Pay telephone line to confess sins draws bishops’ criticism

A PAY telephone line for French Roman Catholics to confess their sins drew criticism from bishops yesterday.

“For advice on confessing, press one. To confess, press two. To listen to some confessions, press three,” says a male voice, welcoming the caller to “Le Fil du Seigneur”, or “The Line of the Lord” service.

“In case of serious or mortal sins — that is, sins that have cut you off from Christ our Lord, it is indispensable to confide in a priest,” warns the €0.34 a minute service.

The Conference of French Bishops, which groups the country’s Catholic leaders, warned in a statement that the line had “no approval from the Catholic Church in France”.

The site was set up at the beginning of Lent by a group of Catholics working for AABAS, a small Paris company that provides telephone messaging services, its creator said.

It does not offer absolution for sins, which only a priest can provide, said the creator, Camille, who asked for her second name not be cited because she had received threats about the service.

“The idea is to confess sins which are not capital sins, but minor sins, directly to God,” she said.

Callers do not talk to a person but are offered an “atmosphere of piety and reflection,” where they can listen to prayers and other people’s confessions and can record their own.