Webcam Confession?

[ElToro]

If the Church suddenly announced you can make your Confessions via telephone, email and/or webcam would you do it? Why or why not?

I have no doubt that one day the Catholic Church will allow confession via transmitted video for some situations under very specific and secure conditions once the Church catches up to the technology.

There are fairly remote places in the world where going to confession can be next to impossible. There are also a great many parishes that have no priests to hear confessions. There are ways that technology can assist without degrading the sacrament.

There are EXTREMELY secure and cheap ways to transmit video. That doesn’t mean that someone will one day be able to log-onto www.sacramentofconfession.com from their homes. What it does mean is that one day I believe people will be able to go to their parishes/chapels enter a room that’s like a confessional and go to confession to a priest that might be a great distance away via secure video.

My diocese for example is small yet it covers a huge geographic space. I could see where 6-8 churches and missions (served on Sundays by traveling priests) could make great use of such technology where 1-2 priests from the chancery had the duty each Saturdy afternoon to conver these 6-8 parishes via secure video.

 

[odile53]

After having my credit card hacked, I think the answer would be “no way, Jose!”