176 THE MEANS OF GRACE 



Priests who hear confession should never converse 

 about matters heard in the confessional with lay persons, 

 and with fellow priests only to seek advice or instruction, 

 and always with great caution (tccto nomine), so that 

 there is no danger of the seal being violated. 



A confessor violates the seal also by saying that a cer- 

 tain sin is rife in a community (parish, monastery, semi- 

 nary), especially if the community is small. 25 



Knowledge gained in the confessional may not be used 

 by superiors for the external government of their subjects 

 as such a proceeding is apt to annoy the penitents, or to 

 render the Sacrament odious, or to lead to an indirect 

 breach of the seal. 26 



Provided the seal is kept intact, a confessor may, if 

 necessary, communicate information obtained in sacra- 

 mental confession to prudent and experienced persons for 

 the purpose of seeking advice, but beyond this, he must 

 observe strict silence. 27 



25 St. Alphonsus, Theol. Mor., que prodere queant, de submissis in 

 1. VI, n. 654. — J. P. Gury, Comp. sacramentali confessione claiium 

 Theol. Mor., II, n. 508: "An fran- potestati sive in privatis collocutio- 

 gat sigillum, qui dicit, tale vitium nibus sive in publicis ad populum 

 regnare in civitate vel pago, aut concionibus {ad auditorum, ut aiunt, 

 ibi gravia crimina committi? aedificationem) temere sermonem 

 AfHrmatur, si locus sit satis angu- facere non vereantur. Cum autem 

 stus, v. g. si non constet tribus ho- in re tanti ponderis et momenti 

 minum millibus circiter. Secus, si nedum perfectam et consummatam 

 oppidum sit amplum et crimina pub- iniuriam sed et omnem iniuriae spe- 

 lica saepius ibi patrentur." ciem et suspicionem studiosissime vi- 



26 Cfr. Th. Slater, A Manual of tart oporteat, palam est omnibus 

 Moral Theology, Vol. II, p. 232. quam mos hiusmodi sit improbandus. 

 The new Codex luris Canonici, can. Nam etsi id fiat salvo substantialiter 

 890, forbids such use absolutely. secreto sacramentali, pias tatncn au- 



27 Cfr. the Instructio S. R. et U. dientium aures haud offendere et 

 Inquisitionis of June 9, 1915, which diffidentiam in eorum animis haud 

 says, inter alia: " N on desunt excitare sane non potest. Quod 

 nihilominus quandoque salutaris quidcm ab huius sacramenti natura 

 huius sacramenti administri, qui, re- prorsus est alienum, quo clementis- 

 ticitis quamquam omnibus quae simus Deus, quae per fragilitatem 

 poenitentis personam quomodocun- humatiae conversations peccata com- 



