In 1215, a new church document mandated that every Catholic go to confession and receive Holy Communion at least once a year. Priests who revealed the identity of any penitent faced severe penalties.

What Catholics forget about repentance, absolution and the forgiveness of sins Sebastian Gomes December 11, 2023 ...

During the signing ceremony, Ferguson, who was raised Catholic, said he was “very familiar” with the sacrament of confession. Well, he might want to brush up on his catechism.

A confessional is a booth where Catholic priests hear parishioners’ confessions of their sins and grant them absolution, forgiveness, in the name of God.

Over the following decades, the Catholic experience of penance changed. Catholics went to confession less often, or stopped altogether. Many confessionals remained empty or were used for storage.