Vatican Clarification on Confession App

I saw this clarification piece on Zenit, but it seemed pretty clear to me that “Confession: A Roman Catholic App” wasn’t like those nutty pretenders.

Patrick Leinen, developer:

This app is intended to help a person prepare for the sacrament of confession. It is not intended to function as a replacement for confession!

Anyone downloading the app would know that. I would hope.

Here is a brief abc news clip. They knew it was just assistance for going to a priest. Apologies that you have to wait through a 30-second commercial to hear a 42-second piece. Too bad the off-screen dudes were laughing themselves off over this. The woman news anchor chides them, though. Good for her.

 

App Goes To Confession

People can be finicky about confessing sins. Likely it has always been so. It struck me as illustrative that the parody apps came out before the real thing.

In the news this week is the release of a Church-endorsed (imprimatur and all) iPhone application to help a penitent make a good examination of conscience and confession. This is not the confession booth app where you can confess and have others give you the thumbs up or down. Or this one.

Check this one out.

From the web site, here are the features:

• Custom examination of conscience based upon age, sex, and vocation (single, married, priest, or religious
• Multiple user support with password protected accounts
• Ability to add sins not listed in standard examination of conscience
• Confession walkthrough including time of last confession in days, weeks, months, and years
• Choose from 7 different acts of contrition
• Custom interface for iPad
• Full retina display support

There’s a certain salaciousness that comes with confession in the talk show/celebrity era. Tabloid headlines at grocery checkout plead for my interest in some famous person’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. I don’t think the current culture is averse to sin as much as they make a spectacle of it. And mockery raises it’s ugly head too. Every serious ethical or moral person has a balance to maintain: how to maintain a healthy balance between confidence and contrition and avoid deceiving oneself in any sort of indulgence at either extreme.

That said, this looks like a good development. Used in concert with a good spiritual director, I can see it being very useful. Any confessors seen penitents with iPads or iPhones lately? This was one of the testimonials on the Apple site:

As a straying Catholic looking to come back to the Church more fully, this app gave me the extra confidence I needed to go to my first confession. The examination of conscience was a great start in taking a look at my wrongdoings. Unfortunately, my confession did not follow the guidelines on the ‘confession’ section of the app, but I believe that was because my priest chose to go a more unorthodox route(?).

I’d be very interested in seeing what the liturgical expectations in this app are. Does it include Scripture readings as the rite suggests? Any users out there with feedback on it?

 

Bicker and Snicker

A Florida priest catches hell for questioning middle-schoolers during confession. Father Waters is taking a confrontational tack here. I’m not sure he’s on solid ground liturgically or socially.

On the other hand, we are talking about 7th and 8th grade students at a Catholic school. Old enough to work the system, to get a rise out of adults, to engage in stupid behavior, then to hide behind their parents’ minivans and snicker while the adults bicker. It’s all great entertainment: Punks 1, Priest 0.

So what are clergy to do in the super-charged sex climate both within and outside of the Church? This is one prime situation for trotting out Rite of Penance, form II. A homily addresses the Scriptural basis for sexual self-respect and honor, and does so publicly, in full hearing of adults and everybody. I’ve heard pastors address public issues during these form II homilies: respect for property, bullying, peer pressure, and the like.

It’s also been the practice in my parishes to have the student body subdivided by grade level, so age-appropriate issues can be addressed very easily. Older kids have vital issues: sex, conformity, loyalty, lying as do younger kids: getting along with siblings and peers, adult authority issues, inclusion, and the like.

Aside from the homily, the rite provides for a public examination of conscience. I used to take input from the older students at the Catholic schools I served in composing these. So yes, there is the undercurrent of sexuality running through the lives of young adolescents. I’d say that the liturgy is the better locus for an examination of conscience, not the actual confession of sins. Mention sins as directly (even sex) as appropriate, reinforce with the root problem: lack of self-esteem (or whatever it may be), and do so in a prayerful, communal setting.

That said, I know there’s a long tradition of incorporating spiritual direction into the rite. That’s better left for form I, when the penitent and confessor can engage in a healthy and appropriate dialogue. And its probably better left for adults. Intentionally immature people rarely benefit from spiritual direction.

