Case 8. A Privilege of Regulars

Titius, the confessor of the pupils in a certain college of Regulars, during the vacation visits a house in another diocese which some of the pupils occupy, and one of them asks Titius to hear his confession. Titius agrees, but afterwards doubts the validity of the absolution given by him. Caius, a priest of the same Order who with a certain scholastic has charge of the pupils, tells that same pupil who wishes to confess that it is lawful to go to the secular priest who has the care of souls there. Hence it is asked:

1. What is required in the minister of Penance in order that he may lawfully and validly administer the sacrament?

2. To whom must or may Regulars confess, whether within their own house, in a house of the same Order that is not their own, or on a journey?

3. What is to be said of the case?

1. What is required in the minister of Penance in order that he may lawfully and validly administer the sacrament?

The minister of Penance in order to administer the sacrament validly must be a validly ordained priest, he must have jurisdiction, and also approbation, if the penitent be a secular. To act lawfully, he must be in the state of grace, free from censure, and he must observe all the regulations made by the Church for the proper administration of Penance.¹

1 Manual of Moral Theology, vol. ii, 178, 27 ff.

2. To whom may or ought Regulars confess in their own monastery, in another monastery of the same Order, and on a journey when out of their own monasteries?

Regulars ought to confess to the confessors appointed fcr them by their Superior while in their own monastery; in another house of the same Order they may confess to the confessors appointed by the Superior of that house, who can absolve them even from reserved cases with the obligation to present themselves before their own superior or one delegated by him; while on a journey they must confess to a fit companion if they have one, otherwise they may confess to any fit priest, whether secular or regular.²

2 Ibid., p. 189.

3. The case. Titius is one of the confessors of the boys while they are in the college, and he retains his faculties while the boys remain under the Order’s jurisdiction, so that there was no reason why he should doubt about the validity of the absolution given by him, even though he had no approbation from the bishop of the diocese where the confession was heard.³

3 Ibid., p. 188.

In the supposition, which seems to be excluded by the terms of the case, that Caius was a confessor of the monastery to which Titius belonged, and was not Superior, Titius would then be bound to confess to him. Otherwise Titius was not bound to go to confession to Caius, though he might do so if he chose. He was justified in confessing to any priest who was fit, whether secular or regular.