[Town Hall] Lawmakers in California are currently considering a bill that would require priests in the Catholic Church to violate the seal of confession when it comes to the subject of child sexual abuse.
The newly-proposed legislation was introduced Wednesday by Democratic State Senator Jerry Hill, according to a report by Fox News.
Senate Bill 360 is titled “Removing Clergy Exemption from Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting.” The bill would remove an exemption in the state’s “mandated reporter” law that allows all clergy members to withhold knowledge of suspected child abuse from law enforcement if that information is obtained during a "penitential communication," such as Catholic confession.
AMDG
Obviously no Catholic priest in good conscience could follow such a law. So it should be a moot point, in that whatever the secular law says on paper, the Priest is bound by a higher law, and the secular officials would only know of what was said in confessional if the priest violated his duty as a priest in the first place.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Anonymous above except the secular officials could learn of what was said in the confessional if the penitent disclosed it although that's not very likely. The Seal of the confessional does not apply to the penitent only to the priest
ReplyDeleteknowing the american left they will bug confession with coperation with some lefty bishops
ReplyDeleteNever ever enter a confessional with a telephone, on or off. Period. And ask your confessor to do likewise.
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