Page 111 - THE ARMENIAN CHURCH_Neat

112 The Armenian Church

profess the Holy Trinity and baptize in the
name of the Father and the Son and the Holy
Spirit. It administers the sacrament of con-
firmation to a person who has been bap-
tized, but has not received confirmation and
wants to become a member of the Ar-
menian Church, either through marriage
or in exceptional situations. The Armenian
Church is extremely careful not to be in-
volved in any form of proselytism.

Repentance
Repentance (apašxarut‘iwn) is aimed at
the forgiveness of sins, which the members of
the church have committed against God and
their fellow human beings. Repentance is also
referred to as a ‘second baptism’ since it
paves the way for the sinner to reconcile with
Christ. Repentance is expressed by fasting
and through the confession of sins. Confes-
sion takes place publicly. A member of the
Armenian Church or any Christian may ask
for a private confession at any time. Ac-
cording to Christian ethics, the confessor is
not allowed to share the content of private
confession with others. The text of the con-
fession, which includes all forms and ex-
pressions of human sin, is usually read by
a deacon on behalf of the congregation. It
may be read by any member of the congre-
gation.