If the point is to make adolescents aware of sexual sins, then this is the role first, of parents, and second, their catechists. Liturgy makes for a very poor last gasp stance on sex, or any other Big Issue of the Day. Let the liturgy do what it intends and what it does best. Confessors would do well not to fall into punky adolescent traps. If Fr Waters is a bit obsessed with sex, you can bet that the bullies of his cathedral’s school are well aware of it, and have scored a big one on this.

That, of course, is another sin. But does this priest want to go there?

 

How To Absolve a Priest Offender

I’m not sure how to swallow this news bit from L’Osservatore Romano on Bishop Gianfranco Girotti, of the Apostolic Penitentiary. The bishop says, according to the CNS distillation:

(T)he confession (of a priest sex offender) can only have absolution as a consequence. It is not up to the confessor to make them public or to ask the penitent to incriminate himself in front of superiors. This is true because, on one hand, the sacramental seal remains inviolable and, on the other hand, one cannot provoke mistrust in the penitent. From the confessor, (the penitent) can only expect absolution, certainly not a sentence nor the order to confess his crime in public.

First, I understand that the nuance of an interview two times removed from the actual talk is sometimes difficult to discern.

That said, I don’t know that any reasonable person is demanding that sex offenders be outed by their confessors. Sure, a few politicians and activists: maybe. But cooler heads? No.

Yet, the traditional practice of the sacrament would have a confession, an act of satisfaction, and an absolution. I’m aware that the current practice reverses the order of the final two. Father Frank Pavone, in speaking of another grave sin, has some sound counsel that might apply:

Regarding a penance … it has to both be substantial and have a definite closure. Some priests, for example, ask the penitent to offer a week of special prayers, perhaps the Rosary or special periods of adoration, Scripture reading, or other forms of prayer. In such cases the penitent should be reminded that if she forgets the practice on a given day, this does not affect the forgiveness of her sin. Other priests advise that the penitent have masses offered for the child, by going to “a parish” (carefully not indicating that it should be the parish in which she is confessing) and requesting masses for a “special intention.”

I like Father Pavone’s approach here. I would think that, at minimum, a sex offender would be counselled to pray a novena. A priest should certainly be able to handle an extended retreat to explore the possibilities of atonement, restitution, and recovery.

However, unlike a person who has procured an abortion (or committed a similar grave sin like murder) a sex addict may have a deep and overpowering urge to persist in abusing others. Does the possibility that a penitent is an addict have any effect on how a confessor does or should administer absolution? How do confessors handle alcoholics or other addicts? It’s one thing to be pickling one’s liver or brain with chemical additives and creating a generation of co-dependents. But another matter entirely to be inflicting grave psychological harm on innocents … over and over again.

To say nothing of bishops …

 

Wisdom 5:14-16: Consequences for the Just

I’d like to finish up the reflection on Wisdom 5:6-16. Thistledown, foam, and smoke: that’s what the best hope of sinners is:

Yes, the hope of the wicked
is like thistledown borne on the wind,
and like fine, tempest-driven foam;
Like smoke scattered by the wind,
and like the passing memory of the nomad camping for a single day.
But the just live forever,
and in the LORD is their recompense,
and the thought of them is with the Most High.
Therefore shall they receive the splendid crown,
the beauteous diadem, from the hand of the LORD-
For he shall shelter them with his right hand,
and protect them with his arm.

And the promise to the just is similar to that in the frequent funeral reading from Wisdom 3:1-9. Has anyone ever heard this reading during a reconciliation liturgy?

 

Wisdom 5: Keel, Wings, and Arrow

Verses eight through thirteen give us mortals a jarring reminder of our insignificance in the bigger picture, especially if we persist in going our own way:

What did our pride avail us?
What have wealth and its boastfulness afforded us?
All of them passed like a shadow and like a fleeting rumor;

Like a ship traversing the heaving water,

of which, when it has passed,

no trace can be found,

no path of its keel in the waves.

