A new law requiring priests to break the seal of the confessional is “premature and ill-judged”, the Archbishop of Brisbane has said. His Grace Archbishop Mark Coleridge, President of the Australian bishops’ conference, said the law in Australian Capital Territory (ACT) was “seemingly driven by a desire to penalize the Catholic Church without properly considering the ramifications of the decision”.
Priests in Canberra now face criminal charges for maintaining the seal of the confessional where someone confesses to child sexual abuse under new legislation passed by the ACT assembly. The move has sparked fears that other Australian states and territories could introduce similar requirements. As reported by Catholic Herald, Canberra and Goulburn Archbishop Christopher Prowse remarked that “The Government threatens religious freedom by appointing itself an expert on religious practices and by attempting to change the sacrament of confession while delivering no improvement in the safety of children.”
His Excellency Archbishop also reminded that “One can only hope that other jurisdictions will be more considered in their decisions and more willing to listen to the voices of Catholic clergy and people than the ACT authorities seem to have been.”
