How Do Priests Decide What Penance To Give?

[Gabriela]

I have not made confession to very many priests, but among the few to whom I have, I have noticed a dramatic difference in the penances they assign. How does a priest decide what penance to give? Are they taught about this in seminary? What are they taught? What are they taught of "confessional demeanor" (akin to a doctor's "bedside demeanor")?

[cappie]

As a general guide we start from the Code of Canon Law:

Can. 978 §1 In hearing confessions the priest is to remember that he is at once both judge and healer, and that he is constituted by God as a minister of both divine justice and divine mercy, so that he may contribute to the honour of God and the salvation of souls.

§2 In administering the sacrament, the confessor, as a minister of the Church, is to adhere faithfully to the teaching of the magisterium and to the norms laid down by the competent authority.

Can. 979 In asking questions the priest is to act with prudence and discretion, taking into account the condition and the age of the penitent, and he is to refrain from enquiring the name of a partner in sin.

Can. 980 If the confessor is in no doubt about the penitent's disposition and the penitent asks for absolution, it is not to be denied or delayed.

Can. 981 The confessor is to impose salutary and appropriate penances, in proportion to the kind and number of sins confessed, taking into account, however, the condition of the penitent. The penitent is bound personally to fulfil these penances.

There used to be many confessors manuals but they have fallen into disuse. The Vatican has publishes a VADEMECUM FOR CONFESSORS which is an aid for confessors particularly in relation to families. Michael Giesler has written "Guidebook for Confessors". Fr. Geisler has written an immanently practical and exceptionally relevant book on the role of the priest in the sacrament of confession. This isn't a "paint by numbers" book - it doesn't give answers for every instance and circumstance a priest will find in the confessional. Rather, it provides spiritual insight into the theology of forgiveness and the role the priest plays in the name of Christ when he absolves sins. He makes the point that each and every act of confessing ones sins is an encounter with Christ, and that the priest is the conduit of that meeting.