Phones in Confessional

[Penitent60]

This is possibly not the most prudent of things to do unless you erase it and then how hackable is that erasure. I know from a experience of some folk who wrote stuff like that down as a private journal had them confiscated during a police raid. Just sayin’.

 

[sealabeag]

I think you’re optimistic, I wish I was more so. Thoughts on the Snowden revelations? They weren’t conspiracy theories but realities.

 

[kikiki32]

Yes. Google, Apple or the government can track our movements and listen to us through the phone. I’m more worried that they know I’m at the church than that they listen to my sins. But, living myself in an European country where hatred against Christians and philo-communism is greater each day, I fear the day in which they will check who is a Christian and who’s not. And I think we’re actually nearer than we could suspect.

 

[Rau]

Can we begin from the assumption (even if you don’t believe it is happening, it that case consider it a hypothetical) that your phone is listening to you, and if so, the answer to my question.

You’d have to extend that to a person will hear what the phone heard.

 

[sealabeag]

They don’t turn them off, just set them aside or put it in their pocket. I guess they’re just killing time between penitents. No they don’t have it out during the confession or anything. I guess phones have just replaced so many things including breviarys and prayer books etc.

 

[Lucy_1]

Thanks, none of my sins are illegal or even secretive. Just venial sins, like complaining, laziness, not praying as much as I should, stuff like that. My memory isn’t that great so I write them down. I appreciate the thought though.

 

[eliana]

I don’t think phones should be on in church in the first place.

 

[EnglishTeacher]

They don’t turn them off, just set them aside or put it in their pocket. I guess they’re just killing time between penitents. No they don’t have it out during the confession or anything. I guess phones have just replaced so many things including breviarys and prayer books etc.

Right, I think a lot of priests, especially younger ones, increasingly rely on their smartphones for everything (like the rest of us), and probably bring it into the confessional with the ringer turned off. I know at least a couple of priests in their 30s who use their phone for their Liturgy of the Hours or whatever it is priests have to pray daily.

And I know for sure that I have seen through the screen a game of Solitaire on an iPad once or twice :grinning_face_with_smiling_eyes: (which he turned off and set aside as he greeted me).

 

[RomanoftenCatholic]

DO NOT bring the phone to confessional and beg priests not to bring them either. More than a year ago “60 Minutes” had an episode on the study how easy it is to hack the phone. The hackers were in California and the reporter was in New York. The PHONE WAS completely OFF. Not only they were able to listen… they were able to use the camera on the phone (completely turned OFF) … keep them face up or down if you not using your phone but away from places where your computer screen, your writing, your valuables, credit cards and especially your children are … It’s not about what we have to hide, but how the gathered information (no matter how innocent) can be used … Do not live in fear, just be … “…shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves.” (Mt 10:16)

 

[RN69]

You are correct @kikiki32 in your thinking that Big Brother can/is tracking and “listening” to us all no matter where in the world we live. My son has in the past worked for telecommunications companies plus one of the ABC Intel agencies. He has said if you don’t want to be under surveillance only way to be sure is to remove the cell phone battery before you travel away from your home. Cell phones will collect your data if not entire conversations but certain phrases spoken or texted could trigger that to occur. I am sympathetic to your concerns about our religious freedoms or the lack thereof. May the peace of Christ be with you.

 

[MikeInVA]

I don’t think phones should be on in church in the first place.

I don’t agree. I always have my phone with me for emergencies (mine or others). I keep it on silent and don’t look at it during Mass (unless I start getting a bunch of texts or calls from my kids, then I leave the nave to check it). There was a time when cell phones interfered with the PA system but that really isn’t the case anymore. As far as other people’s phones going off during Mass, the first time is a mistake, the second time (at the same Mass) is discourteous. I usually find the distraction of a lady attacking her purse looking for the phone to be worse than the ringer (not that ladies are the only people getting calls at Mass, but it’s harder to find something in a bag than a pocket).

But for Confession, it stays out of the confessional.

 

[vz71]

I don’t think phones should be on in church in the first place.

