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Father Vasilije Kostić: Confession beyond avoided sins, the parable of talents
Father Vasilije Kostić addresses a common pattern in confession where people list sins they have avoided rather than good they have failed to do. He draws on Christ's parable of the talents, noting that the third servant was condemned not for stealing or wasting but for burying his talent and returning it unchanged. God asks what good we could have done and did not do. The priest observes that every person can perform at least one good act: say a kind and beautiful word, offer a compliment.
The goal set by God is higher than mere avoidance of evil; it is to love enemies, pray for them, and bless those who curse us. He warns that excuses are often covered by false piety, which is rooted in fear of sinning rather than in a living relationship with the living God. Sin can lead a person back to God through repentance, yet a life lived in cramped fear of every mistake freezes the person and everyone around them.
The gifts God gives are not our own property; they are entrusted to us to give to others and multiply.
Key moments
- Confession often becomes a list of sins not committed, did not steal, did not kill, but the parable of the third servant shows God asks what good we could have done and failed to do.
- Every person can do at least some good: say a kind and beautiful word, offer a compliment.
- The perfection God gives and requires is to love enemies, pray for them, and bless those who curse us.
- Excuses are often covered by false piety; true piety is not fear of sinning but a living relationship with the living God.
- Sin can lead a person back to God through repentance.
- A life lived in cramped fear of sinning freezes the person and everyone around them.
- The gifts God gives are not our own; they are entrusted to us to give to others and multiply.