Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Evangelical
Politics and Religion
Louisiana court challenges seal of confession

Louisiana court challenges seal of confession

Last updated on: July 26, 2014 at 11:16 am by Gene Veith

0 Comments

Louisiana court challenges seal of confession 2014-07-26T11:16:01-04:00 Gene Veith

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

We blogged about how Anglicans in Australia are doing away with the absolute “seal of confession”–that is, the pastor’s pledge of total confidentiality when they hear penitents confess their sins. Now an American court is trying to do the same thing, forcing a Roman Catholic priest to testify about what he heard in the confessional from an accused child abuser. [UDATE: In the very interesting discussion that is waging, Jeremiah pointed out that I got this wrong, that it wasn’t the confession of the abuser but that of the abused child that is at issue.]From Aaron Taylor, Uncle Sam Eavesdropping Outside the Confessional | Aaron Taylor | First Things:

The Louisiana Supreme Court is seeking to compel Fr. Jeff Bayhi, a priest of the Diocese of Baton Rouge, to testify about what he heard in the confessional concerning a case of child abuse. If subpoenaed to testify and asked about what he heard during confession, the court will effectively be asking Fr. Bayhi to choose between being sent to prison and committing what Catholics consider to be such a serious offense against the sacrament that not even the Pope himself can dispense from the law’s requirements in this area. As an indication of the seriousness of the matter, the Fourth Lateran Council in 1215 decreed that violators of the seal of confession should be “deposed from the priestly office” and then “consigned to a closed monastery for perpetual penance.”

If the evidence offered so far in the case is accurate, then there are serious questions surrounding Fr. Bayhi’s fitness for priestly ministry. A deposition heard by the court alleges that when a 14-year-old girl asked the priest for advice on how to fend off inappropriate advances from a 64-year-old parishioner, he simply told her, “this is your problem; sweep it under the floor and get rid of it.” If this allegation is true (and here we must remember that Fr. Bayhi has absolutely no way of defending himself against it even if he wants to), then what happened was an appalling dereliction of duty on the priest’s part for which he would have to answer to God.

But the fact that there may be bad confessors who fail to care properly for their penitents does not mean that the government has the power to regulate the worship of the Catholic Church. We are not even talking, in this case, about the role of the Church in the “public square,” but about the Church’s internal sacramental life. The secrecy of the confessional seal is an integral part of the Catholic faith concerning this sacrament, and, regardless of the small number of Catholics who actually confess these days, the celebration of this sacrament goes right to the heart of the Christian religion. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us, “the Gospel is the revelation in Jesus Christ of God’s mercy to sinners,” and for many Catholics over the centuries the sacrament of confession has been the means through which God’s mercy is most viscerally conveyed to them at the moments during their lives when they are the most vulnerable.

Mr. Taylor goes on to cite other confidential relationships that the law recognizes: attorney/client, physician/patient. One could add that spouses may not be forced to testify against each other. Nor may an individual be compelled to testify against himself. But the traditional guarantee of confidentiality between pastor and church member–which is not just a Roman Catholic requirement but is also a professional requirement for Protestants–seems to be in jeopardy.

Is this another case of religious liberty being threatened?

seal of the confession

Previous Post

July 24, 2014

Elizabeth Warren's 11 tenets of Progressivism

Next Post

July 25, 2014 Do kids raised by same-sex couples really fare better?

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"While she worked for Trump she was a tool's tool!"

reg

Luther on Tools

"I know wired earbuds are making a comeback (I never stopped using them as I ..."

reg

Luther on Tools

"VCRs, tape decks, and cassette players are all having a revival among a segment of ..."

Tom Hering

Luther on Tools

"As a (retired) lawyer I see potential liability from sharing things like power or sharp ..."

reg

Luther on Tools

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category America Apologetics Art baseball Bible Blog Christ Church crime Culture Economics Education Ethics Family Food Football Government History Holidays Holy Week Humor International Islam Language Law Life Issues Literature Media Medicine Movies Music Nature News Personal Philosophy Politics psychology Reformation Religions Sacraments Science sex Social Science Sports technology television terrorism Theology Uncategorized Vocation war

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

True or False: Song of Solomon is also called Song of Songs.

Select your answer to see how you score.

FALSE TRUE

Books by This Author Books by Gene Veith

See All Titles »