What the Early Church Believed: Confession

Not forgiven once for all

Scripture never says future sins are forgiven in advance; it teaches us to pray for forgiveness (Matthew 6:12). After baptism God forgives through confession: "If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing" (1 John 1:9).

Venial and grave sins

Venial sins can be confessed directly to God. For grave, mortal sins God instituted a different means — the sacrament of confession, penance or reconciliation. Since we cannot confess all our daily faults to a priest, sacramental confession is required for mortal sins; but it is required, or Christ would not have commanded it.

Rooted in Christ's mission

Christ, as Son of Man, had authority on earth to forgive sins (Matthew 9:6), and the crowds glorified God for giving such authority to men (Matthew 9:8). After the Resurrection he passed this mission to his ministers: "Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained" (John 20:21-23).

How the practice developed

The form has changed. Publicly known sins were often confessed openly, though private confession to a priest was always possible. Penances usually came before absolution and were much stricter. But confession was always done "in church," as the Didache shows, and was required before Communion, since receiving unworthily makes one answerable for the Lord's body and blood (1 Corinthians 11:27).

The Fathers (summarized)

• Didache (c. 70) and Letter of Barnabas (c. 74): confess your sins and do not come to prayer with an evil conscience.
• Ignatius of Antioch (c. 110): the Lord forgives those who repent and return to communion with the bishop.
• Irenaeus (c. 189) mentions women who made public confession and others who, ashamed, fell away.
• Tertullian (c. 203) compared those who avoid confession out of shame to patients who hide a disease from the doctor.
• Hippolytus (c. 215): the bishop's ordination prayer asks for the authority to forgive sins.
• Origen (c. 248): sinners declare their sin to a priest of the Lord.
• Cyprian (c. 251–253) rebuked those who receive Communion before confession and absolution (1 Corinthians 11:27), urged confession while still in this life, and defended granting penance even to the lapsed (Revelation 2:5; Tobit 12:9).
• Aphraahat (c. 340) told priests to give the remedy of repentance and not reveal what was confessed.
• Basil (c. 374): sins must be confessed to those entrusted with God's mysteries, as people confessed to John the Baptist (Matthew 3:6) and the apostles (Acts 19:18).
• John Chrysostom (c. 387): priests received from Christ a power given neither to angels nor archangels, to bind and loose souls (Matthew 10:40; John 20:21-23).
• Ambrose (c. 388): this right is granted to priests only.
• Jerome (c. 388): one who hides the wound of sin cannot be helped by those who have the word of absolution.