At San Rocco Oratory, people can receive the sacrament of reconciliation ("confession") anytime, upon request.  In general, people ask for this sacrament before Mass on Sunday morning, about 9:30 or 9:45 a.m.  Especially on Sundays before Christmas and Easter, the rector will go to the reconcilation area and wait for penitents.  When we have a visiting priest who speaks Italian,  for example, Father Petrongelli or Father Longo, he will usually be available for confessions in Italian.   At least with the present rector, French, German, and Latin are other possibilities; Italian is not.

In the back of church, in the southwest corner, is a reconciliation room, a confessional.  There are two large, glass windows facing the congregation, as well as a large glass window in the door.  In this way, visibility is evident, while privacy is maintained by the enclosure itself, providing an effecdtive  barrier to sound.  Such a room is an improvement over what we used to use:  a kneeler, set up in the side aisle; it was not sufficiently private.  People who go to confession can choose either to kneel down, behind a screen, or sit down for face-to-face reconciliation, as they wish. 

This room, in a special situation, could also serve as a cry room for a parent who truly needs such a space, during the celebration of the liturgy.  During the Mass, the reconcilation room would not be in use otherwise, so it can serve a dual purpose. 

At St. Rocco, general absolution is not given to the whole congregation, as part of a penance service.  This practice is not permitted by the discipline of the Roman Rite or by our bishop.  Instead, individual confession is required, with individual absolution.