The New York herald., 1873-08-25
AURICULAR CONFESSION.


worcester and Aancnester have ecveraly recorded
their ideas or the matter;-
presented to HIS Lordsnip by the rector and church
wardeus OF st. Georgia., Hanover square, says,
with the facts before him, it seems inpossibis %
doubt what IL the mind OF the Churcn Of England,
or what is tue duty oi ner fAItnu ministers.
!. she gives no sanction or countenance what
ever to the requiring or even recommending con-
to worthy reception OF the Holy Communion. but
declares that ordinary way and means 10 be Goa.
repel parishioher from the Lords table on tue
ground that he had refused neglected. to confess
2. She does not sanction or In any way recognize
any more than does holy Scripture. and especially
tnat inspired manual q minister's duties, the
frequent confession to = priest either with the
view OF obtaining his ''directlon' or as conducive
to the higher degrees of spiritual life, neces
smry or even expedient for tha oDtaIntng eat
remissaon OF SIN or q more assured sense OF Tor
gveness through the absoiutIOn pronounced by
o ). She does not direct, encourage or assume her
ministers to question thOseJo whom they MINISTER,
ter sns al and d' tenpation Even ne wi whose con
science is troubled With any weighty matter - TO
be "moved to make = special con esson or his
slnss" nOt TO have the concession 0xtorted from
hia. her t0rmularies correspond with the all bat
unanimous teaching oil her accredited divines, siat
the duty Of the minister IN cealing pastOray vita
souls Is to endeavOr to ascertain, not the number
or nature Ol,the slns cOmnitted but the reality Of
ts sSsy rers m waS nss ss
and sad sense OF the evils OF the system OF
the confessional, which experiences had shown to
ent facility OF pardon, TO suggest forms Of
known before, ana 10 Oe perhOus to the purity DVth
there Is reason 10 Tear, nave not been aisegetnef
absent from tnat partial revival OF the system 10
whicn yout memorial aAudes. iHH
4. our chufCn knows no such terms al ''sacra-
mental Confession the use o, which, according TO
the petitioners, Is widespread and increasing. .
snu ask 20 30 81
familses rom the threatening danger OF the
restoration Of auricular conIession. While admit
ting to the iull my duty Of using any lower conl-
mitted to me 0I preventing OF d,sconraging all
doctrine and practice COnsrary to the teaching
cur G% sn
o. confession, is very limited, aud that the .dy
must be MANLY sought elsewhere. Bur, after All
matter, the remedy for the evil compaiied Ol lfes
eatly IN the hands OF the laiLy. In the
tsrs OF Church hOps dsscp inc and and "IH pracncs @
are governed less bv law than by public
opinion. The clergy are as often at least urged on
by their congregations as their congregations are
led BY them. There would be lew cOnfeSsors il
there were not many really to con ess. 1t ls, M.
deed, this readiness which has led some TO deiend
the practice 0 haDitual c0niessi II, Che ground
OF Its supplying real want, forgetting that m0ruld
wants are ss real as healthy wants-O,ten more
terribly real-and that the argument. carried TO
cravings OF the opium eate' or the passion Vf
the gambler. Laymen may do much to discour-
Ing their children 30 SCHOOLS, however goOd
the education, IN wiich 1t IS piactlseu. aud by not
H@ tI Sv Sa e
Misrepresentation % It gravely but witnoat tne ex-
aggeration and hard words whicl provoke re-
and exempfIfyng IN their nves chat sober, cheerful
piaty which, sprnging rom heart reconcilcd %
!iod tarouRh Christ, lives IN flial relation TO our
Heavenly Father, and eau 60 at once to HIM
tarough the one only Med ator iOr pardon Tor every
sin, and IOr erace to help In every time OF need.
