The Catholic Church has announced that priests will be excommunicated if they obey a new Washington state law requiring clergy to report confessions about child abuse to law enforcement.
The Archdiocese of Seattle in the United States made this announcement in a statement, maintaining that all Catholics must be assured that their confessions remain sacred and confidential.
It maintained that its policies already require priests to be mandatory reporters unless the information is received during confession.
The statement comes after Democratic Gov. Bob Ferguson last week signed a new law, which added “members of the clergy”; to a list of professionals who are required to report information that relates to child abuse or neglect to law enforcement.
The new law does not provide an exception for information offered at a confession booth.
The bill will go into effect on July 26.
The Catholic Church said it agrees with the goal of protecting children and preventing child abuse.
It noted that it “remains committed to reporting child sexual abuse, working with victim survivors towards healing, and protecting all minors and vulnerable people.”;
However, the statement from the Church said, “Catholic clergy may not violate the seal of confession — or they will be excommunicated from the Church.”;
“All Catholics must know and be assured that their confessions remain sacred, secure, confidential, and protected by the law of the Church,”; it added.
DAILY POST reports that priests in the Catholic Church have been bound by the absolute seal of confidentiality, an obligation that requires them to keep anything learned in confession a secret.
Meanwhile, the United States Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division has opened an investigation into the law for possible violations of the First Amendment’s religious protections.
