Divided loyalties !

The coming Royal Commission into the sexual abuse of children is surely going to throw the spotlight on the Catholic Church's " Seal of the Confessional " ruling.   It is a teaching of the church that all parishioners have a duty to attend mass and confess their sins, and accordingly the priest can grant absolution and thereby save their soul.

The sticking point is the claim that matters disclosed in such confessions are a bond between the sinner - and God !    Accordingly, the church claims that the " Seal of the Confessional " applies, and the priest who heard the confession is obliged to treat it with secrecy.

This comes into conflict with the laws of Australia which require any person having knowledge of such wrongdoing as the sexual abuse of children - to report that matter to the police.   A priest who hears such a confession and fails to report it as required is guilty of a law breach and may face prosecution.  In the past, the courts have been uneasy with this conflict between church and state and in many cases the judiciary have not pressed the priest to make a choice as to which of these divided loyalties is paramount.

There is an expectation that the Royal Commission will make a finding that makes the obligations of priests crystal clear.   If that finding requires priests to obey their duty under civil law there is every chance that the law of Australia will come into conflict with the Pope, the head of the Roman Catholic church. If the " Seal of the Confessional " is ordered to be disregarded by Australian courts, the Pope will have no option but to give a Papal ruling, and if that conflicts with the law of the country in which a priest reside - then a serious clash of church and state will be obvious.

Who has the paramount loyalty has been a struggle between members of all religions for centuries.  In times of war, priests have attended to the religious needs of warriors on both sides of the battle lines - and in most cases have preached the contention that " God is on our side ! ".   We constantly see warfare between the followers of religions that share the same God, but differ on minor matters of procedure.   They seem quite happy to slaughter one another mercilessly, egged on by their religious advisers..   Religion has been the cause of many wars over the centuries.

All religions have their share of paedophile priests but Catholicism has a long history of simply moving offenders to a remote parish and covering up the crime, all in an attempt to preserve the good name of the church.   The fact that this has been happening in countless countries suggests it may have been done on orders from head office.

The outcome of this Royal Commission remains to be seen, but if it requires the Seal of the Confessional to be broken whenever a priest is called to give evidence in court it would seem logical that those attending confession be made aware of this priestly duty.   It would also help if the priest forewarned the penitent that he would cut short the confession if it contained any matter that he was obliged to report to the police.

Unfortunately, this matter can only result in schism, whichever way it goes.   There are fanatical Catholics who will not accept a legal constraint on religious dogma and there are countless citizens who demand that the law applies to each and every citizen in this country.

The only certainty is that sexual abuse of children will no longer be hidden in the shadows.  The most powerful legal tool available has been brought to bear to drag this issue into the open and people of goodwill from all religions will not let it rest.