Or like a bird flying through the air;

no evidence of its course is to be found-

But the fluid air,

lashed by the beat of pinions,

and cleft by the rushing force

Of speeding wings, is traversed:

and afterward no mark of passage can be found in it.

Or as, when an arrow has been shot at a mark,

the parted air straightway flows together again

so that none discerns the way it went through-

Even so we, once born,

abruptly came to nought

and held no sign of virtue to display,

but were consumed in our wickedness.

 

Wisdom 5: Mischief and Ruin

About twenty years ago, I stumbled on the passage in Wisdom 5, verses 6 through 16 and used it for a parish reconciliation form II. It’s not utilized in the Lectionary for Mass, but is offered as a suggested reading for the Rite of Penance, number 112. The passage really deserves a wider audience, as I’ve always found it to be a rich exposition on the futility of sin and on God’s redemption, especially in the use of metaphors. The first few verses read:

We, then, have strayed from the way of truth,
and the light of justice did not shine for us,
and the sun did not rise for us.

We had our fill of the ways of mischief and of ruin;
we journeyed through impassable deserts,
but the way of the LORD we knew not.

When I was reflecting on this earlier today, the word mischief stood out. As a playful person, I like to engage in a bit of mischief now and then. But there is also a devilish side to mischief, people poked at not to laugh with them, but to laugh at them. It’s about a trip or a slap or such, a gesture that’s not returned in kindly fun.

The other insight on this passage is the desert, not as a refuge or a place of purification, but as something impassable. Without a purpose or a direction, a desert may well be a place in which we get lost, through which we cannot make or find our way. It would be like being stranded on Mars without even a hope of finding air or water or anything to sustain one’s life.

 

How To Hear A Confession

A week-long course at the Vatican began today on the sacrament of penance. Targeted students: young priests.

Complex or difficult situations in the sacrament will be addressed by Bishop Gianfranco Girotti and Jesuit Father Ivan Fucek, regent and theologian of the (Apostolic P)enitentiary, respectively. Other experts will also address the priests, illustrating “the canonical discipline and its correct application in relation to offenses and punishments and several practical aspects.”

I wonder what sort of “complex” situations will be tackled. Maybe grave serial sins like sexual abuse.

 

Lack Not Loss

Rock offers a summary of some of this Lent’s efforts to promote the Sacrament of Penance.

Any initiative by a bishop, given the resources at hand, and the authority over parish pastors (arm-twisting, if necessary) is going to make a ripple of some kind in the calm waters of moral self-satisfaction.

Ultimately, if human beings (and the Holy Spirit) are to be involved, the long-term emphasis probably needs to come on the parish level, preferably headed by the parish pastor and renewed by his successors.

Don’t misread me: I think these Lenten initiatives are great. If nothing else, they give people an alternate to their Saturday afternoon gardening time and hoops-watch to experience the forgiving grace of Jesus Christ.

I knew I landed in the right parish back in 2008 when in my second week of service, the students asked me to provide accompaniment to a Wednesday night form II–in the middle of July. The students had also recruited four confessors–our two parish priests, plus an ISU grad student from overseas and a retired priest living in out parish. What a great experience for us and our thirty-some penitents.

Earlier this week, one of my staff colleagues and I were discussing the challenges of adding an Advent reconciliation for religious ed kids and their families to our schedule later this year. The December holy day falls on a Wednesday in 2010. The middle week of Christmas is usually dedicated to a parent-guided Advent program of some kind–most of our student catechists are deep into finals week. A december 1 reconciliation would wipe out a whole month of classroom catechesis. In essence, the kids would break from before Thanksgiving to mid-January. My suggestion was placing a Wednesday reconciliation in late October. The boss gave his thumbs up to that innovation–he’s told me that he far prefers the sacraments to meetings.

I would have to concur.

You readers know I’m deeply skeptical of the notion of a loss of a sense of sin among the laity. The implication is that in ages past, Catholic lay people were fully aware of the tendency to self-justify. They were more into self-denial than outright denial, one might quip. Bullfluff, I say. The human condition is avoidance of self-examination, and the world of fifty or a hundred years ago doesn’t look significantly less sinful than today’s. And one only has to look at bishops scurrying to the protective robes of the legal system to recognize that a lack of a sense of sin has pervaded their numbers, too.

