The Lord of Spirits – Loosed in Heaven (Jan 13, 2023)

Hosts: Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick & Fr. Stephen DeYoung
Theme: The Seen and Unseen World in Orthodox Christian Tradition – Confession, Forgiveness, and the Nature of the Church

EPISODE OVERVIEW

This episode continues the Lord of Spirits series on sacraments, focusing on confession—what it is, how it works, and its relation to forgiveness in the Orthodox Christian tradition. The hosts thoroughly discuss theological misunderstandings about forgiveness, the Old Testament background, the communal nature of salvation, and the crucial role of the Church as the locus of reconciliation, healing, and transformation. The conversation is lively, deeply scriptural, and peppered with their characteristic wit.

KEY THEMES & DISCUSSION POINTS

1. The Nature of Forgiveness

• Confronting Misconceptions
  • Some Christians (mainly in popular Protestant thought) push the idea that God must punish every sin to remain just, leading to an image of a merciless God.

    “How can God be merciful if he must punish every sin to the full extent? That word for mercy God can’t have in this view at all.” – Fr. Stephen (13:11)

  • This thinking is challenged: God isn’t subject to a justice higher than Himself ("ancient people would have regarded that as a god itself" 10:00).
• Mercy and Real Forgiveness
  • True forgiveness is not about transferring punishment to another (the “punish Christ, let you off” model) but is about restoration, mercy, and healing.
  • The Christian command to "forgive as the Lord forgave you" goes beyond retributive logic (17:01).

2. The Law (Torah) as Grace, Not Burden

• Misuse of the Old Testament Law
  • The Torah is misunderstood by some as a system to "earn heaven"; in reality, it's a guide given to aid God’s people in managing sin and restoring fellowship (25:56).
  • Ancient Israel never understood the Law as a cosmic test doomed for failure.
  • The Law includes implicit repentance—keeping it meant also keeping “the commandment to repent” (36:23).

    “The law was added because of sin. If it were not for sin, it wouldn’t have been needed.” – Fr. Stephen (26:51)

• Real Function of Commandments
  • The Law describes how to live alongside God’s presence, includes ways to make restitution, and is fundamentally about guidance and blessing—not legalistic salvation (41:05).

3. Forgiveness as Purification, Not Legal Transaction

• Scriptural View
  • Forgiveness is always linked to purification ("cleanse us from all unrighteousness" – 1 John 1:9), cleansing, and re-integration, not merely a “got out of jail” pronouncement.
  • Healing and forgiveness are constantly paralleled in Christ’s ministry (55:19).

    “Healing and forgiveness work in the same way. The church is not a courtroom, it’s a hospital.” – Fr. Stephen (55:30)

• Sin as Corruption, Forgiveness as Restoration
  • Sin has tangible effects—it changes you, alienates, causes uncleanness. Forgiveness is about re-orienting, healing, and bringing back to communion with God and others.

4. Communal Reality of Confession and Forgiveness

• Not Private Business
  • Confession, restitution, and forgiveness have always been communal: sin always wounds others, and restitution is integral (72:56).
  • The Old Testament sacrificial system only works after repentance and restitution (70:50).

    “Sin is not only between you and God. Even if you sin ‘completely by yourself,’ it still affects others.” – Fr. Stephen (74:11)

• New Testament Pattern
  • In the NT, confession is always public (to another); nowhere is private, “in my heart to God” confession depicted (112:13).
  • Confession and absolution are located in the life of the Church, not as a solitary event between the individual and God apart from the community (109:39; 110:57).

5. How Confession Works in the Orthodox Church

• Modern Practice
  • Confession is made before Christ, with the priest as community witness and guide (123:56). The “penance” given is not punishment, but a therapeutic/treatment plan for real restitution and healing (127:10).

    “Penance” is about helping, not punishing – anything that feels like punishment is a misunderstanding (94:01).

• Excommunication: Its True Purpose
  • Excommunication is not damnation or permanent exclusion, but a call to repentance and a protection for the community.
  • Serious lack of repentance may require someone to be placed outside the community until restoration is possible (130:24).
  • Excommunication only makes sense when there are clear communal boundaries—a point missing from much of contemporary American Christianity (139:44).

6. Ecclesiology as the Context for Confession

• Church with Borders
  • One cannot be “put outside” if there is no meaningful “outside;” thus proper ecclesiology means the Church must have boundaries (139:57).
  • In the pre-modern tradition, “the Church” referred to an actual defined community, not merely an invisible association of self-identified believers.
• Modern American Christianity's Challenges
  • Without communal boundaries, church discipline and real healing are almost impossible (144:10).
  • The hosts urge a recovery of robust ecclesiology, where being a Christian means participation in a real, coherent community.

7. Living Out Repentance and Forgiveness as Community

• The Church as Joyous Hospital
  • The Church must be a place where repentance and forgiveness lead to joy, not shame—“Joylessness is not a sign of holiness” (168:50).
  • Only in this communal, healing context can real transformation and reconciliation happen.

NOTABLE QUOTES & MEMORABLE MOMENTS

• On the Limits of Forensic Forgiveness:

  “So are humans more merciful than God? … If you're gonna say God can't do that because it'd be unjust, is He commanding us to be unjust?” – Fr. Stephen (17:48)

• Mercy Defined:

  “The literal definition [of mercy] is not punishing to the full extent.” – Fr. Stephen (13:11)

• On Confessing Privately:

  “No one in the New Testament confesses their sins to God privately. There’s not a single example.” – Fr. Stephen (112:13)

• On the Church’s Boundaries:

  “You can’t put someone outside the church if there is no outside.” – Fr. Andrew (139:44)

• On Joy and Forgiveness:

  “You should leave confession feeling 50 pounds lighter. You should walk out with the knowledge that now you have been reconciled to God in Christ…” – Fr. Stephen (169:43)

• On Misplaced Church Culture:

  “Joylessness is not a sign of holiness… joy is one of the fruit of the Spirit.” – Fr. Stephen (168:50)

• On Ecclesial Life:

  “Don’t live in your head. Don’t think that being a Christian is about stuff you read or stuff you think or having the right opinions… being Christian is about participation in the Body of Christ, and confession is one of those key ways…” – Fr. Andrew (163:19)

TIMESTAMPS FOR MAJOR SEGMENTS

• Opening Discussion on Forgiveness and Its Misunderstandings: 06:27–18:19
• The Old Testament Law, Repentance, and Community: 20:11–36:07
• Forgiveness as Healing, Not Crime & Punishment: 46:24–56:14
• Confession, Restitution, and Restored Fellowship: 65:49–90:29
• New Testament Confession and Communal Forgiveness: 103:01–117:21
• Modern Orthodox Practice and Penance: 123:57–127:47
• Excommunication, Ecclesiology, Church Boundaries: 128:30–150:57
• Final Reflections: Confession, Community, and Joy: 156:17–172:31

CONCLUSION

This episode is a thorough, passionate defense and exploration of confession as a sacrament not of private guilt-removal, but of communal spiritual therapy—returning to a vision of the Church as both a hospital for sinners and a true, living community with definable boundaries, a place of restoration, joy, and real transformation.

The message: Healing and forgiveness happen only in real, honest, communal participation in Christ’s body—the Church. Don’t stay isolated: confess, repair, be healed, and rejoice.