Luther, and the Confession of sins

[Searching_for_Christ]

That's one of the best things about private confession, actually. Things that haunt you from your past are things the enemy can easily use to attack you with. When you bring them out into the light - even if it's just between you and your pastor - it empties those secret sins of their power to make you feel guilty and ashamed. Hearing your pastor announce to you the forgiveness of all your sins - even those sins - is incredibly liberating. It's the power of the Gospel.

Personally I would be semi-ready to confess my sins to the Priest, if I felt the secrecy of the Confessional was as air tight, as the RCC. I'm fine with private confession, but in the Lutheran sense, I just wasn't sure if I absolutely HAD to confess to a priest to be absolved (since I prefer to bring that specific ugly sin, to God, and not to the Priest)

 

[doulos_tou_kuriou]

Personally I would be semi-ready to confess my sins to the Priest, if I felt the secrecy of the Confessional was as air tight, as the RCC. I'm fine with private confession, but in the Lutheran sense, I just wasn't sure if I absolutely HAD to confess to a priest to be absolved (since I prefer to bring that specific ugly sin, to God, and not to the Priest)

It's funny you say that, because specifically ugly sins is really one of the main reasons we retain private confession and absolution. Because those are the sins that often torment the conscience and so need to not only be uttered, but we need to hear forgiveness for that specific sin on account of Jesus Christ.
And again, we should note that Lutheran view is not you are going to a priest/pastor but you are hearing absolution from God himself, the pastor's role is merely to preach it to you (just as God speaks through the proclamation of the gospel in the sermon).

 

[Tangible]

And since your pastor is bound by oath and by conscience never to divulge your confession, you can rest assured that no one else need ever know.

I had a horrible experience once with a church that wanted to practice "confess your sins one to another" within the laity. There was a week end retreat where everyone supposedly promised complete discretion and personal, deeply private things were shared. Needless to say, they didn't stay secret for very long.

 

[doulos_tou_kuriou]

And since your pastor is bound by oath and by conscience never to divulge your confession, you can rest assured that no one else need ever know.

I had a horrible experience once with a church that wanted to practice "confess your sins one to another" within the laity. There was a week end retreat where everyone supposedly promised complete discretion and personal, deeply private things were shared. Needless to say, they didn't stay secret for very long.

it's one thing to say you can confess your sins to one another. it's another to make you do so and to put out a false context of confidentiality when those people are neither legally nor ethically bound the same way a pastor is.