14`Miserable Offenders'An Interpretation Of Prayer Book Languageo Ne Of The Advantages Of Having Awritten And Printed Se
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`MISERABLE OFFENDERS'
AN INTERPRETATION OF PRAYER BOOK LANGUAGE
The Lenten season is devoted especially to what theologians call contrition, and so every day in Lent a prayer is said in which we ask God to give us `contrite hearts'.'
Contrite, as you know, is a word translated from Latin, meaning crushed or pulverized. Now modern people complain that there is too much of that note in our Prayer Book. They do not wish their hearts to be pulverized, and they do not feel that they can sincerely say that they are `miserable offenders'.2
I once knew a regular churchgoer who never repeated the words, `the burden of them (i.e. his sins) is intolerable',3
What should be done about it? What is the good of my talking about the fatal flaw if one does not know about it? I think the first step is to get down to the flaws which one does know. I am speaking to Christians. Many of you, no doubt, are very far ahead of me in the Christian way. It is not for me to decide whether you should confess your sins to a priest or not (our Prayer Book leaves that free to all and demands it of none) 4
APPENDICES TO `MISERABLE OFFENDERS'