Jurisdiction of a Priest During Confession

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SnowAngels

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Hello!

I was reading up on the valid administration of the Sacrament of Penance, and it only lightly touched on the fact that not only the character of the priesthood, but also the jurisdiction, that is, judicial power, is required. It points out that a bishop had jurisdiction over his diocese and a parish priest over his parish, but it didn’t really explain what this means. It went on to say that a person not holding such an office, but had been empowered by the Pope or bishop can administer the sacrament. Can someone please explain what this means most fully?

Thank you so much for answering my question!
  • SnowAngels
 
The Church is a hierarchy. Your source was pointing out that the confessor can only administer confession to someone in his territory. The pastor is the head of a parish, so, unless granted otherwise by higher-ups, he can only hear the Confessions of Catholics who regularly attend his parish. The bishop is the head of a diocese, so, unless granted otherwise by higher-ups, he can only hear the Confessions of Catholics who live in his diocese. Etc, etc.
 
JamesTheJust said:
The Church is a hierarchy. Your source was pointing out that the confessor can only administer confession to someone in his territory. The pastor is the head of a parish, so, unless granted otherwise by higher-ups, he can only hear the Confessions of Catholics who regularly attend his parish. The bishop is the head of a diocese, so, unless granted otherwise by higher-ups, he can only hear the Confessions of Catholics who live in his diocese. Etc, etc.
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Thank you!! 🙂
 
James, does this mean that I can go only to my own parish, and my own parish priest, for confession?
 
fencersmother said:
James, does this mean that I can go only to my own parish, and my own parish priest, for confession?
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One isn’t bound to go only to their own parish or to their own priest. The question has been asked before in the Ask an Apologist forum.

My former priest has mentioned hearing confessions in airports, etc. so there may be additional info out there on “jurisdiction.”
 
Now I’m confused! I always thought you could go to confession in any Catholic church anywhere. Is this not right? What if you’re visiting in another state and want to go to confession?
 
I am not sure, but I think the “jurisdiction” may be WITHIN his Parish. That would mean anyone attending that Parish, whether visitor or member could avail themselves of Confession while there. I have gone to Confession in another country while on a 1 week vacation, also in churches in my general area, but outside of my Parish. My location gets a lot of tourists and travelers passing through during the warm months. Many of them attend both Confession and Mass, and receive Communion on the weekend while in the area. I think visitors to any Parish can receive a valid Confession/Absolution, since I think the priest’s “jurisdiction” is within his Parish, not solely to his members of that Parish.

Others may know a lot more, the problem never occurred to me. I go to Confession if I am on a trip and feel the need for Confession prior to going to a Mass while traveling.
 
😊 Sorry, I phrased my reply really poorly. What I meant is that a priest can only offer Confession within his own parish.
 
BLP said:
Now I’m confused! I always thought you could go to confession in any Catholic church anywhere. Is this not right? What if you’re visiting in another state and want to go to confession?
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Then go, at least as long as the Priest has license there. This concept becomes of concern if you were to go say to an SSPX parish for confession right up the street from a local Diocesan church. The SSPX priest would not have jurisdiction from the local Ordinary (Bishop) to hear confessions.
 
JamesTheJust said:
😊 Sorry, I phrased my reply really poorly. What I meant is that a priest can only offer Confession within his own parish.
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This, too, is inaccurate. (Sorry. ;))

A priest must have the faculty to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation (outside of a case of the danger of death). These faculties may be granted by virtue of a particular office that a priest holds (i.e., pastor, parochial vicar) or by law (e.g., cardinals, bishops, the pope). When it is necessary to grant the faculty, this faculty may be granted habitually, and it may also be given for a particular period of time. When it’s given habitually, then the priest has the ability to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation anywhere (unless it’s specifically revoked in a certain area by a particular ordinary). If the ordinary who granted the faculty to a priest later revokes that faculty, then it is revoked everywhere.

Confusing, ain’t it?

However, this only is relevant to the confessor, not the penitent. A Catholic can go to confession anywhere, as long as the confessor has faculties to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation there.
 
