Want to make sure the priest is in the confessional before you jog down to the church to ask forgiveness for your sins ? There’s an app for that.
Reverend Richard Heilman, a Roman Catholic prelate, has designed a smartphone app called “My Confessor” that would allow forgiveness-seekers to check when their priest is available at their local church to hear confession.
Heilman says that most Catholics should seek forgiveness by confession at least once a month , and his app will help you pick the perfect time.
“Maybe more often if you’re dealing with repetitive sin,” he said. “A lot of us aren’t in a state of grace and confessions help that grace flow freely.”
Heilman says that priests are often busy, and aren’t always around when Catholics show up looking for confession.
“It’s challenging sometimes for priests to find time for confession because they have work to do,” Heilman said. “And parishioners are trying to go easy on Father because they see us trying to handle multiple things.”
Think of My Confession as a digital church bulletin that will show a red status box when the father is “out” or a green one when he is “in.” My Confessor also includes a description of the Catholic concept of Reconciliation as well as related confession tips.
Heilman financed the app out of his own pocket in order to make confession more convenient for Catholics. The Wisconsin-based priest’s app is already sparking nationwide interest.
“I want people to not feel uncomfortable asking about confession,” Heilman told the New York Daily News . “We want everybody ignited in the Holy Spirit.”
The app will be available for both iPhone and Android by the end of the month. You can check out the My Confession app itself here.
