Vatican says Catholics cannot confess their sins via the iPhone

The Vatican spokesperson Father Federico Lombardi said that Catholics cannot confess their sings via the iPhone. The statement comes after the launch of an iPhone application that helps Catholics through confession sanctioned by the Catholic Church in the United States. According to some reports the application was developed to substitute in-person confession to a priest.

"One cannot speak in any way of confessing via iPhone," Lombardi said on Wednesday, adding that confession required the presence of the penitent and the priest.

"This cannot be substituted by any IT application," Lombardi added.

A Roman Catholic app, thought to be the first to be approved by a church authority, walks Catholics through the sacrament and contains what the company behind the program describes as a "personalized examination of conscience for each user."

The application is not designed to replace going to confession but to help Catholics through the act, which generally involves admitting sins to a priest in a confessional booth.