One of the most important Sacraments of Christianity is confession. On it, the believer remembers his sins, repents of them and asks the Lord for forgiveness. He who asks for the favor of Heavenly Father always receives it, but repentance must be sincere and active.
Instruction manual
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It is necessary to realize what exactly you are guilty of before the Lord and people. These are not only the mortal sins known to everyone - murder, theft, adultery, abortion, but also the everyday sins that have permeated our lives through and through. A grave sin is indifference and mercy to people. If you judge and condemn your neighbor, you have sinned by condemnation. If you affirm that you are sinless and righteous, you are sinners by pride and self-praise. If you swear, smoke, drink, if you are irritable and angry, if you wanted to harm a person who offended you in your thoughts, you have sinned. A very common sin is witchcraft. And do not be fooled by the fact that the fortuneteller as it were was praying before revealing your future or solving your problems. She sins, and most likely knows about it. Know that you, too, have fallen into sin. Only the Lord should be asked for help, and only His mercy should be expected. Sin is indifference and neglect of prayer, mentioning the name of the Lord in vain, laziness and gluttony. Remember all your sins, write them on a piece, so as not to get confused and not to forget in confession. And most importantly - forgive your offenders wholeheartedly. Christians of all faiths ask the Lord: "And leave us our debts, as well, and we leave our debtors." If you do not forgive the debtor, is it worth asking for forgiveness for your sins?
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Confession usually begins before the Divine Liturgy begins. Listen carefully to the prayer for a general confession, in which the priest asks for forgiveness from the Lord for many sins, and also mentally ask forgiveness from God. Then an individual confession begins, when each penitent approaches the priest and confesses to the Lord his sins, free and involuntary. Do not try to refer to circumstances or to the fact that someone else has committed you into sin. If you justify yourself, then you do not receive justification from God. The priest resolves the sins of the penitent not by his will, but by the name of the Lord. After the priest read the permission prayer, kiss the Cross and the Gospel lying on the lectern.
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If you want to partake of the Holy Mysteries, you must fast for at least three days. It is better to go to confession the night before, so that on the day of the Communion at the Divine Service, you should not be distracted by anything, fully concentrating on prayer. and for the sacrament. Approach the Sacrament with your arms crossed, with humility and gratitude to the Lord for his mercy. After receiving the Sacrament, listen to prayers of thanks. If you do not hear the Church Slavonic language, read these prayers at home in front of the icons. Try to keep the purity that you received after confession and Communion as long as possible.
Useful advice
Remember that there are no unforgiven sins - there are unrepentant.
