Are you wearing a mask for Confession?

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Our Diocese requires scheduling appts for Mass, having temperature taken, contact tracing, disinfecting hands, receiving the Eucharist in the hand, wearing masks the entire Mass except for Communion which our Priests walks to each Communicant (while he also wears a mask), no congregational singing or reciting prayers. Father also does not speak to anyone before or after Mass and leaves immediately afterward.

For those of you who are having the same restrictions for Mass, what has your experience of going to Confession been like? Behind a screen 6 feet away with a mask on? Any troubles with being heard or understood?
 
Behind a screen, six feet away in a private room. Not ideal but gets the job done.
 
We must wear a mask. Confession is held in crying room. No screen. First Confession I was a snotty mess, and waited until I was out of the room to clean myself up.
 
Pandemic Confession is actually really mortifying in my church. :confused:

No masks required, but we’re not allowed to go into the confessional box, so a separate screen has been set up next to the pews. People sit and wait on one side of the church, then walk over to that screen for Confession. But the screen is only between the priest and penitent, not penitent and other penitents, if you see what I mean, so there’s no sound barrier preserving the seal of the confessional.

Sometimes they set up masking music on a CD player, but they play it quietly, position the player where it isn’t in between the Confessions and waiting penitents, and sometimes they let the music lapse awhile before replaying it.

Basically I’ve attended the sacrament a couple times under these circumstances and found it mortifying, because you never know if others can hear you. I have to try very hard to not hear others (sometimes rustling something or artificially coughing to cover up their words), and I don’t know if others extend me the same courtesy.

Maybe the older people have poor hearing and that’s why they think this is a non-issue. But I’d consider my hearing average and I could absolutely hear what others are confessing, at times, if I chose to (which I obviously never do).

(Last time I tried to speak extra quietly because I was just so self conscious about it, and the priest told me loudly and repeatedly to speak up.)

I’m too exhausted to complain. I’ve complained about poor Confession practice at this location in the past and it’s still poor; I don’t know why they can’t see things that are obvious. As it is, I hate to be the nag when it doesn’t even seem to achieve much, so I just offer the potential humiliation up to God.
 
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I wear a mask to confession. I just talk louder. They’re having confessions in spaces that are large and far from others and one church has someone play the piano in the background during confession to help cover up any conversations. It’s not a big deal.
 
MNathaniel said:
Basically I’ve attended the sacrament a couple times under these circumstances and found it mortifying, because you never know if others can hear you.
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They do it the same way in one of the churches I attend.
Trust me, nobody is listening, nobody wants to hear your sins, nobody is paying attention.
It’s pretty much the same as at all the big holiday confession services in non-pandemic times where they have like a dozen priests sitting in chairs or pews all over the church doing confession after confession while a couple hundred people wait their turn.
 
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My first Confession, I was exceedingly concerned with people hearing, but nobody seemed bothered. Since then, I’ve been in the pews and hear nothing of what’s going on in the Crying Room, and would try hard to not listen as that would interfere with my reason for arriving so early anyway: prayer. No worries!
 
Tis_Bearself said:
It’s pretty much the same as at all the big holiday confession services in non-pandemic times where they have like a dozen priests sitting in chairs or pews all over the church doing confession after confession
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The thing about those though (which I’ve also been to) is that multiple conversations are going on, which creates a ‘buzz’ that obscure individual conversations.

The situation I’m describing is (especially when they let the music lapse), everyone sitting in utter silence, except one priest and one penitent talking in the same room.
 
Our (Orthodox) Church has confession without masks, but the Priest has to stand 6 feet from the penitent in the sanctuary. For the absolution prayer, the priest lifts his stole towards the penitent, but it’s not directly over the penitent’s head, as would be normal.

All other people leave the sanctuary until it’s their turn to confess. The priest decided this so the penitent wouldn’t have to worry about people overhearing.
 
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MNathaniel said:
Pandemic Confession is actually really mortifying in my church. :confused:

No masks required, but we’re not allowed to go into the confessional box, so a separate screen has been set up next to the pews. People sit and wait on one side of the church, then walk over to that screen for Confession. But the screen is only between the priest and penitent, not penitent and other penitents, if you see what I mean, so there’s no sound barrier preserving the seal of the confessional.

Sometimes they set up masking music on a CD player, but they play it quietly, position the player where it isn’t in between the Confessions and waiting penitents, and sometimes they let the music lapse awhile before replaying it.

Basically I’ve attended the sacrament a couple times under these circumstances and found it mortifying, because you never know if others can hear you. I have to try very hard to not hear others (sometimes rustling something or artificially coughing to cover up their words), and I don’t know if others extend me the same courtesy.

I’m too exhausted to complain. I’ve complained about poor Confession practice at this location in the past and it’s still poor; I don’t know why they can’t see things that are obvious. As it is, I hate to be the nag when it doesn’t even seem to achieve much, so I just offer the potential humiliation up to God.
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That sounds terrible. Hard to see how anyone could make a good confession under those circumstances. If I were you I’d go to a different church with a better policy.
 
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I went to Confession on Saturday. There were socially distanced chairs for the priest and penitent set up in the hall outside the Daily Mass chapel. No screen.

The line for Confession formed outdoors, by the double doors leading to the hallway. Doors were kept closed, and there was a sign to indicate the confessional is occupied. Good system for maintaining privacy. Would have had a problem for those waiting if it had been raining - fortunately it was sunny.
 
Beryllos said:
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MNathaniel:
or artificially coughing to cover up their words
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That might clear the church. 😃
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LOL. 😂

Thanks for the laugh. 😊
 
I have not been to Mass since February due to the Virus…I do need to go to Confession but am afraid of the Virus…I am suffering greatly…all I can do at this time is to Pray and ask for God’s Forgiveness… :cry:
 
Call the parish, and ask if the priest can make a house call. You can confess through a closed window as long as you can hear each other.
 
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