in october 2016, the cardinal vicar of the diocese of rome issued guidelines that state, "but when the concrete circumstances of a couple make it feasible, that is, when their faith journey has been long, sincere and progressive, it can be proposed they live in continence; if this choice is difficult to practice for the stability of the couple, "amoris laetitia" does not exclude the possibility of access to penance and the eucharist." the guidelines continue, "who can decide? from the tenor of the text and mind of its author, i do not think that there is any other solution than that of the internal forum. in fact the internal forum is a conducive way to open our hearts to the most intimate confidences, and if a relationship of trust with a confessor or a spiritual guide has been established over time, you can start and develop with him a long journey of conversion: patient, with small steps and progressive inspections. therefore, there can be no one other than the confessor, at a certain point, in his consciousness, after much reflection and prayer, to assume responsibility before god and the penitent and to request that access to the sacraments takes place in a confidential manner. in these cases the journey of discernment (al, 303: "dynamic discernment" ) in order to reach new milestones towards the full christian ideal does not end."