The Scared Bride
I’M SCARED!
Once I asked a young girl: Why you do not like to confess? She replied that she used to be scared when she thought to confess.
I asked her, “What the feeling of a bride at the day of her marriage celebration? Is she in need that parents incite her to go to the church and to attain the liturgy of her own marriage? Do you imagine that she will be scared?
Many do not look to their repentance and confession as a marriage celebration with the Unique Heavenly Groom. Therefore they feel that repentance and confession which are integral one action is a very heavy duty, they are obliged to practice.
When St. John the Baptist beheld the people coming to the disciples of Christ in repentance and confessing to attain baptism, he said, “He who has the bride is the bridegroom” (John 3:29).
Every time you enter your private room to repent, or to confess before your father in confession you have to look to repentance and confession as a marriage celebration between your inner man and your heavenly Groom.
Your hearts must be lifted up by the Holy Spirit not just to attain a heavenly celebration, but also to share in it being the real bride.
Someone asks: “I don’t find words for confession. I repeat what I said in my confessions for many years, what will I say in my confession?
We can’t imagine a bride asks her parents or her friends to tell her what she can say to her beloved groom.
We prepare ourselves for repentance and confession not by asking what words we have to say, but by witnessing to our mutual lobe. God reseals His divine love and mysteries. And we also speak with Him frankly.
DOUBLE WITNESSING
In our repentance and confession we witness to God:
First: We start by confessing that God is very sweet in His dealing with us. His grace is working in us. Therefore we have to offer a thanksgiving sacrifice before confessing our weakness.
Second: We confess that although we sincere love our God, and we hope to be genuine icon, we are very weak. We are not mentioning our sins in formalities. But we hope even not to utter the titles of sins which we have committed. We confess with almost what we committed as it is possible so that we become the sanctified bride of Christ, without blame.
THE BRIDAL CHAMBER
In the moments of repentance and confessions we in fact enter our bridal chamber. Through the work of the Holy Spirit we hear the voice of our Heavenly Groom who woos us, and encourage us so that we may that we may become full of hope to be united with Him. We speak with Him not as criminals before the judge, trying to give excuses and to justify what we have done. We speak with Him as the bride with her Groom. We truly love confession as a joyful chance.
Perhaps someone says, “I’m afraid that my father in confession will change his opinion of me. He will despise me!”
It’s not true, for the father never despise his son. He shares his children their weakness. The priest is not an angels descends from heaven, but he himself is need to confess. None of the whole members of the church is not in need of confession.
