Grace and Forgiveness--the Pastoral Approach to Guilt
by the Rev. Frank Schaefer
 

 Sin and guilt, confession and pardon are not exactly part of the hip vocabulary of society.  In fact, the word sin can be perceived as rather intimidating, even oppressive by our contemporaries. If people only knew that the biblical understanding of the human condition can be so liberating--indeed, it can help us come to terms with guilt much more effectively than the fixes society offers.

In popular culture, guilt is typically treated from two different angles, the justice perspective and the medical perspective.  All of us live in the tension of these very different perspectives.

Alcoholism is an oft-quoted illustration in this debate:  To some degree we are inclined to deal with a person's drinking habit from the medical perspective.  We grant that alcoholism may be--at least to a degree--a genetic bias and should therefore be treated as a disease.  However, we also realize-- genetic bias or not--that the alcoholic is accountable before the law as alcoholism constitutes a case of substance abuse.

When it comes to dealing with guilt, the justice perspective stresses human responsibility. Here guilt can become a habit pattern since it begins early in human existence.  Guilt is normally used by parents and authorities as a way of punishing and controlling. The Justice model promotes and perpetuates “self-punishment.” Self-punishment is a natural response to the fear of greater punishment--if I punish myself, perhaps the authorities will forgo punishment.  It is a well known fact that punishment of self is self-destructive.

The medical perspective, on the other hand, encourages a flat-out denial.  A person may say: "I am not to blame.  It's genetic, or it's a social systems issue." The phrase "I'm ok-you're OK" ( transactional analysis approach) expresses this position well. However, suppressed feelings of guilt will likely find other avenues of expression, via anger and depression for instance.

In both the medical and justice perspectives feelings of guilt (or denial thereof) are self-perpetuated. These patterns of self-perpetuation become a substitute for true change and personal spiritual growth.

The Christian, or Pastoral Care approach shows us a qualitatively more efficient way to deal with guilt. Firstly, Christians acknowledge the reality of sin and guilt. The Christian message is clear:   Sin is a human condition and guilt has a transcendent dimension--it is guilt before God! And only God can break the bondage of sin and guilt.

But the message doesn't stop there.  The good news is that God’s love is unconditional and God is working in and through Christ to break that bondage and restore humanity.

Forgiveness is just as real as is sin and guilt.  Forgiveness is received through metanoia (the NT Greek word for "repentance") which is literally translated "change of mind." A change of mind is the initial step in the change of direction.

The following graph and explanatory notes explain the Pastoral Care Model in some more detail:
 

The Medical Model: