Confession During EF Mass

[CatholicSooner]

Went to my first Latin High Mass.
Is it common in TLM to have confession during mass?
The priest hearing confessions stopped at the consecration and then went and helped distribute communion.

 

[UpUpAndAway]

In my experience, it is not uncommon. The priest hearing confessions may or may not distribute Communion afterward. He may not even remain in the confessional until the Consecration, if no one is availing themselves of the possibility to confess.

 

[EnglishTeacher]

It’s not uncommon where there is more than one priest. I was surprised by it the first time I saw it. It seems to be a practice that is permitted but not one that you see very often (partly due to the fact that few parishes have more than one priest). Apparently it can be done in both the ordinary form and the extraordinary, but you are more likely to see it during an extraordinary form Mass.

Reply to a question about hearing confessions during Mass

 

[Tis_Bearself]

Went to my first Latin High Mass.
Is it common in TLM to have confession during mass?

Yes.

By the way, I’ve seen it at OFs too when there was something like a retreat going on and they had enough priests present to sit in the confessionals, or in a separate room hearing confessions, while a priest up in the sanctuary said Mass.

 

[on_the_hill]

That’s sort of cool, in a way. I’d never been to an EF Mass, hadn’t known this happens.

But my question is, are the penitents paying attention to the Mass while they’re waiting in line? I can see the value of wanting to receive absolution prior to Holy Communion, but how’s this fit with participating in the Mass?

 

[Tis_Bearself]

They’re paying sufficient attention. At a TLM there is not much responding and so forth for the congregation to do. The priest is praying most of the Mass himself.

 

[twf]

It happens at the OF Mass too - in some parishes. At our cathedral there are generally 6 to 8 priests in residence, so the priests hearing confessions generally aren’t also scheduled to celebrate Mass at the same time. If the confession lines are long, one or two priests will often continue hearing confessions after Mass has starts.
Note that this only applies to weekdays and Saturday. Not Sundays.

 

[phil19034]

At my Cathedral (Archdiocese of Philadelphia) it’s very common for Confessions to still be heard during the 6:30 PM mass we have on Sunday nights (Ordinary Form of the Mass)

That mass is usually said by the Archbishop, so a lot of priests from the Seminary attend, not just the ones living at the Cathedral. So there are plenty of priests to hear confessions before that Mass and at least 1 stays to continue hearing confessions during mass and stays until the line is gone.

The Cathedral also has a confession time before the 9:30 AM (Ordinary Form) Mass on Sundays which will have a priest still hearing confessions after the 9:30 mass starts too. But it’s nowhere near as many as the 6:30 PM mass.