New Australian Law Requires Priests to Break Seal of Confession to Report Admissions of Child Abuse

  • Thread starter Thread starter hmikell7
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
Roseeurekacross said:
It’s already established that if a child discusses being sexually abused in confession. Mandatory reporting in that situation, is NOT breaking the seal of confession.

A child is NOT confessing he or she is being sexually abused. Even if that child believes that is a confession.
Click to expand...
It is covered under the seal. The priest can and should, however, ask the child to tell him outside the confessional.
 
Last edited:
The end came with the actual abuse of children. And not just by clergy.
 
No it’s not, as has been stated several times by the Melbourne and Sydney Archbishops.
 
Here in America, the USCCB has implemented all sorts of changes to protect the children. It’s been pretty effective as far as I know! We haven’t needed to crack the Seal of Confession.

What’s happening in Australia is that the Government is actively attacking the Sacrament of Penance. Believe me, it won’t stop there, it only gets worse.
 
Prodigal_Son said:
40.png
Alex337:
Hi PS. You seem to have missed the part where I said I think a priest should have the same rules as a psychiatrist where if they believe the penitent will harm themself or others in the future they should report it 🙂
But I do also think a murderer who was truly repentant would confess even knowing they would be reported.
Click to expand...
Hi Alex, you seem to assume that I think that all mandatory reporting laws with psychologists are justified. I don’t. I think they are a mixed bag. In particular, the mandatory reporting rules are massively subjective, since “believing” someone is a danger to oneself or others is subjective. I’ve seen lives torn apart because of overzealous professionals.
Click to expand...
I didn’t assume you agreed with it, I only sought to clarify because you seemed to assume I still thought priests should expose peoples past crimes. I don’t; I think they should expose peoples futures ones if they believe that person to be a risk to themselves or others. I would rather see a life unsettled than a person killed or raped.
Prodigal_Son said:
Secondly, confession is not only about absolution. A person who goes to the confessional and is not absolved has nevertheless received grace, and is much better off for his or her encounter with God there. Confession is not a human institution; it is us and God.
Click to expand...
Cool. I am still more worried about the innocent folks a person may harm.
Prodigal_Son said:
God can always “out” a criminal. He doesn’t need to trick people into outing themselves at the risk of their eternal souls – he has a thousand other ways to make it happen (including persuasion). Those who go to confession are seeking an encounter with God, and God is not terrified or powerless in the face of their sin.
Click to expand...
Who said anything about tricking people? People know that if they tell a psychiatrist that they plan to harm themself or others that person is required to report it. That’s not a trick.
 
No, what’s happening here is that the government wants mandatory reporting across the board.

We have had an horrendous issue with historical sexual abuse of children from public, private, religious and secular institutions. It continued for so long because no one did anything to stop it.

My Diocese is meeting the survivors and families as an ongoing event. Secondary victims have started suits against those responsible for the abuse of their children and family members.
An Archbishop is sentenced to 2 years jail for not reporting what he knew .

We have great safeguarding children and vulnerable adults protocol in place now.

That doesn’t erase the past though. The victims , survivors, families, dead, don’t go away.
 
Last edited:
Based on your posts, I believe that you’re hoping for some kind of resolution between Church and State. You’ve consistently stated that Mandatory reporting won’t affect the Seal of Confession. However, That’s not what Bishop Prowse thinks:

“Sadly, breaking the sacred seal of confession won’t prevent abuse and it won’t help our ongoing efforts to improve the safety of children in Catholic institutions," Archbishop Prowse wrote.”

https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.ca...extended-to-confessional-20180607-p4zk0j.html
 
That is the Perfect Example of where they want the Seal of Confession broken! The Priest responded correctly and I’m glad he was dismissed from the lawsuit.
 
redbetta said:
Karl Marx has the best PR of any man that has ever lived. How can someone be so consistently wrong, on so many levels, yet still be taken seriously and even celebrated to this day, I will never understand.
Click to expand...
No kidding! Just check out the number of flaming Marxists just on this forum alone 🤢
 
I_trust said:
To require that someone turn himself in to the police would be to require him to reveal his confession to a third party. While the sinner is free to do so if he chooses, to require it would appear to be the equivalent of the priest revealing the contents of the confession via a secondary source.
Click to expand...
After sleeping on this I’m now inclined to agree. I retract my earlier support for making absolution contingent on turning oneself in to the authorities.
 
Alex337 said:
I don’t think a person admitting that they plan future crimes is within the scope of confession to be honest. I think they step outside of it.
Click to expand...
So how is this relevant in this discussion?

The penitent confesses his/her sins and the priest keeps it confidential as required by the Sacrament. What is the issue now?
 
Last edited:
Alex337 said:
Actually there’s a point; what should a priest do out someone admits to being suicidal in confession? Can they alert authorities and medical professionals?
Click to expand...
How? In my parish, confessionals are anonymous. Priest and penitent in separate compartments. How does a priest alert authorities about someone he does not know? He could only urge them to seek professional help. Confession is not counseling.
 
Alex337 said:
I think I already explained that I think it should work the same as a psychiatrist. Are you going to answer my question?
Click to expand...
Here’s why it can’t be like a psychiatrist.

When child abuser, rapist, murder, etc comes into that confessional, the priest’s number one job is to help that sinner heal AND AVOID HELL. As harsh as it might sound to people who don’t understand, the priest’s main concern is saving the soul of sinner/criminal, not helping the victim.

There was a video (fictional, but accurate) I saw recently about a priest who heard the confession of the man who killed his father. When the priest realized that the man who was confessing to him was the same driver who killed his father years ago in a hit & run, he was furious… stormed out of the confessional, etc. He starts praying the Our Father slowly and can’t finish it for several tries… then he finally is able to slowly say “and help us to forgive those who trespasses against us.” Finally, he’s able to continue hearing this man’s confession and absolves him. It was a very powerful short film.

There was also an episode of the BCC’s “Father Brown” where a criminal confessed to Father that he was going to kill him. In the show, Father Brown could not tell a soul and didn’t (though in the show he did do what he could to link the criminal to another crime).

In real life, if someone entered the Confessional and told the priest that he was planning on killing a member of the clergy, the priest couldn’t do anything about it. Even if the person told the priest that he was the priest who was going to be killed. The priest would have to go about his day as he normally would, without changing anything or acting on the information he has. Even if that meant he was going to die.

That’s how serious the Seal of Confession is. A priest not only has to be willing to accept prison, but if necessary, death to preserve the seal.

Priests who break the seal of confession are not brave, they are cowards.

God Bless
 
Last edited:
phil19034 said:
There was a video (fictional, but accurate) I saw recently about a priest who heard the confession of the man who killed his father. When the priest realized that the man who was confessing to him was the same driver who killed his father years ago in a hit & run, he was furious… stormed out of the confessional, etc. He starts praying the Our Father slowly and can’t finish it for several tries… then he finally is able to slowly say “and help us to forgive those who trespasses against us.” Finally, he’s able to continue hearing this man’s confession and absolves him. It was a very powerful short film.
Click to expand...
I found the video!!!

Worth watching!!! It won Best Short film of International Catholic Film Festival
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top