Confession: Anyone have this experience

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Dandelion_Wine

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I was reading Michelle Arnold’s response in the Ask an Apologist forum: forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=89199 and almost spit out my water when I read
Michelle Arnold:
A priest would be naturally reluctant to deny anyone confession
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This past saturday myself, a buddy and his daughter went to Confession at a nearby Church. We went in and there wasn’t anyone in the confessional. We found the priest and he told us that they now only offer confession on the first saturday of the month. I had to go to another church later that afternoon for my confession to be heard.

Several years ago I was going in for some tests and I was pretty freaked out and wanted to go to confession to cleanse my soul beforehand. Even though many churches in the area state the confession times and “by appointment”, I had a rough time finding any priest who wanted to hear my confession outside of the normal scheduled time.

Am I just in a loser diocese or going to the wrong churches?
 
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Dandelion_Wine:
Am I just in a loser diocese or going to the wrong churches?
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Yes to the second question for sure. Yes to the first, if writing the bishop does no good. A priest may not refuse a reasonable request for confession.
 
I have it on good authority that Michelle Arnold was assuming the best of priests collectively rather than focusing on the regrettable failures of a few individual priests. Perhaps she should have used the qualifier “should” rather than “would.”
 
could I have made a confession and received valid absolution in, say, the guest bedroom?
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If I were a priest and someone made this request of me at a party I’d think ‘kinky’ and walk the other way.
Guest bedroom? At a party? :rolleyes:
 
and to answer your question…
my experiences are similar to yours…priests around my diocese are quite rigid about their schedules…they tend to make like transparent ghosts when it comes time to hear a confession…it is rather spooky. :bigyikes:
 
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contemplative:
If I were a priest and someone made this request of me at a party I’d think ‘kinky’ and walk the other way.
Guest bedroom? At a party? :rolleyes:
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Remember that page or two of the Godfather novel? Phwee…stay away from guest bedrooms at parties.
 
A priest can’t deny confession under reasonable circumstances. In fact, a priest at my church purposely wears a cassock because he has had confession requests on the sidewalk, at airports, etc.- that’s how they knew he was a priest, by the ‘uniform’.
 
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mommyjo2:
A priest can’t deny confession under reasonable circumstances. In fact, a priest at my church purposely wears a cassock because he has had confession requests on the sidewalk, at airports, etc.- that’s how they knew he was a priest, by the ‘uniform’.
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a sidewalk? an airport?
I need to broaden my mind. These are places I never imagined for the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
A hospital room, hospice and an accident scene …yes.
Those making confession should hoof their way into church to pray and meet with a priest at the priests convenience and schedule. Make an appointment if necessary. I can’t imagine putting a priest ‘out’ in a circumstance convenient to me!
 
One time I was approaching the church to fix up an appointment for a face to face Conession with a priest and I happened to see a priest walking near the church. I asked him if he had time to hear my Confession and he said yes and so we walked around the grounds of the church (including the car park) for the duration of the Confession.
 
ran into a retired priest I know in Lowes parking lot last month, got caught up on the news, told him I was on my way back to the parish, and wanted to get there in time for confession. he said don’t rush, we walked over to Sonic for a soda and he heard my confession.
 
A priest who was visiting my school for a rug auction (I taught on the Navajo Reservation) heard my confession in my classroom (public school, but after hours).
 
I have rarely had a problem with the Diocese priest hearing my confession. One of the larger parishes has a counselling office, and as long as they are not in the middle of an appt. will hear anybody’s confession.

I’ve also had similar experiences while TDY. Military chaplains are ususally very gracious in hearing confessions w/o an appointment.
 
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puzzleannie:
ran into a retired priest I know in Lowes parking lot last month, got caught up on the news, told him I was on my way back to the parish, and wanted to get there in time for confession. he said don’t rush, we walked over to Sonic for a soda and he heard my confession.
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Thats hilarious :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:
 
I’ve never asked and been refused, normally I just try to go to the scheduled confesions.

