Q: The recent question https://paulturner.org/confession-during-mass/ prompted me to some research. Misericordia Dei #2 and the document from the Congregation for the Clergy (The Priest, Minister of Divine Mercy) both recommend the practice without caveats. (Interestingly, the latter even recommends some priests abstaining from concelebration in order to hear confessions.)
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A: Thanks for this. Misericordia Dei #2 carries a footnote referring to an article in Notitiae, https://www.cultodivino.va/content/dam/cultodivino/rivista-notitiae/2000/notitiae-37-(2001)/Notitiae-419-420-2001.pdf, p. 259, which in turn refers to Eucharisticum Mysterium 35, which makes my point: “The faithful are to be constantly encouraged to accustom themselves to going to confession outside the celebration of Mass, and especially at the prescribed times. In this way, the sacrament of Penance will be administered calmly and with genuine profit, and they will not be impeded from active participation in the Mass.”
As concelebrants may not hear confessions during Mass, the lay faithful who are participating at Mass should not step away from it for the time it takes to confess and then return. Priests may hear confessions during Mass, but the penitents are to go home after they confess.
For more, see my book Be Renewed.
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