Spirituality: A Short History of Sin – Part 4 of 5

Challenge to the Church today

In the current church order, the current ritual is a liturgical action.

• Private
• Communal
• Mix of public and private

Rituals focus on personal sin; hence many forms of sin and evil do not make it into the ritual. Our understanding of sin has matured.

Church favors only one theology of reconciliation – private sin. It neglects the communal need of the whole church.

Paul’s mandate to community: Be reconcilers.

• Graciousness of God to forgive us. How do we interpret that?
 With kindness and leniency? Forgiveness can be made too easy
 With strictness and rigorism? We restrict God’s grace? How often is the church to forgive?

o Sin still exists in the life of the baptized
o Violation of unity was a key factor since unity was a feature of Christ.
o Determine the scope of sin: Dialogue between leniency and strictness
o Determine process for reconciliation. Needed concrete form of penitential act that restores one to the Eucharist.

Early Diocesan model

Sin is that which separates a person from the church community.

1. Sin had to be serious – murder, adultery, apostasy
2. Removal of penitent from communion of church; reconciliation with God and with other churches.
3. Penitent makes some act of contrition; promised some kind of penance; made satisfaction.
4. Penitent completes penitential period; person is reconciled to church. Person received a sort of 2nd baptism on Good Friday.
5. Process led back to Eucharist itself.

Does the remnants of sin stay with you? Absolution happens when your debt has been paid - penance must be done. What happens if you die before penance is done? Could someone else do your penance?

Substitution – living does the penance for the dead.
Living -> Dead: (remission of sins)
Living -> Living: (substitution)
Dead (saints) -> Living: (indulgences) We must tap into the merit of saints (opposite of debt.)