What are the Basic beliefs of Lutherans?

Private confession is a rare regular practice in the Lutheran Church now a days, although some churches have a couple of days in the year when they specifically offer private confession. But for the most part people do not go to private confession, usually people are content with the practice of public corprate confession during the sunday service.

Since the forties very little emphasis is placed on private confession, before it is was pretty much required before communion, but with the increase in frequency of communion and growing congregations Pastors shifted more towards the practice of relying on the public corperate confession.

 

public confession in the corperate sense consist of at the beginning of the service in the liturgy there is a spot where we all say a confession (same written confession) usually after a moment of silent reflection and is followed by the pastor usually saying something to the effect "God is indeed merciful and has had mercy upon you for the sake of His son Jesus Christ. I therefore as a called and ordained servant of the word and by the Command of my Lord Jesus Christ forgive you of all your sins in the name of The Father, and of The Son, and of The Holy Spirit"

There are cases when individuals make public confession before a congregation when they are confessing a public sin that they were publicly disciplined for and there are many cases where a pastor will hear this confession privately and then publicly announce their confession to the congregation and call on the congregation to rejoice in their repentance and welcome them back. Both of these cases are very rare.