Confession App No Replacement For Real Thing Says Vatican

By Francis X. Rocca
Religion News Service

VATICAN CITY -- Just in case Catholics are wondering if a new iPhone app might be able to forgive their sins, the Vatican has issued a clarification: No.

"One may not speak in any sense of confessing via iPhone," the Rev. Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See Press Office, said in a statement on Wednesday (Feb. 9).

According to its U.S. producers, "Confession: A Roman Catholic App" is designed to help users prepare for confession through a "personalized examination of conscience for each user, password protected profiles, and a step-by-step guide to the sacrament."

The Indiana-based company, Little iApps LLC, says its app is the first to receive an imprimatur, or official permission for publication, from a Catholic bishop -- in this case, Bishop Kevin C. Rhoades of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend.

Lombardi said the "Sacrament of Penance necessarily requires the relationship of personal dialogue between the penitent and the confessor and absolution by the confessor present."

"This cannot be substituted for by any information technology application," he said.

The Vatican has cautiously embraced information technology and new media in recent years, but Pope Benedict XVI last month warned digital communication poses special dangers to Christian values and face-to-face relationships.

Comments

[Lifer2006]

11:37 PM on 03/10/2011

This is so ridiculous. Ah... but a lot of you guys are pedophiles, how should I confess to a hack that takes advantage of little boys.?? Or it just ain't the real thing>??????
GOOD GRIEF!!!

[rgilley]

06:47 AM on 02/12/2011

"One may not speak in any sense of confessing via iPhone," the Rev. Federico Lombardi, director of the Holy See Press Office, said in a statement on Wednesday (Feb. 9).

Hell no why would we need priest and the like if we could All talk to God ourselves? Can't have that be bad for business.

[Stokes]

04:21 PM on 02/11/2011

To the weary Catholics held captive to the doctrines of intellectuals . Restore what is Truth, the Holy Spirit of the living God within His creatures. Put aside all pagan oriented doctrines. Put aside all pomp and pageantry which is not to the glory of God. There is no man who can compare to the Almighty Father. Truly follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit within and acknowledge that Christ is the only redemptive mediator between God and man.
" For there is hope of a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again and that the tender branch thereof will not cease." (Job 14:7)

[Lifer2006]

11:44 PM on 03/10/2011

But, wait a minute I thought we we're all powerful wonderful human beings. Is that not what "God" has been saying???

I am as great as the guy next door, and if by chance I slander that person, I will be slandering myself. So I am following i think a goos way to live, am I not?

Now when you get these guys, that on record (Ratzinger,mahoney,the boston hack,etc,etc) looked the other way when the child abuse happened. Where can you get the heart to forgive these hacks or to leave them in their posts. THAT in itself is disgraceful. I am amazed that Catholics have not rebelled against these horrible men. Astounding.

[Hysterian68]

02:29 AM on 02/11/2011

If Catholics can have a "virtual" confession or examination of conscience, do they also get a virtual pope? The hierarchy out in the ether seems more tolerable than having to put up with the real thing.

[Balzy26]

11:20 PM on 02/10/2011

Wow. I thought their priorities might lay in reducing AIDS through contaception and not raping children. It's always painfully embarassing watching older people try and fail to adapt to newer technologies and ideas, and even worse when it is a decaying institution desperate for ANYTHING to erase their more recent embarassments against the only tenants that they stand for.

[bbriani3842]

11:06 PM on 02/10/2011

How many times are you supposed to text "Hail Mary" to for lying about being sick and calling in to work so one can go and play?

[genrel1248]

08:56 PM on 02/10/2011

I'm sure both methods are equally effective at removing sin.

[CrazyThisIs]

01:51 AM on 02/11/2011

SOOO Faved! Short, pithy, ha-larious!

[logicanada]

07:47 PM on 02/10/2011

Yup. Pre-qualifying future abuse victims by asking about their pre-adolescent sexual knowledge is much easier in a darkened box. Over the net it's called luring.

[raker]

07:42 PM on 02/10/2011

"OMG, I am heartily sorry..."

[stinkybard]

06:11 PM on 02/10/2011

holy penitence! i got beat out again. i thought of inventing the virtual confessional box but came short on time and neurons. my friend has a confessional blog. check it out, sinners! ex-catholics most welcome...http://yourpenance.wordpress.com/

[mcmutter]

04:51 PM on 02/10/2011

STOP the perversion in the RCC ...

turn the pervs and those protecting them (bishops) over to the police ....

[Vindictive]

04:40 PM on 02/10/2011

Yay!!! Thanks HP for botching this story for 3 days in a row thanks to your apparent complete lack of respect for Catholicism and more importantly RESEARCH.  How hard would it be for you guys to have written an article that actually reflected the truth of what this discussion was about?

The only reason that the Vatican has anything to say about this is the fact that what was originally said about the App in question was so widely reported WRONG.  But, I suppose if you want to provide a forum for people to dogpile bad feelings about christianity in general and the Catholic church in particular, this is a good way to go about it.

If you want someone who can actually research a subject to do some reporting for you, give me a call.

[Hysterian68]

04:31 PM on 02/10/2011

If we can have "virtual" confession, why not a "virtual pope" with "virtual munchkins in scarlet and violet advising him. Better they all remain in the ether than have to put up with them in reality.

[Bob Wood]

03:03 PM on 02/10/2011

I like Father Guido Sarducci's idea of having everyone just stand up in church and yell out their sins all at one time...would save a lot of time...has to be as good as texting your sins. How about just posting them on Facebook ? (sigh)

[garybob]

02:47 PM on 02/10/2011

Doesn't replace the real thing? The real examination of conscience? I use a notepad right now for my examination of conscience; this app definetly would replace it. What people do not understand is "examination of conscience" =/= "Reconciliation". It is a preperation for the sacrament. It helps you recall your sins, record them down, allow you to reflect on them. This way, when you go into the confessional, you can make a good confession of those same sins.

It seems that most of the posters here don't even know what an examination of conscience is. Not suprising. From the content of their posts, it is clear they haven't done any form of self-critical examination in a long time.

The real question is, why wouldn't the Church approve of this?

[Vindictive]

04:14 PM on 02/10/2011

The church doesn't have a problem with the App.... they have a problem with recent headlines that claimed this App was a substitute for the sacrament.  A bunch of journalists with no idea what the Catholic sacrament of confession actually consists of have spent the past 3 days hyping this app without recognizing that the examination of conscience ISN'T the sacrament itself.  So the church had to step in and tell everyone to calm down, you can't phone in confession.