Afterthought
Puritan Board Senior
One worship practice that I am unsure of its legitimacy is public confession of sin in public worship, though it appears almost all the Reformed churches do it. I suppose such could be done in various ways, but in particular, I had in mind when the congregation recites a prepared set of words to confess their sin together as part of the public worship service; it would seem strange to have private people confessing their sin in the public worship service anyway whether they get up in front of the congregation or everyone prays silently and individually during a period of the service (though I'm open to correction). I suppose it is basically a congregational prayer.
It would seem that the precedent for such confession of sin would be in Nehemiah, and for congregational prayer, Acts 4 (maybe there are other verses too that I'm not thinking about). However, I'm uncertain about the passage in Nehemiah because it seems there's something unusual going on because of the covenanting at the end. As for the Acts 4 passage, I'm uncertain of because I don't know whether everyone spoke at the same time or whether one person spoke for all. Perhaps a congregation could do such confession of sin provided they used Scripture words alone, considering that the Lord's Prayer is usable for public worship?
As for historical precedent, it would seem Calvin had such confession of sin in his service (though my historical knowledge on this point may be inaccurate), yet it seems absent from the Westminster Directory.
I'm also curious about responsive Scripture readings, which also seem absent from the Directory, yet are quite popular today, and yet I'm not sure can be justified as a circumstance. However, I have heard over and over again that the Psalms include responsive sections in them, and so presumably the Israelites would have sung or read responsively.
So any thoughts? What is the Scriptural warrant for these practices (if any)?
It would seem that the precedent for such confession of sin would be in Nehemiah, and for congregational prayer, Acts 4 (maybe there are other verses too that I'm not thinking about). However, I'm uncertain about the passage in Nehemiah because it seems there's something unusual going on because of the covenanting at the end. As for the Acts 4 passage, I'm uncertain of because I don't know whether everyone spoke at the same time or whether one person spoke for all. Perhaps a congregation could do such confession of sin provided they used Scripture words alone, considering that the Lord's Prayer is usable for public worship?
As for historical precedent, it would seem Calvin had such confession of sin in his service (though my historical knowledge on this point may be inaccurate), yet it seems absent from the Westminster Directory.
I'm also curious about responsive Scripture readings, which also seem absent from the Directory, yet are quite popular today, and yet I'm not sure can be justified as a circumstance. However, I have heard over and over again that the Psalms include responsive sections in them, and so presumably the Israelites would have sung or read responsively.
So any thoughts? What is the Scriptural warrant for these practices (if any)?
Well, whenever you get around to it, thanks!
