First Confession

First Confession - Frank O'Connor

6.24.07



Jackie was indoctrinated with Christianity. How terrible.

The story focuses on the aforementioned boy's troubles with his first confession, partly due to the forceful introduction of the fear of hell among other things, such as being cursed to living life as some obscure burning thing due to a "bad confession", that is, omitting sins in one's confession. The main reason of the protagonist's fear of confession, however, comes from societal consequences. Admitting all of one's faults to a person whom one hardly knows is difficult, but when those faults include plotting to kill one's own grandmother, the entire thing goes to "hell". Such is the reason for Jackie's troubles.


The story was sad.

All literary works, especially the fictitious ones, are ultimately subjective; it's high time that I seize this trait to my advantage.

In my view (Wow, subjective), the story inadvertently exposes a few flaws in the Christian faith. This little stratagem composed of fear and eternal torment is quite efficient in subjugating children. Is it, however, worth it?

Richard Dawkins doesn't think so. He classifies it as child abuse, and he goes on to state that "the mental abuse constituted by an unsubstantiated threat of violence and terrible pain, if sincerely believed by the child, could easily be more damaging than the physical actuality of sexual abuse. An extreme threat of violence and pain is precisely what the doctrine of hell is. And there is no doubt at all that many children sincerely believe it, often continuing right through adulthood and old age until death finally releases them." (1)

This, then, can also be defined as psychological abuse, since according to Wikipedia, "Any situation in which the repeated and extreme impact of a situation affects a person's emotional and rational thinking, in such a way as to adversely impact their later lives, could be termed as psychological abuse at some level." (2)


No doubt that a few harmless and retractable lies can be justified in the context of shaping behavior, but can such a destructive and recurring superstition be justified on the same grounds? I think not.


The narrative, therefore, just goes to show what unnecessary pains the indoctrinated youth have to go through.

Besides, what is the need for confession if one's god is the ultimate omnibenevolent being, the one who does not require neither motive nor action, since infinite love does not demand nor require reciprocation, since such a being is beyond all? You could say emotional comfort on the part of the man, but that's just plain evasion of the question, since the need we speak of is that of salvation, not of living comfortably.


(1) Dawkins, Richard. "Religion's Real Child Abuse." The Official Richard Dawkins Website. 15 May 2006. Accessed 23 June 2007. http://richarddawkins.net/article,118,Religions-Real-Child-Abuse,Richard-Dawkins

(2) Psychological Abuse - Wikipedia. 21 June 2007 (Last modified). Accessed 23 June 2007. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_abuse