The teacher started scheduling weekly “clean-ups.”
Students relished in the opportunity to admit wrongdoing, share intent to change, and restore friendships. It was a beautiful, beautiful thing. They walked out stiff and uneasy, and returned with bright smiles on their faces.
Sound familiar? Read the rest at the Register.
As far as the state is concerned, the statutory respect for the seal of confession is intended to protect the penitent, not the confessor (although an unscrupulous confessor could certainly take advantage of the privilege in order to protect himself, if he did something wrong in the confessional). As far as I can tell, the same is true as far as Canon Law is concerned: the seal of confession is there to protect the penitent, not the confessor.
However, a penitent may give a priest permission to talk about what was confessed. The penitent may release him from the seal. And this is why the recent legal case in Louisiana doesn’t quite make sense to me.
As promised: I’m giving away one copy of Kendra Tierney’s A Little Book About Confession for Children from Ignatius and Magnificat.
This lovely, thorough, practical guide to confession is pretty much everything you could ask for in a book about confession for kids. It’s simple but not fluffy in the slightest, and would also make a fine guide for teenagers or adults who never understood the sacrament well. The pictures are nothing special, but the book is very clear and well designed. (Also, this may be silly, but I really appreciate the fold-over flap built in to the front and back covers, so you can mark your page. I swear, I spend half of my read-aloud time trying to remember where we left off.)
We are definitely using this book as our first confession prep, along with the Baltimore Catechism.
To enter the giveaway, just leave a comment on this post confessing one sin. Ha, just kidding. Any comment is fine. I’ll leave the contest open until next Wednesday, February 26th at noon eastern, and will try to announce the winner that day. Good luck!
Or something else entirely? His story stinks to high heaven, and if the priest has another one, I doubt he’s free to tell it.
Link doesn’t seem to be working for everyone. If you can’t access the story through the link above, you can cut and paste this:
http://www.ncregister.com/blog/simcha-fisher/gay-man-refused-last-rites
Advent and Christmas aren’t meant to be only for children. Here are some ways adults can participate in the season of preparation.
