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| Modern Confessional (Photo: Adam Smith) |
The confession of sin has long been an integral part of the Catholic Church. However, when sin is also a crime, how secret should this confession be?
That very question is being hotly debated in both religious and legal circles. Melinda Deslatte of The Associated Press reports that a recent Louisiana Supreme Court decision “revives a lawsuit that contends a priest should have reported allegations of sexual abuse disclosed to him during private confessions and opens the door for a judge to call the priest to testify about what he was told.”
This stance could put priests in the position of having to choose “between prison and excommunication.” It
could also make
parishioners quite wary about what they choose to confess.
Determining whether or not disclosures are confessions or “just the relaying of abuse” is another growing edge of this dilemma that reaches into the very core of Catholic doctrine.
Resources
http://news.yahoo.com/louisiana-ruling-confession-rankles-catholics-212512280.html
Copyright July 12, 2014 by Linda Van Slyke All Rights Reserved
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