"I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me."
(Matthew 25:35-36)
The Reconciliation of a penitent is used when a person’s conscience is burdened with a particular sin, when a person wishes to make a new beginning in the Christian life, or as part of a regular personal discipline. If through self-examination, confession and repentance you require further counsel then please speak to a minister in the Church. The aim of such a ministry of comfort and counsel is to establish an individual in the freedom and forgiveness of Christ. The reconciliation of a penitent, even when celebrated privately, remains a corporate action of the Church, because sin affects the unity of the body; through the absolution the penitent is restored to full fellowship in Christ.
If, in the context of such a confession, the penitent discloses that he or she has committed a serious crime, such as the abuse of children or vulnerable adults, the priest must require the penitent to report his or her conduct to the police or other statutory authority. If the penitent refuses to do so the priest should withhold absolution. The canonical duty of absolute confidentiality does not apply to anything that is said outside the context of such a confession. In particular, if information about abuse that was disclosed when seeking the ministry of absolution is repeated by the penitent outside that context the priest must follow the established procedures for reporting abuse of children or vulnerable adults.