Current social distance precautions my church suscribes to specify no missals or any other books are to be left in the pews.

If not for my phone, I would find it difficult to keep up with the readings during Mass.

 

[mjc1]

I have to believe that the bringing of a cell phone into the confessional, with it “turned on”, is potentially a breach. Worse, what would keep a priest from doing the same? While the use of a cell phone during Mass is allowed in most if not all Church’s to follow the readings, I believe this is one modern device that should be left in the car while attending Mass or if one is going to confession. If nothing else, think of it as “fasting” for an hour each week. With the onset of the pandemic, confessions “via” a cellphone were not allowed; however, it has been noted that in some cases priests used cellphones to “amplify” voices because of the social distancing issue. Bottom-line…there is always a very real possibility that someone is recording or listening in. Are you certain you want your sins broadcast?

 

[JSPeters]

1. Thinking that our listening devices are not being used without our knowledge or permission is being naïve. Many reasons exist why multiple parties would be interested in the knowledge gained from recording us, ranging from annoyingly used for advertising purposes to insidiously used to get information that can somehow be used against us. Yesterday I was talking to a close friend about buying a new car. Within minutes, literally, her Facebook feed started showing ads for cars. She never had those kinds of ads before. Coincidence?
2. The excerpt of the decree by the CDF posted by Bernoulli pretty much seals the issue (no pun intended). Neither party is permitted to record anything during Confession.
3. Having a digital record of your sins is, in my estimation, an incredibly ill-advised thing to do. If that list is on your phone, it is subject to being compromised, whether by security holes in the app, by prying or curious eyes, or by other digital platforms the app may have “passed” through. There are too many places where someone who really wanted to obtain the information could probably do so. You would be much better writing your list on an actual piece of paper that you can shred or burn when done with it.
4. My 40 years in Church ministry has taught me that human nature is inherently subject to suspicion because we always have to account for sin—the fallen side of our nature that always rears its head. While your sins could be trusted to the priest and yourself, what if they were obtained by a third party? Would you be willing to make the same assumption and hope the person “does the right thing” and safeguards your secrets?
5. Saying the government would be violating the Constitution by using information gotten from a confession is true—for now. Yes, attempts to legally violate the Seal of Confession have failed. But how long will this last? Thirty years ago, we thought the homosexual agenda and lifestyle would never become the social and political force it is today. Ten years ago, we never thought that business owners and Catholic agencies could be legally compelled to choose between violating their beliefs or going out of business. Mere days ago, we thought the Supreme Court would never distort our definition of human biology. Our human landscape is changing – for the worse.
6. The seal of Confession was, no doubt, created because Mother Church knew all too well that serious woes would come from confessional information being leaked or disclosed. In our current climate, the Vatican should be proactive and advance new directives where necessary to bring crystal clarity to this issue. Sadly, the Church has a long history of being reactive, and talking about making new proverbial barn doors to corral the animals after they have escaped is not helpful.
7. People with medical considerations like blindness or deafness must be addressed separately. Perhaps existing policies should be revisited.
8. Priests should not be using cellphones in the confessional—not even for prayers. We have plenty of prayer books for that express purpose, and by using them we obviate the need for any medium that could be compromised.

 

[EnglishTeacher]

Having a digital record of your sins is, in my estimation, an incredibly ill-advised thing to do. If that list is on your phone, it is subject to being compromised, whether by security holes in the app, by prying or curious eyes, or by other digital platforms the app may have “passed” through. There are too many places where someone who really wanted to obtain the information could probably do so. You would be much better writing your list on an actual piece of paper that you can shred or burn when done with it.

100% agree with this. (And all of your post above was excellent.)

Priests should not be using cellphones in the confessional—not even for prayers. We have plenty of prayer books for that express purpose, and by using them we obviate the need for any medium that could be compromised.

It would be interesting to hear from any priests whether they have thought of this, or perhaps have considered it but concluded that it is not a concern. So many of us nowadays keep our phones on us at almost all times, and we just turn off the ringer before entering church and stick it in our pocket or purse.