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From public confession to private penance: How Catholic confession has evolved over centuries

  • Written by Timothy Gabrielli, Gudorf Chair in Catholic Intellectual Traditions, University of Dayton
imageA priest blesses a person giving confession in Aguililla, Mexico, on Oct. 29, 2021.AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo

The 1953 Alfred Hitchcock film “I Confess,” based on an earlier play, features a priest suspected of murder. He’s innocent, and has even heard the murderer’s confession – but cannot clear his own name.

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