'To confess your sins, press two'

A telephone line for French Catholics to confess their sins has been condemned by bishops.

Published: 7:16PM GMT 01 Mar 2010

Callers hear a soothing male voice welcoming them to "The Line of the Lord" at a cost of 31 pence a minute.

"For advice on confessing, press one. To confess, press two. To listen to some confessions, press three," it says.

"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,"

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

But the Conference of French Bishops, has warned in a statement that the line had "no approval from the Catholic Church in France."

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, adding that the line received about 300 calls in its first week.

From: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/france/7347461/To-confess-your-sins-press-two.html