If there is no mortal sin, there is no requirement to go to confession before receiving Communion. You simply receive Communion. That is true at any time of the liturgical year…whether it is the Easter Vigil or any other day.I went to confession about a week ago. Will I still have to go on Good Friday even if I have no mortal sins to confess? My work schedule would make that difficult, although I could also go Holy Saturday before the vigil.
II. The Precepts of the Church
2041 The precepts of the Church are set in the context of a moral life bound to and nourished by liturgical life. the obligatory character of these positive laws decreed by the pastoral authorities is meant to guarantee to the faithful the indispensable minimum in the spirit of prayer and moral effort, in the growth in love of God and neighbor:
2042 The first precept (“You shall attend Mass on Sundays and holy days of obligation.") requires the faithful to participate in the Eucharistic celebration when the Christian community gathers together on the day commemorating the Resurrection of the Lord.82
The second precept (“You shall confess your sins at least once a year.") ensures preparation for the Eucharist by the reception of the sacrament of reconciliation, which continues Baptism’s work of conversion and forgiveness.83
The third precept (“You shall humbly receive your Creator in Holy Communion at least during the Easter season.") guarantees as a minimum the reception of the Lord’s Body and Blood in connection with the Paschal feasts, the origin and center of the Christian liturgy.84
2043 The fourth precept (“You shall keep holy the holy days of obligation.") completes the Sunday observance by participation in the principal liturgical feasts which honor the mysteries of the Lord, the Virgin Mary, and the saints.85
The fifth precept (“You shall observe the prescribed days of fasting and abstinence.") ensures the times of ascesis and penance which prepare us for the liturgical feasts; they help us acquire mastery over our instincts and freedom of heart.86
The faithful also have the duty of providing for the material needs of the Church, each according to his abilities.
There is no rule that Confessions cannot be heard during Holy Week. Canon law doesn’t address the issue, but some argued that the Roman Missal (1970 and 1975 editions) implied that confessions could not be heard on those days.My parish also doesn’t have confessions during the Triduum. In fact, when I was in college, my then-pastor told me that, per canon law, confessions weren’t even allowed between the beginning of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday and the end of the Easter Vigil (And I’m thinking that this was probably excepting a case where a dying person is receiving Last Rites).
This kind of made me curious, so I did a search of nearby parishes. My own parish is unusual; Father offers scheduled confession for 1/2 hour before any scheduled service, but for the most part, many of us just catch him at a convenient time. He’ll definitely hear confessions anytime. The three parishes nearest me offer confessions during Holy Week. One of them had penance service on Monday night. Another offered 6 hours of daily Confessions on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. That same parish offers confession on Holy Saturday for 2 hours. The local FSSP parish is having confession times on Holy Thursday for an hour before Mass, Good Friday for 2 hours and Holy Saturday for 2 hours. The Cathedral has its regular noonish confessions on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. They have a noon penance service on Holy Thursday, and confessions from 2-3 on Good Friday. Of the 10 or so parishes that I checked, every parish offered some confession times during Holy Week, and about 1/2 of them offered confession during the Triduum.The priests her do bot offer confession during Holy Week.
I wonder if it is a practical issue, since Holy Week can be exhausting for priests.Well, our pastor made a big deal of announcing that people need to get to confession either at a penance service or the posted Confession times…because Holy Week is off unless urgent confession appointments, or RCIA first confessions are needed but NOTHING during the Triduum.
And that’s pretty universal in this Archdiocese anyway. We publish ALL the available times in the parishes in our Deanery also to make sure that people have plenty of options.