Joseph J. Ellis Quotes

God's forgiveness is the only thing. And, well, I take full responsibility for the adultery. It was my fault and, you know, no matter what went on, the man has to take responsibility; and I do.

I have sinned against you, my Lord.

Sins cannot be undone, only forgiven.

Confession of sins is not meritorious: to confess sins as a way of placing God in your debt is not dealing with sin; it is committing another sin. The context of all confession must be the free grace of justification.

People do bad things in their lives. And those sort of things are forgivable. That's half the point of having confession in church - you need to be able to fess up to what you've done.

Repentance is a sweet solace to conscience as well as the most complete atonement to the Supreme Judge of our offenses; notwithstanding, the tongue of malevolence and scurrility may be continually preparing its most poisonous ingredients for the punishment of a crime, which has already received more than half a pardon.

You have to be a little contrite to get redemption.

I cannot stand that whole game of confession, that is: Here I have sinned, now I'm confessing my sins, and describing my path of sin and then in the act of confession I beg for your forgiveness and redemption.

It is much easier to repent of sins that we have committed than to repent of those that we intend to commit.

I have hardly detained the reader long enough on the subject, to give him a just impression of the stress laid on confession. It is one of the great points to which our attention was constantly directed.

Regret is not a proactive feeling. It is situated in disappointment, sorrow, even remorse. It merely wishes things were different without an act to cause a difference. However, repentance is different. Repentance is an admission of, hatred of, and turning away from sin before God.

The beginning of atonement is the sense of its necessity.

Great is the difference betwixt a man's being frightened at, and humbled for his sins.

In order to properly repent, he who has sinned against the public must make public reparation.

Penitence must precede pardon.

To have clemency, it is necessary to admit guilt.

What people fail to understand coughing up sin and confessing it and giving it to the only one that can remove it, for crying out loud, we're all sinners.

That's what troubles me: I should like to suffer more for the expiation of my sins.

God cannot forgive a sinner who does not acknowledge his sin.

I know I'm a sinner.

Repentance, not proper behavior or even holiness, is the doorway to grace. And the opposite of sin is grace, not virtue.

I am a sinner. This is the most accurate definition. It is not a figure of speech, a literary genre. I am a sinner.

Heaven finds an ear when sinners find a tongue.

I do not bring forgiveness with me, nor forgetfulness. The only ones who can forgive are dead; the living have no right to forget.

Forgiveness to the injured does belong; but they ne'er pardon who have done wrong.