Australia's Catholic Church stands firm against reporting child abuse revealed in confession

By Siobhán O'Grady
August 31 at 12:20 PM

In Australia, sex abuse in the Catholic Church has been so pervasive that thousands of people may be eligible for compensation. A five-year national inquiry into the abuse found that 7 percent of Australia's Catholic priests were accused of abusing children between 1950 and 2010.

But on Friday, leaders from Australia's Catholic Church said they would not mandate priests who are told about acts of child abuse and pedophilia during the sacrament of confession to share that information with any other parties, including police.

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse had recommended that the Catholic Church consult with the Holy See to determine whether, if a child informs a priest during confession that they have been sexually abused, it is covered by the seal of confession. The same recommendation also sought clarification on whether, if one admits to perpetrating abuse of a child, “absolution can and should be withheld until they report themselves to civil authorities."

It was one of many recommendations the commission offered to the church — of which Australian Catholic leaders say they plan to adopt about 98 percent. But breaking the confessional seal? Brisbane Archbishop Mark Coleridge, who serves as president of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, told reporters on Friday that it's an absolute no.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2018/08/31/despite-scandals-australias-catholic-church-stands-firm-against-reporting-child-abuse-revealed-confession/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.820a35f01784