So, if we arrive at the confession in an unfamiliar parish, we can assume that the priest in the box has the faculty, normally habitual, to hear our confessions and grant absolution? Do we have to ask him?
 
Gorgias said:
This, too, is inaccurate. (Sorry. ;))

A priest must have the faculty to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation (outside of a case of the danger of death). These faculties may be granted by virtue of a particular office that a priest holds (i.e., pastor, parochial vicar) or by law (e.g., cardinals, bishops, the pope). When it is necessary to grant the faculty, this faculty may be granted habitually, and it may also be given for a particular period of time. When it’s given habitually, then the priest has the ability to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation anywhere (unless it’s specifically revoked in a certain area by a particular ordinary). If the ordinary who granted the faculty to a priest later revokes that faculty, then it is revoked everywhere.

Confusing, ain’t it?

However, this only is relevant to the confessor, not the penitent. A Catholic can go to confession anywhere, as long as the confessor has faculties to celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation there.
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My bad, guys and gals!

Indeed, Gorgias, it is confusing. I’m lucky that I’m only the penitent, and not the priest. 😃
 
fencersmother said:
So, if we arrive at the confession in an unfamiliar parish, we can assume that the priest in the box has the faculty, normally habitual, to hear our confessions and grant absolution? Do we have to ask him?
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Yes you can assume that a Priest in an unfamiliar Parish has the faculty to hear confessions or he would not be in the Confessional to begin with. The only thing to be aware of, nowadays, is that in an unfamiliar locale, it would be best to check either the internet, or even the phone book yellow pages for those Parishes listed as “Roman Catholic”, to avoid the confusion if you accidentally went to either the SSPX or the “American Catholic Church”. I didn’t even know about the “American Catholic Church” until someone posted on a thread about them. We have one about 45 miles away, and I had no idea they weren’t in communion with Rome. Fortunately, I was on my way to another Diocesan parish at the time, so didn’t pay much attention, except to see the sign.

I don’t think I’d ask any Priest if he has the faculty to hear Confessions, at least not in any Roman Catholic Church, — unless you really want to hear a belly laugh in the Confessional from a Priest! LOL
 
SnowAngels said:
Thank you!! 🙂
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At times a priest may be asked by another pastor to take his confessions. The priest does not have to call the Chancery office each time this happens. If he has permission to confer sacraments in the diocese, he can help out at other parishes with that pastor’s permission. For example, our pastor goes to the neighboring parish because their pastor has brain cancer. The priest who is vocation director is helping the ill pastor, but sometimes he has other obligations on Saturdays. What would not be okay is this: Let’s say Father Popular goes to Father B’s parish without his consent and hears confessions. This can cause confusion in Father B’s parish.
 
judynurse said:
Yes you can assume that a Priest in an unfamiliar Parish has the faculty to hear confessions or he would not be in the Confessional to begin with. The only thing to be aware of, nowadays, is that in an unfamiliar locale, it would be best to check either the internet, or even the phone book yellow pages for those Parishes listed as “Roman Catholic”, to avoid the confusion if you accidentally went to either the SSPX or the “American Catholic Church”. I didn’t even know about the “American Catholic Church” until someone posted on a thread about them. We have one about 45 miles away, and I had no idea they weren’t in communion with Rome. Fortunately, I was on my way to another Diocesan parish at the time, so didn’t pay much attention, except to see the sign.
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There are many other independent churches which (falsely) lay claim to the title of “Catholic Church”. It’s very hard to tell which ones are authentic (i.e., in communion with Rome), and which are not.
 
SnowAngels said:
Hello!

I was reading up on the valid administration of the Sacrament of Penance, and it only lightly touched on the fact that not only the character of the priesthood, but also the jurisdiction, that is, judicial power, is required. It points out that a bishop had jurisdiction over his diocese and a parish priest over his parish, but it didn’t really explain what this means. It went on to say that a person not holding such an office, but had been empowered by the Pope or bishop can administer the sacrament. Can someone please explain what this means most fully?

