Psalm 32
As we enter Lent, Psalm 32 offers a beautiful picture of confession and forgiveness. Besides the classically-theological elements of this psalm, such as its emphasis on God’s mercy, the psalm shows us a way into the pathways of accountability as a positive practice that is helpful for building alternatives to carceral ways of thinking, being, and responding to harm.
After the psalmist tells the truth about their sin to God, God responds not only with deliverance (v. 7) but also with instruction and counsel (v. 8). God’s response is not to forgive, but to guide the sinner into paths of accountability. Following God’s counsel is (theologically) a form of repentance; it is also an empowerment for an accountable way of living in community.
It feels important to always emphasize that accountability is an ongoing practice, and one which is fundamentally about how we live in ways responsible to one another, and to God. Even the more direct work of taking accountability for harm we do is grounded in the ongoing practices of accountability to each other, as Mia Mingus describes. As she poignantly asks, “What if accountability wasn’t scary?”
I think Psalm 32 offers, in theological language, a picture of accountability that isn’t scary. It shows one way of practicing accountability in “joy” and “steadfast love” (v. 10–11).
A further resource for thinking about accountability specifically in response to harm is Rabbi Danya Ruttenberg’s book On Repentance and Repair, and this guide for Christians studying that book during Lent is a helpful resource. Each of these tools exist to help us conceive of accountability as a liberating, joyful way of moving forward when we have done harm. They let us feel, along with the author of Psalm 32, the joyous, powerful response of God to each of our tiny, halting attempts to turn from harm and make things right.
Hannah Bowman is the founder and director of Christians for Abolition.