Yesterday evening, I treated the above subject matter. I received a plethora of responses, both from priests and from the lay faithful and religious. I took time during the course of the day to put together their feedback. Trusting that it will be of value to all, I am making it public. You will note that, throughout, what I have done is to identify specific points and respond to them. Thus, the method is not sequential but issues-centred.
Thank you very much for your thoughtful, candid, and deeply personal message. I read it slowly and with sympathy, because it does not come from theory but from lived ecclesial experience. Your concern for reconciliation, your refusal to trivialise sin, and your insistence on approaching God without delay are all profoundly Catholic instincts. On this, we are in agreement.
Let me begin where you began: the Church indeed teaches that once a person becomes conscious of grave sin, reconciliation with God should not be unnecessarily delayed. The Catechism is clear that conversion is urgent, and the tradition has always praised those who “do not sleep with their sin.” In that sense, your comparison with seeking medical help when ill is not only apt but patristic. Sin wounds; grace heals; delay is never ideal.
That said, the sacrament of Penance is not only a remedy; it is also a liturgical act of the Church, governed by pastoral prudence, ecclesial discipline, and sacramental theology. This is where tensions often arise, not because penitents are wrong to seek confession, but because priests must simultaneously safeguard the dignity of the sacrament, the integrity of the Eucharistic celebration, and the spiritual preparedness of both minister and penitent.
On the specific matter of confession immediately before Mass: the Church does not forbid it absolutely. There is no canon that states that a priest may never hear confessions before Mass. In fact, pilgrimage sites, shrines, retreats, and large liturgical gatherings often provide confessions before Mass precisely because penitents may not have another opportunity. This is not a “special ceremonial permission,” but a pastoral accommodation to circumstance.
However, the same Church strongly discourages a habitual practice whereby a priest hears confessions right up to the moment of Mass in such a way that it compromises recollection, preparation, or the orderly celebration of the Eucharist. The priest is not only a confessor; he is also the presider who must proclaim the Word, preach, and offer the Sacrifice with interior attentiveness. Canon law (cf. can. 986 §1) obliges priests to provide reasonable access to confession, but it does not bind them to every moment indiscriminately.
Your frustration about priests spending time conversing before Mass while declining confessions is understandable. If a priest has time for casual conversation but claims unavailability for the sacrament, the contradiction is pastoral, not theological, and it understandably scandalises. On this point, your critique is fair. Availability for reconciliation should never appear secondary to social interaction. Where this happens, it reflects not Church teaching, but human weakness.
Regarding fixed confession days (Fridays and Saturdays): these schedules are meant to guarantee access, not to restrict grace. They are pastoral structures, not theological ceilings. A priest may legitimately ask a penitent to respect parish schedules for the sake of order, but he should also know when charity requires flexibility, especially when a penitent has clearly made repeated efforts and is in distress of conscience.
Your reference to priests like Fr. Dondon, who heard confessions anywhere and at any time, recalls a noble and venerable tradition. Saints such as John Vianney, Leopold Mandić, and Padre Pio embodied this radical availability. Yet even the Church recognises that heroic sanctity cannot be imposed as a juridical norm on every priest in every context. What is heroic remains exemplary, not mandatory—though it should constantly challenge our comfort.
On the question of disposition and time: neither priest nor penitent requires “hours” of preparation. What is required is moral readiness, freedom, and sufficient time to ensure the integrity of the sacrament. Sometimes a confession can be brief and valid; at other times it requires more careful listening. A priest who judges that he cannot responsibly do this immediately before Mass is not necessarily unwilling, but discerning. Still, discernment must never harden into refusal without compassion. It is also not uncommon for older generations to perceive the time priests spend chatting or engaging with young people as wasted or frivolous. Truth be told, this is often one of the ways a priest makes himself available to them and attends to their pastoral needs.
Finally, your larger concern—that some priests are simply unwilling to hear confessions—cannot be dismissed. Pope Francis himself has repeatedly lamented this reality, urging priests to be “available, welcoming, and merciful,” and warning against turning the confessional into a place of control or irritation. Where priests allow personal fatigue, irritation, or rigidity to overshadow mercy, they fail pastorally, even if they remain within technical legality.
In sum, your insistence that we must encourage confession more fervently is not only correct; it is urgently needed. My original reflection was not an attempt to excuse priestly unavailability, but to explain why the moment immediately before Mass is pastorally delicate. Both truths must be held together: penitents should not be made to wander from parish to parish seeking mercy, and priests must also be allowed the spiritual space to celebrate the Eucharist worthily.
Your voice is important because it reminds priests that sacramental theology is ultimately about souls, not schedules. If anything, your experience should provoke us priests to examine ourselves honestly, not defensively, and to ask whether we have made reconciliation as accessible as the Church expects.
Thank you once again for writing with sincerity and courage. Conversations like this, when carried out in charity and truth, serve the Church.
Good night,
Fr. Okhueleigbe Osemhantie Amos
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