9. The Authority to "Forgive and Forgive" Sins (Matthew 18:18)

Thus, repentance is the basis of the spiritual life of an Orthodox Christian. The call to repentance sounded in the sermon of John the Baptist: "... repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matt. 3:2). Mankind is sick with sin. Sin separated man from God. Original sin distorted human nature. Sin is a disease of the will, its wrong direction.89 Moreover, this disease is not cured by self-medication. After the Fall, the will of man became susceptible to sin. If before the Fall, human freedom did not imply constant choice, was not discursive, it was enough for a person to follow his undamaged nature in order to achieve "well-being", then after the Fall, the will of man oscillates between good and evil, it is often easier for us to choose evil than good: "... I do not what I will, but what I hate, I do" (Romans 7:15). It is necessary to become the master of one's own will, and not the plaything of blind passions. It is necessary to realize that sin is a disease that requires healing. Sin is a lie, because "all unrighteousness is sin..." (1 John 5:17). Any lie distances a person from God and brings him closer to the "father of lies" (John 8:44), the devil. It was sin that made man mortal, as it separated him from God, the Source of Life and Immortality, for "... the sin committed brings forth death" (James 1:15).

But how can one be healed from sin? How can we bridge the gap between God and man? How to be healed from death? Jesus Christ, having become Man, united in Himself two natures – divine and human. Having walked the paths of man, by His death and Resurrection, Jesus Christ overcame death, destroyed the power of sin, and healed the nature and will of man. But this healing is not magical, it must be personally assimilated by each Christian in his spiritual life. Jesus Christ became the New Adam, brought salvation from sin and death, becoming a medicine that grants immortality.

Many sectarians believe that the Orthodox Church teaches about the magical absolution of sins in the sacrament of Repentance. This statement is not true. What is repentance? St. John Chrysostom writes: "I call repentance not only to abandon former evil deeds, but also to show great good deeds. Bring forth, it is said, fruits worthy of repentance (Luke 3:8). How are we to create them? Doing the opposite: for example, did you steal someone else's property? From now on, give what is yours. Has he committed fornication for a long time? Now abstain from your wife on certain days; Get used to abstinence. He insulted and even beat ... Now bless those who despitefully use you... For our healing, it is not enough only to remove the arrow from the body, but it is also necessary to apply medicine to the wound... It is said, "Turn away from evil and do good."90 As we see again, repentance is not just a list of sins in front of a priest, it is a change in the way of thinking and, as a result, a way of life. Those who interpret repentance as an "indulgence" for the right to sin further are deceiving themselves. It is wrong to understand repentance only as an act of verbal confession of one's sin without changing one's whole life and actions. In the previous chapter, we have already given the example of the repentance of the publican Zacchaeus (Luke 19:2-10).

Only the Lord can forgive sins, but He also grants this authority to the apostles: "Verily I say unto you, whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever ye loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Matt. 18:18); "To whom you forgive sins, they will be forgiven; on whom you leave, they will remain" (John 20:23). The apostleship did not depart from the world without the succession of its ministry, the apostles handed over to their successors, bishops and priests, through a succession of ordinations, the ministry of pastorship, which includes the power to forgive and absolve sins. It should be noted right away that there are several myths about the sacrament of Repentance, one of them is that the priest himself forgives sins. This is not true, sins are forgiven only by God (Mark 2:7), but through a priest (Matt. 18:18, John 20:23). In addition, the priest takes part in the sacrament as a witness (2 Corinthians 4:5; Matt. 20:24-28), his role is also related to evoking a sense of shame in a person, the priest must help with advice, spiritual guidance, he prays that the Lord will forgive the confessor. But the priest may say: "Thy sins are forgiven thee, God, as the Only True Knower of the Heart" (Acts 1:24), may not accept repentance if it is not sincere.91 A formal attitude to confession without a sense of repentance and readiness to change will not bring good fruit for the spiritual life of a person. A beautiful example of true repentance is found in the New Testament. The Apostle Peter, who denied Jesus Christ three times (Luke 22:57), repents and the Lord forgives him (John 21:15-17). The entire subsequent life of the Apostle Peter, as we know from the Holy Tradition of the Church, is an example of Christian life, Ap. Peter would never again renounce his Teacher until his death, and in His name he would go to his death.

10. Faith – self-hypnosis or "assurance of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1)?

Through faith, a person comes to God. What does the teaching of Agni Yoga say about faith? Faith is a premonition of knowledge. In the diversity of Beings, faith has a real foundation. Like an engine, it exerts energy and thus enhances the efficiency of space. One can welcome the tension of energy when it is associated with the manifestation of a beneficent substance. In this way we can point out the most manifested path of faith with a consciousness that is sublime and refined. Of course, the Hierarchy will be the megaphone that will make the heavens thunder"92; "Vera responds to self-hypnosis. Trust corresponds to introspection. Faith is indeterminate in essence. Trust confirms immutability. We follow the path of immutability."93

The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews speaks of faith in the following way: "Faith is the fulfillment of things hoped for, and the assurance of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1). St. St. Anthony the Great explains: "By faith a person cognizes everything invisible and imaginable. Faith, on the other hand, is the free conviction of the soul of what is proclaimed by God."94 Pdp. St. Maximus the Confessor wrote: "Faith is the power that contains everything inside in a good mood, or it is the very good mood that gives the prenatural, direct, perfect unity of the believer with the God he believes."95

Faith for a Christian is not a simple faithfulness to the Divine, not a psychological state, and not even knowledge of His existence, it is a life in continuous communion with God. One can believe in the existence of God, but not accept Him: "You believe that God is one: you do well; and the demons believe, and tremble" (James 2:19).

Can faith be called trust? Trust is rather a prerequisite for faith, its forerunner, without trust there is no faith, but trust in itself does not mean the unity of man and God. Faith, on the other hand, is unity, the full acceptance of God and the change of one's whole life in accordance with His commandments. Trust, on the other hand, does not imply a complete change in life, in contrast to faith, which lays the foundation for a new life of man, a life in communion with God, and produces a profound transformation of the entire way of being of man: "Faith consists not only in being baptized into Christ, but also in fulfilling His commandments. Holy Baptism is perfect and gives us perfection, but it does not make perfect the one who does not fulfill the commandments."96

Faith is the way to salvation: "... thy faith hath saved thee" (Matt. 9:22). God hears the prayer of faith: "Then Jesus answered and said to her, 'O woman! great is thy faith; let it be done to you according to your desire. And her daughter was healed in that hour" (Matt. 15:28).