[GipperGal]

You may recall the seal of confession? NO priest may "report" the contents of a confession to ANYONE.

I thought the priest could deny absolution and turn someone in if they confessed to a crime like murder, etc. Am I way off on this?

Hey Sinks, what's the rule on this?

[sinkspur]

A priest is never permitted to mention anything he hears in confession that could lead to the identification of the penitent, absolution or not. Even if the penitent gives him permission, he simply should never do it, as the penitent could contradict him.

The seal is one commandment of the Church that almost 100 percent of priests observe (and I'm not aware of any who have broken the seal).

[maryz]

As I understand it, the priest can make absolution contingent on something like restitution (in the case of theft) or turning oneself in (in the case of murder), but that means that there's no absolution if the condition isn't met. It has no effect on the seal of confession.