APPENDIX: ON GENERAL CONFESSION

General Confession is the repetition of several Confessions. It can be the repetition of the Confessions of the whole life, or of some time, e.g. of one or several years. We must speak briefly: 1° concerning the necessity or opportunity of general Confession; 2° concerning the method of performing it.

General Confession can be either necessary, or only useful, or useless, or even harmful. Hence the following rules must be established.

1378. Rule I. - General Confession must be judged necessary whenever preceding Confessions were morally certainly invalid or sacrilegious, either on the part of the penitent because of defect of contrition or integrity, or on the part of a confessor lacking jurisdiction; but in the other cases it can never be prescribed. The reason of both is clear from what was said above concerning the repetition of Confession. Cf. however n. 1377. 3°.

Rule II. - General Confession is to be permitted, or even prudently advised, although not necessary, when, the circumstances having been considered, the penitent is going to perceive notable spiritual fruit from it, e.g. by reason of greater security or peace of conscience, humility, devotion, fervor, knowledge of himself, manifestation of conscience for more perfect direction; or greater purity of soul, for obtaining divine helps more efficaciously, etc.; because the confessor from charity must promote the greater spiritual good of the penitent, when he can do so easily. Benedict XIV, c. Apostolica.

Rule III. - It is to be prohibited in the other cases as useless, and even harmful, when other inconveniences besides the loss of time are prudently to be feared, namely scruples, anxieties, perturbation of conscience, etc.; for if so great a burden for the confessor and the penitent is not to be undertaken without hope of notable fruit, all the more so with fear of notable harm.

1379. Resolves. - 1° General Confession is useful 1) in a doubt, not empty, concerning the value of past Confessions; 2) when a purpose of a better life more strongly impels, e.g. in the time of a Mission; 3) in the principal epochs of the Christian life, namely before First Communion; before the reception of a new state of life; when a dangerous illness is deservedly feared; when old age is approaching.

2° Besides the Confession made at the time of First Communion, another general Confession of the whole life is easily, generally speaking, to be permitted; but another would be conceded with greatest difficulty when the prior one was made sufficiently accurately, in good faith and with good will, unless perhaps it was made in youthful age, e.g. before the 26th year. Hence penitents who ask permission from the confessor to make a general Confession are to be asked for what cause they request it; whether they have already confessed generally at other times; from what time, and how often; and from the answers the confessor will judge whether this Confession is expedient or not.

3° A partial general Confession, namely of one year, or from the time of the last general Confession, is easily to be permitted to devout persons, according to the custom kept among most religious families. Likewise, at times it can be permitted to pious penitents to repeat summarily in a few words the principal sins of their life; nevertheless attend to the various circumstances of persons.

4° But confessors must especially beware lest they too easily compel penitents to general Confession; and those are greatly to be reprehended who require this from all new penitents under the pretext of necessity, or by reason of direction, etc.

5° General Confession is not to be permitted, even in doubt concerning the validity of preceding Confessions, where from it notable inconveniences are to be feared by reason of scruples, perturbation of conscience, etc.; because grave and certain inconveniences are not to be undergone on account of a doubtful obligation.

6° It happens that young women professedly devout, although already several times confessed generally, ask to confess generally more from affection toward a new and younger confessor than from true devotion. A younger confessor should hardly ever comply with these, unless this is necessary, or prudently feared to be necessary. Except in a jubilee, etc., a Confession from the last general Confession.

General Confession can be made in many ways; but generally speaking it will be more expedient if it is made according to the following rules.

1380. Rule I. - Before Confession: the confessor must take pains to know explicitly the state of the penitent, and the various circumstances by which he can be directed toward questioning prudently and fruitfully. Hence:

1° Let him examine whether the Confession is necessary; for if it is necessary, the penitent must be heard and questioned with much greater care. But if it is not necessary, the penitent must first be warned that diligence of this kind is not required, indeed that he is free to keep silent about the sins he wishes. Nevertheless what at the beginning seems only useful is often found necessary in the course of the Confession, especially in doubt concerning the value of past Confessions.

2° Let him prudently inquire concerning the state of the penitent, whether unmarried or not, concerning his age, occupations or offices, concerning his family; namely whether he still has parents, brothers or sisters; and whether he lives with them, or lived with them for a long time; if he is or was joined in Matrimony, whether he has sons or daughters, in what age they are constituted, and whether he lives with them. Let him also discreetly inquire concerning the impediments of Matrimony, especially of clandestinity, where it was contracted clandestinely, and whether perhaps before a heretical minister; of disparity of cult, and of mixed religion, and, in these last two cases, whether the children are educated Catholic.

3° Let him ask from what time the penitent has confessed; whether he was absolved; whether here and now he is entangled in some depraved custom, occasion, or depraved affection of soul; whether perhaps he is enrolled in some condemned society; whether he ever concealed sins; how long; whether he afterward confessed them, or repeated sacrilegious Confessions, and how often; what other Sacraments he received, confected, or administered sacrilegiously.

These preliminary pieces of knowledge will serve the confessor very much; but he will urge these questions more or less according to the quality of the one confessing and the nature of the answers. - The confessor will procure several of these pieces of knowledge for himself if he induces the penitent to premise before the general Confession an accusation of sins committed since the last Confession.

Rule II. - As regards the order of Confession: the accusation and questions in the Confession itself must be made in a certain order, and always the same one, lest everything be mixed up with disturbance of the confessor and of the one confessing, and with danger of defect of integrity, etc. But the shorter and easier way is if the declaration of sins is made according to the order of the commandments of God, of the Church, and of special obligations according to each one's proper state. - Nevertheless questions concerning the Sixth are more prudently made at the beginning, or, if there is question of penitents who on account of their condition or for other reasons can be presumed to bear it with difficulty if they are questioned about this matter at once from the beginning, they are instituted at the end of the general Confession.

Rule III. - As regards the mode of Confession: if the penitent is sufficiently instructed, let the confessor kindly induce him to expose his sins according to the aforesaid order, promising that he will help him and, whenever there will be need, question him, so that all things may be rightly completed. - But if the penitent is unlearned, or prefers to be questioned, let the confessor take almost the whole burden of the Confession upon himself; let him question in order concerning all things which penitents of the same condition are accustomed to commit; but if there is question of a necessary general Confession, or of those who do not belong to the class of the pious, only concerning sins truly grave. But before he begins the questions, let him carefully warn the one confessing that he should fear nothing as to the difficulty of uncovering sins: Be quiet and of good mind, he will say; I shall make your Confession; I know indeed all the sins which you could have committed; I shall uncover all these things for you; it will be yours only to respond clearly and sincerely to my questions, and to conceive true sorrow for sins.

When the examination has been finished, let the confessor inquire from the penitent whether he is now quiet, or whether he knows that something must be added.

Then, and generally not before, let him proceed to the necessary admonitions. Finally let him exhort him not to repeat this general Confession.