Confession & Lord’s Supper

In Confession and the Lord’s Supper, the final chapter of Life Together, Bonhoeffer makes a compelling case for Christian confession. He dismantles the harmful notion that a Christian community should be so pious that sinners are unwelcome. Bonhoeffer writes that in such a community, “we are not allowed to be sinners. Many Christians would be unimaginably horrified if a real sinner were suddenly to turn up among the pious. So we remain alone with our sin, trapped in the lies and hypocrisy, for we are in fact sinners.” Sin isolates the Christian, even in the midst of community. A true Christian community must allow for everyone to be sinners in need of grace, rather than isolating them in their humanity. The remedy for this isolation is confession.

While sin shuns the light, confession welcomes it. Bonhoeffer writes, “Thus the call within the Christian community to mutual confession and forgiveness goes out as a call to the great grace of God in the congregation.” Through confession, a breakthrough occurs in community. Sin can no longer hide in the shadows. The Christian is freed to be a sinner dependent on grace, stripped of all pride. God has little use for the man who looks to heaven and thanks Him for not being like other sinners. Yet He can do wonders with the man who beats his chest, confesses his sins, and cries out for mercy. A pastor who does not recognize his own sin is inflexible and unyielding, but a murderer who acknowledges his guilt before God becomes pliable, like clay ready to be formed by Christ.

Bonhoeffer wrote:

Now the community bears the sin of the individual believer, who is no longer alone with this evil but has ‘cast off’ this sin by confessing it and handing it over to God. The sinner has been relieved of the sin’s burden. Now the sinner stands in the community of sinners who live by the grace of God in the cross of Jesus Christ. Now one is allowed to be a sinner and still enjoy the grace of God.

In Bonhoeffer’s theology, when Christians confess their sins to the larger community, they transfer the burden of their sins to the collective, allowing the community to absorb it. This creates a sense of freedom for the individual, as their sins are no longer solely theirs to bear. Together, the community of sinners stands guilt-free before a gracious God. But this freedom comes only if the Christian can overcome the ever-present hurdle of human pride, which resists confession.

While confession can be challenging for those outside of prison, it is often an even greater challenge for Christian inmates. They face not only the embarrassment we all feel when exposing our humanity but also the prison taboo of showing weakness. In an environment where power and influence dominate and a constant battle exists for social status (even within the church on the yard), inmates are hesitant to show vulnerability. They fear that someone might use their confession against them in the prison’s social hierarchy. As Matthew Haws wrote:

The walls we put up to keep others from getting too close hinder us from confession to others. Prison mentality encourages us to put these walls up, to protect ourselves. When we do confess, the one listening can be quick to condemn or judge us, making us more timid about confessing again. So we alienate ourselves from confession to others due to trying to protect ourselves. This is a lack of trust in God Himself. [sic]

Bonhoeffer would advise Christian inmates to confess despite these challenges. While pecking orders may matter in prison, status and power mean something entirely different in the Kingdom of Heaven. Bonhoeffer reminds us, “The mask you wear in the presence of other people won’t get you anywhere in the presence of God.” Jacob added, “Jesus had every right to gain power and move up the social ladder. His followers were routinely encouraging Him to do so and get into politics. Yet He laid down His power and Himself, dying as a prisoner.”

Scripture is clear that earthly power is not worth the cost of one’s soul. Still, Bonhoeffer offers a practical solution for inmates hesitant to reveal too much: confession does not need to happen before the entire community. Instead, it can be made to one trusted Christian friend. Bonhoeffer wrote:

A confession of sin in the presence of all the members of the congregation is not required to restore one to community with the entire congregation. In the one other Christian to whom I confess my sins and by whom my sins are declared forgiven, I meet the whole congregation. Community with the whole congregation is given to me in the community which I experience with this one other believer.

The practical solution for each inmate is to find a trusted accountability partner to share the weight of their sins. The four inmates and I agreed that everyone in their church should take advantage of this spiritual benefit by identifying a fellow inmate they trust. Together, they could engage in daily confession as suggested in The Day Together. Any inmate who breaks confidentiality would be held accountable by the church, with potential punitive measures such as suspension from gym time or access to special treats like coffee and pastries provided by volunteers.

Larry, Jacob, Matt, and Fredrick all agreed to find a fellow Christian to whom they could confess their sins at the end of the day. They also believed this practice could extend to the wider Joseph Harp Community Church, though some trusted individuals might have to serve multiple inmates due to the imbalance between those needing to confess and those able to be trusted. This opportunity to live in a community that absorbs individual sin and collectively stands innocent before God because of the cross of Christ is a profound privilege—one that even those outside prison walls might envy.

Furthermore, Bonhoeffer’s Life Together has clear potential to aid the rehabilitation process. Countless studies emphasize the importance of inmates confronting their crimes, admitting guilt, and feeling genuine remorse. Effective rehabilitation programs often include confession and remorse as essential steps. These programs teach inmates to empathize with their victims and write letters of apology or express their guilt directly to victims or their families. Such acts promote healing for victims and progress for inmates. From a spiritual perspective, confession and remorse reconcile the sinner with God. From a secular perspective, they reconcile the inmate with society. True remorse separates the criminal from their criminal past, paving the way for transformation into a new person.