How Confession should be administered

[sonofourlady]

Where I live in a rural area, there are 2 parishes that are equal distance from where I live. One parish has actual confession stalls with a screen and the other has nothing.

In both parishes, there is no scheduled time for confessions as it is a mission church. You have to ask Father before Mass to hear confession.

Sometimes the Priest arrives 30 minutes early which makes it easy to ask for confession. Sometimes they arrive 5 minutes before Mass and it is hard to ask as they are busy robing and talking with the people who prepare the church for mass.

In one instance the Priest told me to go to confession after Mass. After Mass I went to confession and then asked him if he could give me Communion, which he did.

In the Church where there is no confession stall you have to go to where the Priest is and of course there is no way for privacy. Fortunately for me, I am not hindered in that respect.

But I have to wonder, since confession is ONLY for confessing mortal sins, but for venial, then isn’t the fact that one has to ask, make it hard for Confession to be properly administered.

It should be noted that my Father and I are the ONLY one’s that go to confession at those parishes.

 

[Trishie]

It must be difficult to be unable to easily go to Confession. It makes things very difficult for anyone who happens to be in serious sin. I think priests need to be mindful of responsibility for others’ souls, and to prevent sacrilegous Communions.

You and your Dad may be the only ones to go because others feel uncomfortable about grabbing time from the priest before Mass, and if the priests don’t think Confession of either venial and even mortal sins matters enough to give time to be available, then people are going to feel it doesn’t matter any more. As shepherds of souls they do bear responsibility for them. Because priests don’t raise awareness regarding the importance of absolution and sacramental grace, they must bear some of the blame for the unshriven state of many souls. I ask God to help to rectify this.

We’re blessed enough to have several churches within walking distances that have scheduled Confession times.

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

Where I live in a rural area, there are 2 parishes that are equal distance from where I live. One parish has actual confession stalls with a screen and the other has nothing.

In both parishes, there is no scheduled time for confessions as it is a mission church. You have to ask Father before Mass to hear confession.

Sometimes the Priest arrives 30 minutes early which makes it easy to ask for confession. Sometimes they arrive 5 minutes before Mass and it is hard to ask as they are busy robing and talking with the people who prepare the church for mass.

In one instance the Priest told me to go to confession after Mass. After Mass I went to confession and then asked him if he could give me Communion, which he did.

In the Church where there is no confession stall you have to go to where the Priest is and of course there is no way for privacy. Fortunately for me, I am not hindered in that respect.

But I have to wonder, since confession is ONLY for confessing mortal sins, but for venial, then isn’t the fact that one has to ask, make it hard for Confession to be properly administered.

It should be noted that my Father and I are the ONLY one’s that go to confession at those parishes.

The one with confessionals is more properly seen as meeting the requirements of Canon Law on this Sacraments celebration. Maybe a phone call prior to alerting the priest that “someone” will be wanting to receive the Sacrament prior to Mass, so he could arrive a little earlier?

You were correct to interpret "I’ll hear your confession after Mass was not permission to receive Holy Communion at the Mass.