Confession can’t be coercive

Bishop Girotti of the Vatican’s Apostolic Penitentiary reportedly said that a priest who confesses sexual abuse should generally not be encouraged to disclose his acts publicly or to his superiors. Yet in your response to a questioner, you said that a priest who hears the confession of an abusive priest will probably strongly urge the penitent to go public and find ways to rid himself of his personal guilt. There is a glaring difference between the Vatican statement and your own view, which fills me with dismay, confusion and anger.

Bishop Girotti supported his statement by saying that on the one hand the sacramental seal of the confession must remain inviolable and, on the other hand, one cannot provoke mistrust in the penitent.

The sacramental seal cannot be broken if the penitent tells the outside world of his sin and his guilt. The seal is broken only if the priest reveals what he has heard under the seal, which he may never do. If the penitent himself discloses his guilt to others, it is difficult to see how he will mistrust confessing his sins in the sacrament of reconciliation after receiving absolution.

What Bishop Girotti seems to be implying is that the confessor may never tell the penitent that he will absolve him now on condition that the penitent goes public later. To do so would indeed cause fear of confessing. The confidential nature of the seal must never be directly or indirectly associated with what may become public later.

The Church has been tainted by the scandal of abusive priests and the emotional catastrophe suffered by their victims. The cry now is that no members of the clergy must be protected from taking the social consequences of their abusive actions, and no authority may dare to turn a blind eye to abuse in the name of the good of the Church.

With this as its context, my column suggested that a confessor will probably strongly urge the penitent cleric to go public and face the music, which may not necessarily result in a court case. Depending on the particular circumstances of the case, perhaps this could bring closure to the mess affecting Church, society and family. Strongly urging is not coercion. The penitent must always be free to make up his own mind.