Public Confessions in PCA

[a]

I've been visiting Park Cities Presbyterian, PCA in Dallas, TX for the last few weeks. During their morning service there are multiple readings by the congregation. One such reading is called a Public Confession of Sin.

[example]
O my Lord, forgive me for serving you in sinful ways; by glorying in my own strength, by forcing myself to minister through necessity, by accepting the applause of others, by faith that rests upon my hold on Christ, not on Him alone, by having another foundation to stand upon beside You, for thus I make flesh my arm. Lord, it is the special evil of sin that every breach of Your law arises from contempt of Your person, from despising You and Your glory, from preferring things before You. Help me to abhor myself in comparison of You, and keep me in a faith that works by love, and serves by grace.
[/example]


i was just wondering if these public confessions of sin are from some written body, or if Park Cities writes these on their own...

anyone?

 

[wsw201]

They probably write their own, but they can come from previously written material. Our church will use the Puritain prayers from the book "Valley of Vision" from time to time.

 

[sastark]

I don't recognize the one you quoted, but it looks like some form of the Prayer of General Confession, taken from the Book of Common Prayer.

We use one in my church in Redding, CA.

 

[a]

growing up in SBC, i never saw anything like this... and i guess my first impression was that this reading was kind of like the Catholics...

but as soon as i read the words, and saw the focus on God's greatness and our wretched lowly state, i greatly appreciated these words...


the content of the readings are totally glorifying of God.

though they aren't scripture, i think i like them!

 

[kceaster]

The Valley of Vision is great. I highly recommend it for private as well as public worship.

In Christ,

KC

 

[a]

[quote:f9511942fb][i:f9511942fb]Originally posted by kceaster[/i:f9511942fb]
The Valley of Vision is great. I highly recommend it for private as well as public worship.

In Christ,

KC [/quote:f9511942fb]


Thanks for the recommendation!

 

[Learner]

Ace,they may not be Scripture,but they sure are scriptural!

 

[FrozenChosen]

Ace, a lot of things can be kind of seem like they're "Catholic," particularly corporate recitation of creeds or corporate prayers of confession.

I used to feel like these corporate speakings were close to cultic. But then I realized that cults can take good things and pervert them. If cults became known for singing certain kinds of songs in worship, I might have felt the same. It's just an emotionally charged idea to which we instinctively revolt.

 

[brymaes]

[quote:0a48226fef][i:0a48226fef]Originally posted by ace[/i:0a48226fef]
growing up in SBC, i never saw anything like this... and i guess my first impression was that this reading was kind of like the Catholics...[/quote:0a48226fef]

I had the same reaction when I first visited the OPC that I was a member of. It was very different than my Southern Baptist upbriging. Recitations of the Creed and the Lord's Prayer were something that I had only encounted in the Sunday mass that I had attended once or twice with my gradparents. But once I got over my initial negative reaction (which didn't take long), how sweet those times were! Confessing together, with 100 other people, the great truths of our faith! Praying the same petitions with so many other saints at the same time! That is truly one of the aspects of worship with my old church that I miss most.

[Edited on 6/9/2004 by SharperSword]

 

[foundthelight]

I grew up in Presbyterian churches which used this style of service. I have always loved it. I sometimes attend a PCA church when I have to spent the occasional weekend in VA. It is totally contemporary and does not use these public prayers and confessions. I miss them.

That being said, I have been in some PCUSA churches where the confessions and prayers are used to spread some agendas which are against the Gospel.

 

[luvroftheWord]

My church in Orlando, St Paul's Presbyterian (PCA), follows this type of liturgy. We have a public confession of sin and a proclamation of pardon given by the pastor. All of our prayers are either taken from the book of Common Prayer or they are created with specific purposes in mind as they pertain to various happenings in the church.

I wish we would use the Valley of Vision in addition to the Book of Common Prayer.