Bishops of Washington, USA, demand by law that forces priests to violate confession secret

The Catholic bishops of the state of Washington (United States) They filed a lawsuit On Thursday, challenging a new law that requires priests to denounce child abuse known during the sacrament of confession, under penalty of jail and fines.

The demand, presented by the Archdiocese of Seattle and the dioceses of Spokane and Yakima, argues that The law Viola the free exercise of religion protected by the first amendment by violating the sacred stealth of confession. The claim also maintains that the law violates the clause of equal protection of the fourteenth amendment, as well as the constitution of the Washington state.

Signed by Governor Bob Ferguson on May 2, the law enters into force on July 27 and adds the list of people forced to denounce child abuse in Washington, but explicitly denies them the exemption of “privileged communication” granted to other professionals, such as nurses and therapists.

Priests who do not denounce known abuses in confession could face up to 364 days in jail and a fine of $ 5,000. Ferguson, who is Catholic, defended the measure earlier this month, saying that he is “very familiar” with confession, but considered the law as an “important legislation” to protect children.

In the lawsuit, presented in a Federal District Court, the bishops emphasize the commitment of the Catholic Church to the protection of children, while defending the inviolability of the stealth of the confession.

“In line with the efforts of the Roman Catholic Church to eradicate the social scourge of child abuse, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle and the dioceses of Yakima and Spokane have adopted and implemented policies in their respective dioceses that go beyond the current requirements of Washington’s law on the denunciation of child abuse and negligence,” says the demand.

It is pointed out that these policies require denouncing suspicions of abuse by the Church personnel, including the clergy, except when the information is known only in confession, which is protected by “more than 2,000 years of church doctrine”.

El Obispo de Spokane, Mons. Thomas Daly, In a statement earlier this monthpromised that the clergy would not break the stealth of confession, even if that meant going to jail. “I want to assure you that their shepherds, bishops and priests are committed to maintaining the stealth of confession, even to the point of going to jail,” Daly said in his message to the faithful. “The sacrament of penance is sacred and will remain in the diocese of Spokane.”

El Arzobispo de Seattle, Mons. Paul D. Etienne, He echoed this positionciting canon law, which prohibits priests from betraying the confession of a penitent under penalty of excommunication. Etienne cited the words of St. Peter in Acts 5.29 – “We must obey God before men” – to underline the position of the Church.

The Catholic Conference of the State of Washington reaffirmed its commitment to child security while defending the holiness of confession, urging Catholics to trust that “their confessions remain sacred, safe, confidential and protected by the law of the Church.”

The United States Department of Justice, under the government of President Donald Trump, He started an investigation on the law on May 6, qualifying it as an “anti -Catholic” measure. The United States attached attorney general, Harmeet Dhillon, He described it as a “legislative attack against the Catholic Church and its sacrament of confession”, arguing that discriminates the clergy by denying them privileges granted to other professionals.

The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, the non -profit organization First Liberty Institute and the Wilmerha law firm represent the bishops of Washington.

At the close of the publication, the Ferguson office had not responded to the request for comments of CNA, an agency in English of Ewtn News.

Translated and adapted by the ACI Press team. Originally published in CNA.