Psychological Value of Confession in Buddhism and Christianity

Abstract

‘Confession’ can be defined as ‘admitting that you have done something wrong or illegal’. With reference to the religious aspect, it can be observed when a Christian tells God or, especially in the Roman Catholic Church, tells a priest formally and privately, what they have done wrong so that they can be forgiven. The concept of Confession can be seen in Buddhism too. In Mahayana Buddhism everyone has the thought of enlightenment (Bodhicitta), but it is considered to be in a state of sleep. To wake it up, eight preliminary devotional practices (anuttarapūjā) should be fulfilled, and the forth of which is confession of sins (pāpadesanā) in front of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas. In Christianity, especially in Catholic teaching, the Sacrament of Penance is the method of the Church by which individual men and women confess sins committed after baptism and have them absolved by God through the administration of a Priest. At the same time, the Bible calls upon us as believers to confess our sins (1 John 1:9). The present research attempts to study how far confession can be applied to solve social issues in the current society. Besides, this is a qualitative research based on literature. Moreover, findings were philosophically analyzed in order to assess the psychological value of confession. If the human beings of the society are ready to accept their unrighteous activities as offences, it helps to make a righteous society.