National Catholic Reporter

Is confession dead? Q&A with a Catholic historian on the state of the sacrament

In October 2025, Washington state agreed to withdraw a controversial mandate compelling priests to report allegations of sexual abuse specifically revealed during the sacrament of confession. The bill ...
National Catholic Reporter

Over centuries, Catholic confession has evolved from public confession to private penance

The 1953 Alfred Hitchcock film "I Confess," based on an earlier play, features a priest suspected of murder. He's innocent, and has even heard the murderer's confession — but cannot clear his own name ...
The New York Times

A Future for Confession

See more of our coverage in your search results.Encuentra más de nuestra cobertura en los resultados de búsqueda. Add The New York Times on GoogleAgrega The New York Times en Google In “The Guilty ...
The Conversation

Why ending the secrecy of ‘confession’ is so controversial for the Catholic Church

Following sexual abuse scandals in the Catholic Church, there is a worldwide push to end the guarantee of secrecy of confession – called “the seal of the confessional.” On Sept. 11, 2019, two ...
The Conversation

From public confession to private penance: How Catholic confession has evolved over centuries

The 1953 Alfred Hitchcock film “I Confess,” based on an earlier play, features a priest suspected of murder. He’s innocent, and has even heard the murderer’s confession – but cannot clear his own name ...