People devoted to Penance form I will continue to line up on Saturday afternoons, probably one of the worst days and times of the modern week. One might even remark it’s a miracle the practice of the sacrament hasn’t fallen off further, given the atrocious planning and promotion in most all parishes.

My parish offers a mid-week form I, and we get almost as many penitents as on Saturdays. We also offer the oft-vilified “or by appointment” option. I never got the criticism of this. Other sacraments like infant baptism and marriage are offered by appointment, too. Sick people don’t wait for a particular given time each week to be anointed, either. A good priest is always available by appointment to anoint people on short notice, or to schedule the sacrament before a major surgery. Me, I’d be concerned if a parish didn’t offer reconciliation by appointment. Usually that’s the whiff of a priest who prefers meetings to sacraments.

Still, as much as I think my parish is on the right track, reconciliation is up there in my long-range visioning. I could see us offering a year-round mid-week form I, maybe replaced once a month with form II, for those who would prefer a little more liturgy with their sacrament of healing.

So I’m curious, outside of Lent, what would you suggest your parish pastor initiate on this front?

 

Snacking on the Word: Sirach 21:1-6

I’ve thought this opening for Sirach 21 would make a thoughtful reading for reconciliation. I’ve pitched it to the pastor for this year’s liturgies. (We have two.) I’ve suggested we match it to Luke 3:2-3, 7-8, picking up a bit of Luke’s gospel that doesn’t appear during Advent. The music will be Psalm 80 for entrance and “On Jordan’s Bank” at the end. Is that gospel passage too strongly worded, do you think? Would you keep or omit verse 9?

The NJB version of Sirach 21:1-6 reads:

My child, have you sinned? Do so no more, and ask forgiveness for your previous faults.
Flee from sin as from a snake, if you approach it, it will bite you; its teeth are lion’s teeth, they take human life away.
All law-breaking is like a two-edged sword, the wounds it inflicts are beyond cure.
Terror and violence make havoc of riches, similarly, desolation overtakes the houses of the proud.
A plea from the mouth of the poor goes straight to the ear of God, whose judgement comes without delay.
Whoever resents reproof walks in the sinner’s footsteps; whoever fears the Lord is repentant of heart.

Snakes and lions. For the ancients, these were real worries. Especially for those who went off wandering in the wilds. Verse 4 might strike more fear into modern folks. What the NJB translates as “terror and violence” is rendered “violence and arrogance” in the RNAB. Even so, many of us are rightly fearful about having our homes “overtaken” or in the RNAB, “destroyed.”

 

On Form II, Locally

Form II of Sacramental Reconciliation, commonly known as “communal” reconciliation with individual confessions, seems to get a lot of attention in my new parish. The pastor told me they do it “several” times a year here. I had a personal first a few nights ago. For the first time outside of Lent, Advent, or a retreat (or similar experience) I was part of a form II celebration. Either because of or in spite of the lack of a seasonal or spiritual agenda, it was quite a moving and fruitful time.

The summer student interns plan and promote various Wednesday night liturgies during the vacation months. They had adoration & benediction the other week. Evening prayer is next week.

But this week’s event was form II. Our community is fortunate to have two priests on staff, a retired priest in the neighborhood, plus a young priest from overseas who is studying here (I think). So the externals were four confessors, a gospel reading (Luke 15:11-32), bookend music, a guided meditation, a silent, written examination of conscience, and lots of reflective time.

When I was chatting with some students afterward, I checked my phone–it was 10:32. That was over ninety minutes past starting on time. The pastor said upfront we were going to take our time with this liturgy. I’d say we prayed for about 80-85 minutes. Didn’t seem we were there that long.

It adds another convincing experience that the real enemy of good liturgy is neither liberal or conservative, but pragmatic. Too many priests I’ve known have been otherwise good liturgists, but they don’t let go of certain expectations, especially those regarding time.

