Lou will invite our congregation to join him in exploring the difficult spiritual practice of confessing our sins as a means for social redemption and healing. He will explore the value the Christian religious tradition has placed on the notion that one’s ability to acknowledge our failures and mistakes is essential to obtaining forgiveness and to reconciliation, not just with God, but with others in the world when relational brokenness occurs. The sermon will focus on the value of moving beyond the type of guilt-producing religion that is spiritually unhealthy to affirming the relational and spiritual importance of accepting responsibility for our behavior and disappointments. Lou will build on the philosophical, theological, and psychological conviction that the “forgiveness of sins” is not only the most central teaching of Jesus, but also a vitally important element in creating cooperative and relational communities where everyone is valued and appreciated. He will suggest that our ability to find the emotional strength to acknowledge our relational failures and to offer apologies when needed will aid all of us in the social process of becoming “stable geniuses”. This service will also reflect the spiritual practices that the Church has emphasized during the season of Lent that do not include self-depreciation, mutilation, or dietary limitations.