There have been calls from some quarters to reform Confession, and a recent Tablet article listed many reasons why Catholics said they had stopped going. Even a cardinal, Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, has called for “proper reform to the sacrament” – an idea Pope Francis has signalled he does not want to look at. Recently I came Read more
In addition to having worked sweeping floors and running tests in a chemical laboratory as a teenager, Pope Francis revealed he also used to work as a bouncer. He has told one group that when he was young, he worked as a bouncer, and that his work later in life, teaching literature and psychology, taught Read more
At his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square, Pope Francis said he goes to confession every two weeks. “My confessor hears what I say, offers me advice and forgives me. We all need this,” the pope said. Francis said priests and bishops need to also go to confession regularly. “God, in his sovereign mercy, forgives Read more
The “confession boom” reported to be hitting Roman Catholic parishes in England and Wales does not yet fully seem to have reached New Zealand. With the exception of the Auckland Cathedral, where the priests report an increase in young people attending the sacrament, a ring-around survey, yesterday, of several New Zealand parishes showed most recorded no Read more
I was motivated to write the book A Catholic Guide to Depression because I believe that our Catholic tradition – including the writings of the Church Fathers and saints – has something important to say to those suffering from this terrible affliction. Depression is often misunderstood; most people mistakenly believe it’s nothing more than intense Read more
Cardinal George Pell of Sydney says priests should refuse to hear confessions from suspected child abusers to ensure they were not then bound by the confidentiality of the confessional. “If the priest knows beforehand about such a situation, the priest should refuse to hear the confession, that would be my advice. I would never hear Read more
A New York-based Filipino priest named in a $25-million lawsuit filed by an alleged female lover in 2008 took his own life in April during a visit to the Philippines, reports ucanews. Fr Elvis Elano (pictures with Judith Rodrigues-Lytwyn) reportedly found it too much to bear after his family and community “shunned” and “despised” him over an Read more
A Catholic priest from Co Tyrone who “inadvertently” displayed gay pornographic images to a group of parents and a child has issued an unreserved apology. The images were shown on a screen by Fr Martin McVeigh, the parish priest of Pomeroy, during a PowerPoint presentation at St Mary’s Primary School about children’s first Confession on Read more
Catholics should include sins against the environment when they visit the confessional said the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council on Friday. Father Stephen Alathara, spokesman for the KCBC, said the council had finalized its ecological mission statement, which included the directive about confession, during its annual meeting in Kochi. “Any exploitation of nature amounts to sins against Read more
Priests can be jailed for up to five years if they fail to report paedophiles to gardai under a proposed new law.
However, the legislation will not contain any reference to the confession box, an issue which Justice Minister Alan Shatter said yesterday was a “bogus side issue”.
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