 

RP 60-66: Form III

These next seven sections make up Chapter III of the Rite of Penance, treating the mostly-suppressed form III, the RITE FOR RECONCILIATION OF SEVERAL PENITENTS WITH GENERAL CONFESSION AND ABSOLUTION

The rubrics are briefer; they reiterate that form II is the guide, and exceptions will be listed:

60. For the reconciliation of several penitents with general confession and absolution, in the cases provided for in the law, everything is done as described above for the reconciliation of several penitents with individual absolution, but with the following changes only.

INSTRUCTION

After the homily or as part of the homily, the priest explains to the faithful who wish to receive general absolution that they should be properly disposed. Each one should repent of his sins and resolve to turn away from these sins, to make up for any scandal and harm he may have caused, and to confess individually at the proper time each of the serious sins which cannot now be confessed. Some form of satisfaction should be proposed to all, and each individual may add something if he desires.

So here are the changes: an explanation of the form, an urging to be properly disposed, a reminder to confess serious sins later, and a common “penance,” or act of satisfaction.

As with form II, there is a GENERAL CONFESSION

61. Then the deacon or other minister or the priest himself invites the penitents who wish to receive absolution to indicate this by some kind of sign. He may say:

Will those of you who wish to receive sacramental absolution please kneel and acknowledge that you are sinners.

Or:

Will those of you who wish to receive sacramental absolution please bow your heads and acknowledge that you are sinners.

Or he may suggest a sign laid down by the episcopal conference.

What follows next is as it is in form II: general confession, then a litany or song, then Lord’s Prayer:

The penitents say a general formula for confession (for example, I confess to almighty God). A litany or appropriate song may follow, as described above for the reconciliation of several penitents with individual confession and absolution (no. 54). The Lord’s Prayer is always added at the end.

Two ritual texts are given for the ordinary use of form III. I include them both for comparison. The first seems similar to the solemn blessings used at the Eucharist on special feasts and occasions.

GENERAL ABSOLUTION

62. The priest then gives absolution, holding his hands extended over the penitents and saying:

       God the Father does not wish the sinner to die but to turn back to him and live. He loved us first and sent his Son into the world to be its Savior. May he show you his merciful love and give you peace.

R. Amen.

Our Lord Jesus Christ was given up to death for our sins, and rose again for our justification. He sent the Holy Spirit on his apostles and gave them power to forgive sins. Through the ministry entrusted to me may he deliver you from evil and fill you with his Holy Spirit.

R. Amen.

The Spirit, the Comforter, was given to us for the forgiveness of sins. In him we approach the Father. May he cleanse your hearts and clothe you in his glory, so that you may proclaim the mighty acts of God who has called you out of darkness into the splendor of his light.

R. Amen.

And I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, + and of the Holy Spirit.

R. Amen.

Or:

God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, + and of the Holy Spirit.

R. Amen.

PROCLAMATION OF PRAISE AND CONCLUSION

63. The priest invites all to thank God and to acknowledge his mercy. After a suitable song or hymn, he blesses the people and dismisses them, as described above, nos. 58-59, but without the concluding prayer (no. 57).

The inclusion of the following SHORT RITE leads me to believe that the present interpretation of General Absolution as being an “emergency” rite is a false one. I believe the original intent was that form III was to be used for penitents with venial sins. A provision was made for the participation of penitents with serious sins, but with the careful provision for using form I or II with the particular confession of each serious sin at that later time.

Despite the seriousness of John Paul II’s approach to the Sacrament of Penance, I still view the limitation placed on form III as ill-advised. The Rite makes a clear distinction between emergency use of General Absolution and an ordinary use. The rubrics make clear that form III is very suitable for penitents with venial sins. The decade-plus this rite was in place isn’t enough time for a true assessment to be made.

64. In case of necessity, the rite for reconciling several penitents with general confession and absolution may be shortened. If possible, there is a brief reading from scripture. After giving the usual instruction (no. 60) and indicating the act of penance, the priest invites the penitents to make a general confession (for example, I confess to almighty God), and gives the absolution with the form which is indicated in no. 62.

65. In imminent danger of death, it is enough for the priest to use the form of absolution itself. In this case it may be shortened to the following:

I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, + and of the Holy Spirit.

