Confession of Sin
All confessions & catechisms · Small Catechism · Confession
What is Confession?
Confession consists of two parts. One is that we confess our sins and the other is that we receive absolution, or forgiveness, from the confessor as from God himself, in no way doubting, but firmly believing that our sins are thereby forgiven before God in heaven.
What sins should we confess?
Before God we should acknowledge ourselves guilty of all kinds of sins, even those of which we are not aware, as we do in the Lord’s Prayer. To the confessor (pastor), however, we should confess only those sins which we know and which trouble us.
Hymns connected to this article
Alas My God My Sins Are Great
Alas my God, my sins are great
Martin Behm ·1610
All that I Was My Sin My Guilt
All that I was my sin my guilt
Nikolaus Leonhard Zinzendorf ·1740
Alleluia (Taizé)
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.
·1984
And Wilt Thou Pardon, Lord
And wilt Thou pardon, Lord
Cornelius Elven ·1860
As Rebels, Lord, Who Foolishly Have Wandered
As rebels, Lord, who foolishly have wandered
Jaroslav J. Vajda ·1980
Before You, God, the Judge of All
Before You, God, the Judge of all
Unknown
Blessed Are They, Forever Blest
Blessed are they, forever blest
Nikolai Fredrik Severin Grundtvig ·1853
Blessed Is The Man, Forever Blest
Blessed is the man, forever blest
Nicolaus Selnecker ·1572
Blest Is the Man Forever Blest
Blest is the man forever blest
Cornelius Elven ·1860
Halle Halle Hallelujah
Halle, halle, hallelujah!
·1990
Holy Majesty Before You
Holy Majesty before you
Friedrich Rückert ·1839
I Come to Thee O Blessed Lord
I come to Thee, O blessed Lord
Ludwig Helmbold ·1563
I Have Loved You
I have loved you with an everlasting love,
·1979
In the Lord I'll Be Ever Thankful
In the Lord I'll be ever thankful,
·1986
Lamb of God, Pure and Holy
Lamb of God, pure and holy
Nicolai Decius ·1531
Lord Have Mercy
Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy on us.
·1984
Lord We Confess Our Numerous Faults
Lord, we confess our numerous faults
Dudley Tyng ·1849
Lord to Thee I Make Confession
Lord to Thee I make confession
Aurelianus Prudentius Clemens ·405
Lord, to You I Make Confession
Lord, to You I make confession
Oswald Gerhardt ·1659
Luther's Morning and Evening Prayer
I thank thee, my heavenly Father
Martin Luther ·1529
Santo Santo Santo
Santo, santo, santo, mi corazón te adora
·1962
Savior When in Dust to You
Savior, when in dust to You
Michael Weisse ·1531
Send, O Lord, Your Holy Spirit
Send, O Lord, Your Holy Spirit
Martin Behm ·1600
Take O Take Me As I Am
Take, O take me as I am;
·1995
The Courage to Say No
The courage to say no, the courage to say yes,
·1987
To You Omniscient Lord of All
To You, omniscient Lord of all
Martin Behm ·1610
We Are Called
Come! Live in the light!
·1988
We Were Buried With Him Into Death
We were buried with Him into death
Daniel Deutschmann ·1698
Wilt Thou Forgive that Sin Where I Begun
Wilt thou forgive that sin where I begun
John Donne ·1633
You Are Near
Yahweh, I know you are near,
·1971