11-11-2010, 07:20 PM
(This post was last modified: 12-06-2019, 03:20 AM by Director Michael.)
Mattityahu ben Noach Wrote:Suppose I have sins which I have forgotten about, and so have not repented of. Or there are actions I know of but have not realized are sins, and so I have not repented of them.In addition to repenting for specific sins, you can also sincerely ask forgiveness from G-d for sins that were forgotten or not recognized, with regret for any such errors that you might have committed. This is included in the "Noahide Amidah" prayer that has been suggested by Rabbi Immanuel Schochet. See Post #2 on our Forum page
I assume there it a way I can pray to ask G-d to forgive me for those sins.
How do I go about asking G-d for forgiveness?
https://asknoah.org/forum/showthread.php?tid=25
Noahide Amidah (Copyright '09 by Ask Noah International)
Blessed are You, G-d, the Supreme Being who bestows abundant kindness.
Please endow us graciously with wisdom, understanding and knowledge.
Please accept our repentance, and forgive us for our errors and sins.
[Etc.]"
You can also say Rabbi Schochet's "Prayer for the Repentant" (p. 108 in "The Divine Code," Volume 1) as a general prayer, without mentioning any specific sins, but just having in mind your regret for any sins that were forgotten or not recognized. For example (adjusting that text):
"O G-d, I have erred, sinned and ... transgressed before You, and I have done that which is evil in Your eyes. I am sincerely ashamed of my [forgotten and and unknown] sins, and I repent and firmly undertake [to take care not to sin]...
Please G-d, in Your infinite grace and compassion forgive my sins and transgressions and grant me atonement, as it is written: “Let the wicked abandon his way and the man of iniquity his thoughts; and let him return unto G-d, and He will show him compassion, and to our G-d, for He will pardon abundantly.” And it is written: “Do I desire at all that the wicked should die, says the L-rd, G-d; it is rather that he return from his ways and live!”
Mattityahu ben Noach Wrote:On the other hand, suppose I have difficulty overcoming an urge to commit a particular act that I have been taught _IS_ a sin. (Assume the sin in question does no harm to anyone else).
How can I overcome the urge, or find forgiveness for the sin, or at least mitigate the harm to myself?
This is the fundamental service to G-d of striving to be a "Baal Teshuva" - a repentant person who strives and succeeds in correcting his behavior. Many books have been written about this from a Torah perspective, and much of this applies for Noahides. See for example:
"The Divine Code," Volume 1, Part I, ch. 8 ("Obligatory Moral Conduct") and ch. 9 ("Repentance")
Rambam, Mishneh Torah, "Hilchot De'ot" (The Laws of Personal Development), Chapters 1-3, and "Hilchot Teshuva" (The Laws of Repentance), Chapters 5-7.
(on-line at Chabad.org under Library/Classic Texts)