Posted on 01/27/2006 8:26:48 AM PST by NYer
A bill under consideration by New Hampshire legislators would require Catholic priests and other religious figures to divulge any information they hear regarding child abuse, even if told to them by parishioners in the private act of "confession."
According to the Concord Monitor newspaper, the Granite State currently has a statute requiring anyone in the state who suspects child abuse to report it to authorities. The Child Protection Act, enacted in 1979, also places a mandatory reporting requirement on clergy.
However, the paper said, a separate statute exempts clergymen and women from having to provide court testimony regarding anything told to them in confidence during an act of confession.
The current legislation under consideration would amend state law and require religious figures to provide unqualified reporting of any abuse divulged to them, under any circumstances. It is the second time since 2004 New Hampshire lawmakers have attempted to pass such a measure.
Confession is a sacrament most commonly associated with Catholics, in which the faithful are required to periodically confess sins – generally violations of the Ten Commandments – to priests, who then absolve them of those sins before God. For it to be valid, it must be held in the strictest of confidence, Catholic officials told the paper.
Church hierarchy in New Hampshire, though mindful of the seriousness of child abuse, nevertheless criticized any effort to force clergy to reveal information passed along during confession.
Diane Quinlan, chancellor of the Diocese of Manchester, said that while "there's no question that child abuse is a terrible crime," allowing a "limited exception" for confession was necessary for the uninhibited practice of Catholicism.
"That's how serious this is in our belief," she told the Monitor.
Local police officials – some who are practicing Catholics as well as leaders in the church – still argued for passage of the law.
"We feel it's important that there be no exemptions from the mandatory reporting statute," Northfield Police Chief Scott Hilliard, representing the New Hampshire Association of Chiefs of Police, said.
Some lawmakers said Catholic priests had told them they would go to prison before divulging any information told them in confession.
Such defiance could make the law moot, some argued.
Others said they were worried about whether such an ordinance would pass constitutional muster. But both sides – pro and con – presented Supreme Court opinions supporting their positions.
So, if the "law of the land" dictates your wife/daugther/mother be raped for her crime, you are OK with that?
Be very careful what you render, you may find it in conflict with God's Law.
Yes...just where are the slaves,why it must have been the out-working of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of those who opposed it, leading to a civil war and a judgment of blood upon our nation which condoned it!
"Where the spirit of the Lord is...there is Liberty"
(I fear the judgment coming for the 40 million souls we have aborted in this nation)
Because what is said in the confessional is inviolate & it will stay that way . Priests have been tortured to death rather than violate the sanctity of the confessional & I for one don't see a judge ordering a Catholic priest tortured to get them to talk but if you were the judge I might be mistaken. Next thing the political types will do is allow the electronic eavesdropping in church confessionals if this is upheld cause the priests are not cooperating.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.