The Copts had inherited from their fathers, like the rest of Christendom, belief in and the practice of sacramental confession. But, as in the case of many Eastern Churches, while the theory remained, the practice gradually became rare. Then began a curious compromise. Most Eastern rites associate the use of incense in the liturgy with a public confession of sin. The idea is fairly obvious. They prayed that as the savour of this incense goes up to God, so may our humble prayer for forgiveness of sins ascend to him, so may he send down on us in return grace and pardon. There is a special reason for this, inasmuch as the incense is burned at the beginning of various services, as a preparation for some solemn act, with the idea of hallowing, purifying the holy place. So is a prayer for forgiveness the natural preparation for such an act.[1] The Coptic liturgy expresses this connection between the offering of incense and confession of sins very plainly.[2] So, by a curious confusion, there grew up the idea of an inherent connection between incense and forgiveness; the incense was looked upon as a kind of sin-offering, a sacrifice which atoned for sin. Why, then, go through the unpleasant process of confessing to a priest, when the burning incense obtained forgiveness for your sins? So the Copt whose conscience was troubled found a simple way of recovering the grace he had lost. He simply lit a thurible in his own house and confessed to that. Truly the path of salvation is easy; but it cannot be quite as easy as this. The abuse had become common by the 12th century, when a certain priest, Mark Ibn alḲanbar,[3] began to preach against it, urging the necessity of absolution by a priest. John V defended the popular abuse and excommunicated Mark. There was strong feeling on both sides; eventually they took the unusual course of appealing to the Jacobite Patriarch of Antioch, Michael I (1166-1199).[4] This is a strange and rare proceeding; since in theory a Patriarch of Alexandria stands above his brother of Antioch. Michael answered ambiguously,
- ↑ As in the Roman rite the celebrant begins Mass by saying Confiteor and Misereatur.
- ↑ E.g. Brightman: Eastern Liturgies, p. 150, etc.
- ↑ Maḳrīzī: op. cit. p. 28 (Arabic text). Barhebræus calls him Marḳus bar Ḳunbar (ed. cit. i. 573-575).
- ↑ Michael the Great, one of the most famous and important Jacobite Patriarchs (see p. 329).
