The Rime of the Ancient Mariner makes others sadder?

In "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the Mariner must retell his story whenever he feels guilty for killing the albatross and also for being responsible for his shipmates' deaths. He knows when he comes upon a man that he must tell his tale to, and by telling his tale he is freed from his guilt. However, does part of his guilt and sadness get passed on to the person he tells the tale too? At the end of the poem, the Wedding-Guest who had just heard the Mariner's tale was stunned. Although he was at a wedding, which is supposed to be a joyous occasion, the Wedding-Guest was depressed. The last two lines of the poem are "A Sadder and a wiser man, He rose the morrow morn." After retelling his story, the Mariner is freed from his sadness, but I believe this is only because the sadness is passed on to the listener. When the Mariner tells his tale, it can in a way be seen as a confession for the sins he committed. By confessing and telling others to love all things that God made, he is repenting for what he did. By listening to the story and feeling the Mariner's pain and remorse, the Wedding-Guest (and all others that heard the tale) at first feel sad, but in the end are helping the Mariner earn his way back into heaven. They act as the priest would in confession. This makes me think, do priests feel the pain and sadness of others when they listen to confessions?
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