with bloody foam, and many demons stand before him.”
Blessed Theodora
After the ordeal of fornication comes:
“...the ordeal of adultery, in which the sins of those living in marriage and not observing marital fidelity, but desecrating their bed, are tortured, as well as all kinds of abductions of virgins for the purpose of corrupting them and all kinds of fornication. Here those who dedicated themselves to God and made a vow to keep their lives in purity and virginity, but then did not keep this vow, are tortured.” And then - “the ordeal of Sodomy sins, in which the unnatural sins of men and women, sodomy and bestiality are tortured.” , incest and other secret sins that are embarrassing to even remember. The prince of this ordeal has a very nasty and ugly appearance and is all covered with stinking pus; his servants are like him in everything: their stench is very unbearable, their appearance is vile and terrible, their rage and cruelty is excessive.”
After this, any person will think about his life. Since our world is too evil, it does its best to prevent a person from knowing what awaits him for his sins.
Repentance for a man
Here is a preparation for men who cannot formulate some of their misdeeds, or perhaps have not noticed them at all:
- I doubted God, faith, life after death.
- He mocked the unfortunate, wretched one.
- He was lazy, vain, proud.
- He avoided military service.
- Didn't fulfill his duties.
- He fought, he was rowdy.
- Insulted.
- Seduced married women.
- He drank and took drugs.
- He refused to help those who asked.
- Stole.
- He humiliated and boasted.
- He entered into selfish disputes.
- He was rude and behaved impudently.
- I was afraid.
- Played gambling.
- Thought about suicide.
- He told dirty jokes.
- Didn't repay the debt.
- There was noise in the temple.
Of course, it is impossible to list all sins. Everyone also has some that are hard to guess. But now you will understand how to think. It turns out that elementary things that we seem to be accustomed to are sins
.
So, we tried to help you figure out what sins can be named in confession. The list in our own words is briefly summarized in this article for convenience.
Unnatural sins are fornication in the broader sense of the word.
There are also unnatural sins. What it is? What does it include? Unnatural sins are also called forbidden sins - this is fornication in the broader sense of the word.
What are prodigal sins? Prodigal sins - this refers to those who had carnal relations before marriage, allowed children to be conceived before marriage, cheated, destroyed a married marriage, sinned with masturbation, and so on.
Prodigal sins include those who lived in a carnal relationship before entering into an official marriage. Photo: os1.i.ua
But as was said earlier, your sins, no matter what they are, must be confessed before God. Confession is a repentant listing of one’s sins. All Christians must begin the sacrament of repentance before each communion.
Many holy fathers said how to correctly confess your carnal sins
Many holy fathers write about how to properly prepare for confession, as well as how to confess.
Preparing for confession means making a test of your conscience, and also in a repentant manner you need to reconsider your entire life, as far as possible. You need to remember everything you have sinned against God and your neighbor. Before confession, you must pray that God will open a person’s eyes to all his sins. We need to cast aside shame and fear and bring tearful repentance.
For example, Saint Theophan the Recluse wrote that shame and fear in confession are saving for a person’s soul, and he also advises:
“...For confession to proceed and be performed more satisfactorily, try to write down everything that lies on your conscience, and when you approach your spiritual father, ask him to retell everything to him from the record. After this, if he wants to ask you anything else, he will ask, or you yourself invite him to do it. By acting this way, you will always move away from the lectern, like someone who has thrown off all the astringent clothing.”
Saint Theophan the Recluse
But it is important to understand that to confession you must not just bring a list of your sins, but rather bring a tearful feeling of repentance and a contrite heart.
Saint Basil the Great reasoned a little differently:
“...It is not he who confesses his sin who said: I have sinned, and then remains in sin; but the one who, in the words of the psalm, “found his sin and hated it.” What benefit will a doctor's care bring to a sick person when the person suffering from illness clings tightly to something that is destructive to life? So there is no benefit from forgiving someone who commits injustice, and from apologizing for debauchery to someone who continues to live dissolutely.”
Saint Basil the Great
Therefore, it is important to pray during confession and acknowledge your sins. Also, before confession, ask everyone for forgiveness.
You need to talk about lustful thoughts in confession so that it is clear what the essence is about.
How to confess forbidden sins, that is, carnal ones? The Holy Fathers say that there is no need to confess your lewd thoughts in detail during confession. But we need to talk about sin in such a way that it is clear what its essence is.
Metropolitan Anthony Khrapovitsky said that many are ashamed to confess prodigal sins, but as long as Christians do not confess them, he will return to them again and again. After which he may fall into complete despair, and then shamelessness and godlessness.
Metropolitan Anthony Khrapovitsky. Photo: ic.pics.livejournal.com
The Monk Macarius of Optina spoke about the importance of such confession; he also teaches how to properly confess for such sins:
“...Concerning the fact that you find it difficult to tell your confessor about certain subjects, I will tell you: do not explain in detail the mental battles of passionate carnal thoughts, but simply say: “I am overcome by carnal thoughts”; That's enough. God sees your heart, which grieves over this. If shame does not allow you to even say this, then resort to humility and remember that this small shame before one person frees you from future eternal shame.”
Venerable Macarius of Optina
You need to approach such a confession very seriously. It is important to understand and realize why you need this. Priest Pavel Gumerov always said that, as in baptism, a person is given a gift - forgiveness of sins.
Priest Pavel Gumerov believes that forgiveness of sins is a great gift that the Lord gives us. Photo: pravme.ru
That is why it is very important for everyone to appreciate this gift. It is unknown how much time we have for repentance, but for now it may be necessary to use this time correctly.
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