R. Amen.

A second reminder:

66. A person who receives general absolution from grave sins is bound to confess each grave sin at his next individual confession.

Have at it; this is your last chance to weigh in on General Absolution.

 

RP 57: Concluding Prayer of Thanksgiving

This fourth part of the Reconciliation Rite strikes me as a prayer somewhat more developed than the usual collect, but clearly not as elaborate as either an anaphora, or blessing of baptismal water. Other examples given in the Rite of Penance are shorter, but this is the first choice:

CONCLUDING PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING

57. After the song of praise or the litany, the priest con­cludes the common prayer:

Almighty and merciful God, how wonderfully you created man and still more wonderfully remade him. You do not abandon the sinner but seek him out with a father’s love. You sent your Son into the world to destroy sin and death by his passion, and to restore life and joy by his resurrection. You sent the Holy Spirit into our hearts to make us your children and heirs of your kingdom. You constantly renew our spirit in the sacraments of your redeeming love, freeing us from slavery to sin and transforming us ever more closely into the likeness of your beloved Son. We thank you for the wonders of your mercy, and with heart and hand and voice we join with the whole Church in a new song of praise: Glory to you through Christ in the Holy Spirit, now and for ever.

R. Amen.

Does it remind you of a preface? I thought so: the brief recollection of God’s deeds, the two mentions of the Trinity.

This post concludes our close look at the Rite of Reconciliation. I’m interested to hear from clergy and liturgists. Do you find this too cluttered or word-heavy, especially those who choose to omit some of these items?

For the record, RP 58 & 59 treat the final blessing. I’ll skip these and get to General Absolution in the next post. For that, you’ll need to wait till tomorrow.

 

RP 56: Proclamation of Praise

Part three of the Reconciliation Rite involves the “PROCLAMATION OF PRAISE FOR GOD’S MERCY”

56. When the individual confessions have been completed, the other priests stand near the one who is presiding over the celebration. The latter invites all present to offer thanks and encourages them to do good works which will proclaim the grace of repentance in the life of the entire community and each of its members. It is fitting for all to sing a psalm or hymn or to say a litany in acknowledgment of God’s power and mercy, for example, the canticle of Mary (Luke 1:46-55), or Psalm 136:1-9, 13-14, 16,25-26, or one of the psalms as given in no. 206.

Note the priorities: Scripture (a psalm), hymn, or litany. How many musicians program the Magnificat? I can tell you I never have. The song of praise at this part of the liturgy seems to work much better than a bookend “closing” hymn. I also think a hymn structure is better suited to the state of mind of worshippers than a responsorial or antiphonal format in which they share the singing in alternation with cantor or choir. I would consider a hymn version of the Magnificat. Perhaps the Te Deum. What do you think?

 

RP 55: Individual Confession and Absolution

Part two of form II’s Rite of Reconciliation is the actual confession and absolution:

55. Then the penitents go to the priests designated for individual confession, and confess their sins. Each one re­ceives and accepts a fitting act of satisfaction and is ab­solved. After hearing the confession and offering suitable counsel, the priest extends his hands over the penitent’s head (or at least extends his right hand) and gives him absolution. Everything else which is customary in individual confession is omitted.

God, the Father of mercies, through the death and resurrection of his Son has reconciled the world to himself and sent the Holy Spirit among us for the forgiveness of sins; through the ministry of the Church may God give you pardon and peace, and I absolve you from your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, + and of the Holy Spirit.

The penitent answers: Amen.

Note many things:

The direction given the confessor and penitent. In form III a general act of satisfaction (colloquially, a “penance”) is given. Here in form II, the confessor is to take the time to give that “penance” to the penitent.

The rite seems to suggest there is (or should be) ample time to give counsel. The only time I experienced such counsel was when I celebrated form II at a monastery. It was brief, appropriate, and appreciated. But it was there.

The rite also dictates the extension of hands over the penitent’s head (not the laying on of hands). What do you make of this? Is laying on of hands inappropriate? What sort of gestures do you see in form II in your parishes? Is form I missing something when there is none of this type of gesture?