Apostolic Penitentiary Archives

Pray for the dead, gain indulgences for them, cardinal urges Catholics
- Nov 1, 2019
The early November feasts of All Saints and All Souls are reminders that God’s church exists both on earth and in heaven and that all the faithful, living and dead, can and should pray for each other, a top Vatican official wrote.

By Cindy Wooden
Vatican says ‘no human power’ can compel priests to violate seal of confession
- Jul 1, 2019
As California is currently embroiled in a battle over whether to punish priests for not breaking the seal of confession in cases when child abuse is revealed, the Vatican has issued a statement reaffirming the “inviolability” of the confidentiality of confession, and saying political pressure in this regard is a breach of religious liberty.

By Elise Harris
Betraying internal forum is a sin, pope tells confessors
- Mar 29, 2019
In confession, the privacy of one’s conscience before God, also known as the internal forum, must always be protected and not be used to influence decisions outside the confessional, Pope Francis said.

By Junno Arocho Esteves

Confessors should seek to bring penitents closer to Jesus, pope says

Mar 9, 2018

A good confessor is a good listener, Pope Francis said. By truly listening to the penitent during confession, “we listen to Jesus himself, poor and humble; by listening to the Holy Spirit, we put ourselves in attentive obedience, becoming listeners of the Word” in order to know what God wants to be done, he said.