Confession conventions in Russia

How do they differ?

Of course the general form of the Rite of Confession/absolution here in Russia differs little if any from that seen in many Orthodox churches in America. The penitent approaches the priest who is standing next to the analogion on which the Cross and Gospel book is laying, offers his confession, and the priest, after some advisory words, grants absolution. So far so good. But there are certain associated customs surrounding confession that differ in some ways here from practices I’ve witnessed in the U.S. Orthodox churches I’ve attended (mainly O.C.A. and R.O.C.OR. parishes). I will recount some of them in this post.

One difference is that anyone planning to commune is expected to first get a blessing from the clergy, whether he intends to give his confession or not. As a practical matter, this is understandable. The clergy here, on any given day when Liturgy is served, are likely, due to the fact that Orthodox Christianity is the faith to which a large majority of Russia’s roughly 140 million citizens subscribe, to see a large number of new faces. Given this scenario, the clergy will, being approached beforehand, have an opportunity to find out whether the basic requisites for partaking of the Eucharist are met: has the person been baptized, have they gone to confession recently or done any fasting, etc. In Orthodox circles in the U.S., on the other hand, clergy are likely to know personally the majority of worshipers approaching the Chalice and so will have an awareness of those basic factors.

So a number of those approaching the confessor here in Russia, rather than offering their confession, are actually coming forward to inform the priest of their intention to receive the Eucharist that day. Which brings me to another more notable difference in practices related to confession here: the fact that confessions are heard throughout the worship service. And not just during non-eucharistic services such as vigil or vespers, but even during the course of the Liturgy itself.

Since any given parish here is likely to have more than 1 priest serving on a Sunday or other festive occasion, it is practicable, at least logistically, for a “spare” priest to be hearing confessions while the main priest conducts the liturgical prayers and actions. Whether it is advisable is another question but one that, at least here, seems to have been answered in the affirmative: yes, it is advisable. I’ve seen confessions being heard here right up to the moment when the Chalice is brought out for the purpose of commencing the process of distributing the Eucharist. This contrasts sharply with practices I am familiar with from U.S. parishes where I’ve attended.

We do frequently attend Liturgies conducted on weekdays here as well. On those more low-key occasions there is often but a single priest serving. But just as on Sundays, if there is a deacon present to intone certain of the prayers, the priest can be seen hearing confessions during many parts of the service. And it seems standard practice here, after the clergy have communed but before the Chalice has been brought out for general distribution, for the priest to, as it were, pause the service in order to hear further confessions prior to distribution of the Eucharist.

The reader will typically read pre-Communion prayers during this process. This practice of effectively pausing the Liturgy is something I have actually seen actively discouraged in Orthodox parishes in the U.S.: I was present once, for example, when a bishop serving at a Liturgy where this was being done made an announcement at the end of the service forbidding the practice was to be continued henceforth.

On that note, I have witnessed here some attendees come up for confession at this late juncture in the service, who, after offering their confession, left the church prior to distribution of Communion. In other words, they seemed to be going to confession, not in order to receive the Eucharist that day, but evidently just because they saw this as an opportune moment to unburden their conscience.

This latter state of affairs made me curious as to the general availability of access to the Rite of Confession here in Russia: perhaps parishioners are going to confession during celebration or immediately prior to distribution of the Eucharist, not because they intend to commune, but because the only time it is available is immediately prior to or during eucharistic celebrations. When I inquired with a deacon here about this, he replied that parishioners can, as is the case in the U.S., request that a priest hear confessions whenever he has availability, regardless of proximity to the eucharistic celebration. But he also added that the faithful may well be unaware of this and may therefore be choosing to have confession in connection with the eucharistic celebration because that is when they know it will be available.

Finally, I will describe another related custom I have witnessed here that I only rarely see at Orthodox churches I’ve attended in the U.S., one that appears more prevalent here. It seems that some, when coming to confession here, bring with them a sheet of paper on which, I assume, they’ve written out sins they wish to confess: they hand this to the priest, who looks over the sheet, then tears it into pieces, handing the scraps back to them. I’ve also witnessed here the electronic equivalent, i.e., someone reading from a smartphone screen during their confession. I did not, in that case, witness the priest afterward performing the electronic analog of ripping up paper, i.e., deleting the file for them.

AFTERTHOUGHT: just this morning I witnessed another somewhat confusing example of customs surrounding Confession here. One of the last penitents to offer confession to the only priest serving on this weekday, confessed immediately prior to the bringing out of the Chalice, being the second to last penitent. This was not someone who just happened into the church, realized confessions were being heard, and decided on the spot to participate. This person had been there for the whole of the Liturgy and even for at least part of the readings (the Hours) before Liturgy started. The person is actually one of the helpers on the church staff. Yet somehow one of the last to confess, and from the perspective of someone not familiar with customs here, delaying the service in this way, and finally, not even approaching the Chalice to commune after having confessed. It seems a bit disorderly but such are the customs in force in at least some churches here.