Thank you so much for answering my question!
  • SnowAngels
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The ministers of penance are: The Pope (everywhere), Cardinals (everywhere), Bishops (everywhere except where denied) and other priests (by law or by grant).

Latin Canon Law

Can. 965 A priest alone is the minister of the sacrament of penance.

Can. 966 §1. The valid absolution of sins requires that the minister have, in addition to the power of orders, the faculty of exercising it for the faithful to whom he imparts absolution.

§2. A priest can be given this faculty either by the law itself or by a grant made by the competent authority according to the norm of ⇒ can. 969.

Can. 967 §1. In addition to the Roman Pontiff, cardinals have the faculty of hearing the confessions of the Christian faithful everywhere in the world by the law itself. Bishops likewise have this faculty and use it licitly everywhere unless the diocesan bishop has denied it in a particular case.

Can. 968 §1. In virtue of office, a local ordinary, canon penitentiary, a pastor, and those who take the place of a pastor possess the faculty of hearing confessions, each within his jurisdiction.

§2. In virtue of their office, superiors of religious institutes or societies of apostolic life that are clerical and of pontifical right, who have executive power of governance according to the norm of their constitutions, possess the faculty of hearing the confessions of their subjects and of others living day and night in the house, without prejudice to the prescript of ⇒ can. 630, §4.

Can. 969 §1. The local ordinary alone is competent to confer upon any presbyters whatsoever the faculty to hear the confessions of any of the faithful. Presbyters who are members of religious institutes, however, are not to use the faculty without at least the presumed permission of their superior.

§2. The superior of a religious institute or society of apostolic life mentioned in ⇒ can. 968, §2 is competent to confer upon any presbyters whatsoever the faculty to hear the confessions of their subjects and of others living day and night in the house.
 
So generally a bishop grants permission to all the priests in his diocese to hear confession everywhere within the diocese. They can do so at another parish’s church as long as the Pastor gives them permission – that’s why you can find 8 or 9 priests from other parishes at a Penitential Celebration.
 
Phemie said:
So generally a bishop grants permission to all the priests in his diocese to hear confession everywhere within the diocese. They can do so at another parish’s church as long as the Pastor gives them permission – that’s why you can find 8 or 9 priests from other parishes at a Penitential Celebration.
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No. Vico left out parts of c. 967; once a bishop grants a priest in his diocese the faculty to hear confession habitually, that priest has the faculty to hear confessions anywhere. He doesn’t need permission. (If a bishop in another diocese later says, “you can’t celebrate the sacrament of reconciliation in my diocese,” then he loses that faculty there, but nowhere else.)

In the context of a parish penitential service, one would expect that it’s the pastor who’s inviting other priests to attend and celebrate, but there’s no notion of requiring his ‘permission’ in canon law; likewise, a pastor doesn’t have the power to revoke a priest’s faculty, even within his parish. (One would hope that, if a pastor asked a priest not to celebrate reconciliation within his parish, then the priest would honor that request, though.)
 
judynurse said:
Yes you can assume that a Priest in an unfamiliar Parish has the faculty to hear confessions or he would not be in the Confessional to begin with. The only thing to be aware of, nowadays, is that in an unfamiliar locale, it would be best to check either the internet, or even the phone book yellow pages for those Parishes listed as “Roman Catholic”, to avoid the confusion if you accidentally went to either the SSPX or the “American Catholic Church”. I didn’t even know about the “American Catholic Church” until someone posted on a thread about them. We have one about 45 miles away, and I had no idea they weren’t in communion with Rome. Fortunately, I was on my way to another Diocesan parish at the time, so didn’t pay much attention, except to see the sign.
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The best way to check whether a parish is legitimate, when you are visiting an unfamiliar area, is to find the correct territorial diocese and give them a call or visit their website. The diocese website will have a list of all parishes and missions in good standing. If it is a monastery or other religious house, then you will need to check with the religious institute which runs it. But any diocesan parish will have a listing and will be known to the chancery when you call them.
 
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