There IS no room for a conlessor IN cniid,ltke
l6e Bishop OF Worcester, writing from tlartle-
bury on the Attn inst, says ne Views 'with sorrow
and dIsapproba,On the petition lately presented
to the Upper House OF C0nv ocarl0n by ass clergy
men oi the Church OF England." anu he resa. ds
work 0i the reformation auu bring the church Ol
England into reunion VITA tie Onurcn Oi Rome. "
e 5 e ssa M e as
aurtcular and sec ct con ession to the priest 10
Omitted" the Bishop sa,s:-"fhe authority CON-
.preacn ~ Il the Wora u 0od, and 70 :ain ster : The
holy sacraments.' They are to be 'fa,th u DIS
cOpcerning which our twenty-second Article OF
Keli IOn says Is fond thing, vainly invcnted and
grounded upon no Warranty o. scripture nut
ord OF God and Ills holy sacraments.' 10 p each
the gospel oi repentance and remission OF sius and
to minister the sacraments tnot 0i penance, wnion
our twenty dth Article OI Reilxi0n rejects but or
baptism and che Lords SUPPER, are tue instru-
mcnts with which they are TO exercise the power Of
sins Ia the ministry o. Ieconcihai,on. Tue ab-
soiution or remission OF sins' which tney are given
care either, ss IN the order for daily morning and
evening prayer, that Almia alty God the Fat8er OF
our Lord Jesus Cnr.st, 'pardone'h and aosovetn
all those that truly repent and unieigncdy beIieve
tas @ aSSn,strston S % O. ci the Lords ord esi Supper, %
nS mercy ma hath PROMISED lorgissness Of sins 'es 60
all them tiat ~lth hearty repen' ance and true
faith turn unto Him. do not know what imme.
udrrrA fhA nj nlisiA Ar,h
that bishops are bound to take Tor repsesstng the
erroneous practices complained OF. IL Is obvious
that no good purpose would be answered W in-
ducins persons IN authority to 20 oeyoad or strain
the law IN dealing with those VINO are supposed TO
be blenders. can only express IN, reauiiiess aud
my desire to discourage and prevent as much as
possible 10 the teaching and practice OF the cery
Oi the diocese OF Worcester Whatever can be SNOW
to be contrary to the Word of God or the Author
lied ,lOrmula, les o. the Church OF iEngland." ft
the. Bishop OF Manchester says:-. 40 intelRe
and pious CHRISTIAN can do Otherwise than an,ent
the present unhappily divided state o. CbIisten-
dom, which hnders the success oi Cnrlstiln ctiort
in countless ways But to lay out plans OF reunion
tse an nna tns e Gnarcn o. e. Which,
instead OF abatng delights 70 aggravatc the arro-
gancy and unscripturalness OF pretensi0ns
and religious necessity, appears to me 70
be the Very idlest Of occu atiJns-tne most
hope,ess o eateTp,,ses Engtisicn are not nksy
yoke which their Oreathers IOund INT Jlcrabe. 10
what extent attempts are made to Introduce
the confessional have no means ol Knowing bus
do not believe that these attempts, so contrary
to the temper OF the --ngiish mnd, are hxe.y 10
succeed any better than che IOrIner. sorry as
should g 10 restrain the pcrmiss.on now gwen In
the prayer book to any one unauie TO qu,et his own
conscience, to Come 10 some discreet AMI learned
munster Of God 8 word and open his grief
PERMISSION winch. In one form o. Other, + given
and used In almost all religious bodies. aud by
men or che most divergent sypes oi thought
have always regarded, ana still regard, the prac-
tce on iiabl uaI or compulsory confession as most
ny
al history pr0ves fruitful OF the most m.schievous
Consequences to bo'h priest and peniten. and to
society at large; and there Is nothing that shOald
more profoundly deplore, rs u talnt Likely
to vltiate the Nhole social atmosphere in which
we live, than the NATURALIZATION OF any
such system in the Cdursn OF England.
do nor however, myself see how, consistently
with the principles OF religious freedom. such an
EVIL, Il 1t exists even n 1t threatens to srrea,
can be rcmed'ed by enactment o. law. lam even
aIttle afraid, my fears being the result OF exec
fience, Of the Ieacti0nary consequences o. any y0-
lytto IN tuo uof L.