Priestly people In priesthood, God utilizes all a priest’s gifts and struggles, but docility to the Holy Spirit isn’t a given
Question: When a priest is hearing confessions, does the Holy Spirit always enlighten him so that he gives his penitents accurate and insightful guidance? — Peter Tate, Long Beach, California
Answer: The word “always” in your question implies an enlightenment that is too absolute. Certainly, the Holy Spirit assists priests in all their duties, including confession; but priests are not robotically connected such that they are mere oracles. The priest, in the celebration of the sacraments, acts in persona Christi. But the Lord engages the whole person of the priest: his personality, memories, experiences, his will and freedom, his gifts and struggles. This is why some priests are gifted preachers, others have great patience, prudence and counsel as confessors; still others are gifted at administration and organization. Priests also have struggles and weaknesses that weigh in on how effectively they preach, celebrate the sacraments or lead parishes.
As to your specific question, the Holy Spirit certainly offers enlightenment to priests in confession, but priests vary insofar as they are docile to the Spirit. Some are sensitive to the prompting of the Spirit, others less so. Priests also vary in their experience, age, listening skills, patience, holiness and prudence. Sadly a few priests are not always in conformity with Church teaching and give not only poor advice, but erroneous direction.
Regarding the Sacrament of Reconciliation, when it is validly celebrated, absolution is always given since sacraments work of themselves (ex opere operato), regardless of the holiness or qualities of the priest. But in terms of the fruitfulness of the sacrament, that is affected by human factors on the part of the priest and the penitent. Even as the human factors of the priest are noted above, a penitent, too, can be docile or resistant to the Spirit, carefully prepared for confession by a devout examination of conscience or poorly prepared and perfunctory in their recitation of sin.
Thus, your question reminds all of us, priests and all the faithful, to bring a devout and open disposition to the celebration of the sacraments. The sacraments give true and objective graces. But how fruitfully they are received, and the degree of the transformation brought about in a person, does depend on human factors. This variable quality is especially true of ancillary aspects of a sacrament, such as advice given by a confessor or the quality of a penance assigned.