Where do Jew confess? anywhere? written notice or oral?

Question

Hi, I am doing a research of confession in different religions. Can you help me to get some informations pls. Thanks a lot.

Answer 1

On Yom Kippur, specifically in a part of prayer called "Viduy." Private between G-d and Man. I don't see why it really can't be done at another time when deemed necessary (as in knowledge of impending death).

To clarify - Viduy - which literally means "confession" is not one specific prayer. It is the section compromised of the "ashamnu, bagadnu..." followed by the "Al Chet" Both of which are done with a pounding on the chest. (Not bruise/pound). The whole of Yom Kippur is NOT "confession." Atonement, but not confession.

Check here:

http://www.lind.org.il/features/alexisrael/5766/rai_yk66.htm

Answer 2

We do not confess to a rabbi or anything, our sins are strictly between us and G-d. Now, there are two different kinds of sin we must atone or ask forgiveness for.

Wrongs we've committed against other people do not have a day of their own to ask forgiveness for: as soon as we want forgiveness for the wrong, we ask it. To receive forgiveness, we must do this thing called teshuvah. (translated to return or repentance) "The sinner must recognize his sin, feel sincere remorse, undo any damage he has done and pacify the victim of his offense, and resolve never to commit the sin again."
This means that the person must realize what wrong he's done and why it's wrong, feel remorse for it, try and fix the sin, and resolve to never do it again. Also, a part of recognizing the sin involves asking forgiveness of the one you've sinned against.

For sins against G-d, we have a day called Yom Kippur for that. And to explain this, I have included a passage from my favorite educational:

" The evening service that begins Yom Kippur is commonly known as Kol Nidre, named for the prayer that begins the service. "Kol nidre" means "all vows," and in this prayer, we ask G-d to annul all personal vows we may make in the next year. It refers only to vows between the person making them and G-d, such as "If I pass this test, I'll pray every day for the next 6 months!" Click the musical notes to hear a portion of the traditional tune for this prayer.

This prayer has often been held up by anti-Semites as proof that Jews are untrustworthy (we do not keep our vows), and for this reason the Reform movement removed it from the liturgy for a while. In fact, the reverse is true: we make this prayer because we take vows so seriously that we consider ourselves bound even if we make the vows under duress or in times of stress when we are not thinking straight. This prayer gave comfort to those who were converted to Christianity by torture in various inquisitions, yet felt unable to break their vow to follow Christianity. In recognition of this history, the Reform movement restored this prayer to its liturgy.

There are many additions to the regular liturgy (there would have to be, to get such a long service ). Perhaps the most important addition is the confession of the sins of the community, which is inserted into the Shemoneh Esrei (Amidah) prayer. Note that all sins are confessed in the plural (we have done this, we have done that), emphasizing communal responsibility for sins.

There are two basic parts of this confession: Ashamnu, a shorter, more general list (we have been treasonable, we have been aggressive, we have been slanderous...), and Al Chet, a longer and more specific list (for the sin we sinned before you forcibly or willingly, and for the sin we sinned before you by acting callously...) Frequent petitions for forgiveness are interspersed in these prayers. There's also a catch-all confession: "Forgive us the breach of positive commands and negative commands, whether or not they involve an act, whether or not they are known to us." [...] "The concluding service of Yom Kippur, known as Ne'ilah, is one unique to the day. It usually runs about 1 hour long. The ark (a cabinet where the scrolls of the Torah are kept) is kept open throughout this service, thus you must stand throughout the service. There is a tone of desperation in the prayers of this service. The service is sometimes referred to as the closing of the gates; think of it as the "last chance" to get in a good word before the holiday ends. The service ends with a very long blast of the shofar. See Rosh Hashanah for more about the shofar and its characteristic blasts."

Answer 3

Jews don't confess because we don't sin.
Nah; joking. We have the Day of Atonement, aka Yom Kippur.

Answer 4

Jews do not confess in the same sense as Catholics do. They have a day of atonement but do not go to a Rabbi and confess.