I know some really good priests though. A priest and I were recently talking about the penance service and I mentioned that I couldn’t make it due to work. He offered to hear my confession the next day, I didn’t ask him. It was really nice of him, especially since I know how busy he is. 🙂
 
Lady Cygnus:
I’ve never asked and been refused, normally I just try to go to the scheduled confesions.

I know some really good priests though. A priest and I were recently talking about the penance service and I mentioned that I couldn’t make it due to work. He offered to hear my confession the next day, I didn’t ask him. It was really nice of him, especially since I know how busy he is. 🙂
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I think the overwhelming majority of our priests are great. We only hear about the ones who aren’t so much.
 
If I had the money, I’ve been thinking about taking a full-page ad out in our local paper - saying something along the lines of:

WANTED: A good priest. Qualifications: Someone who doesn’t introduce liturgical abuse in the Mass. Someone who honors Holy Communion and Confession.

The previous pastor at our church instituted the GIRM and our new pastor just changed it back to the way he likes. The church where we were married seems more non-Catholic everyday (he had a “liturgical dancer” at one of the Masses). The priest I’m referring to above is the same priest I had mentioned on another thread where I walked into Confession and there was NOTHING to distinguish him as a priest. No cassock. No collar. Not even the little stole (or whatever it’s called) around his neck - it was sitting on the table next to him.

I’m just getting really frustrated.
 
Several years ago, the one time I tried to schedule confession, I called the rectory. I was told the priest would call me back to schedule. 8 days later I got a call. Probably just a miscommunication at the rectory, but I haven’t even tried to schedule confession again. I’ve come to the conclusion that quite a few priests don’t like to hear confession and purposefully avoid it where possible. Admittedly unfortunate, but that’s the conclusion I’ve come to.
 
Those making confession should hoof their way into church to pray and meet with a priest at the priests convenience and schedule. Make an appointment if necessary. I can’t imagine putting a priest ‘out’ in a circumstance convenient to me!
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Don’t you think that a priest needs to make every possible attempt to be available for confession? That’s their job. There needs to be a middle ground. Confession should be before EVERY mass. Not just Saturday afternoons.

S
 
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Dandelion_Wine:
WANTED: A good priest. Qualifications: Someone who doesn’t introduce liturgical abuse in the Mass. Someone who honors Holy Communion and Confession.

.
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Job accepted:)

No seriously, im entering the seminary very shortly, and i have the greatest reverence for the holy Mass and the sacrament of Confession - without those two theres no point in an ordained priest, so it needs to be at the centre of every priests life.

But my point is, ive spoken to a lot of young seminarians and 98% are very orthodox. From my experience, all the daft liberal priests are dying out now, and replaced by a fresh wave of orthodoxy. I was having a drink the other day with a seminarian i know, and we both promised to each other that we make sure that confession was freely available and encouraged at our parishes!! Our first vows!!!

Unfortunately we live in England…
 
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contemplative:
a sidewalk? an airport?
I need to broaden my mind. These are places I never imagined for the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
A hospital room, hospice and an accident scene …yes.
Those making confession should hoof their way into church to pray and meet with a priest at the priests convenience and schedule. Make an appointment if necessary. I can’t imagine putting a priest ‘out’ in a circumstance convenient to me!
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If we’re dealing with venial sins, then yes. But I know that when I have mortal sins on my soul, I want to get to confession ASAP in case I die during my daily routine. I don’t see a problem with this, especially in an airport. In Poland, which is STILL a Catholic country, they have confessionals on the street for people walking by who need to be absolved. I myself wouldn’t hesitate to ask a priest to hear my confession if I knew that my Eternal Life was at stake.

Speaking of this issue, I once was talking to a non-Catholic friend of mine. I told him that I had missed Mass and wanted to go to confession ASAP in case I died (secondary contrition). He laughed and told me that Catholic’s spiritual lives reminded him of a video game. I didn’t know what to say.
 
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