Bishops Seek Pope's Guidance over Sex Abuse [Catholic Caucus]

Australia's most senior Catholic leaders will ask the Pope to settle the issue of whether the seal of confession can be broken to protect children from sexual abuse as one likened it to bugging the confessional.

Sydney Archbishop Anthony Fisher said for a priest to repeat anything that has occurred during confession would be a very serious breach of trust and the sacrament.

Archbishop Fisher said he could not withhold absolution from someone who confessed to abusing a child and if they were genuinely contrite would forgive their sin, as he would a terrorist or a murderer.

'What I can't do is effectively bug the confessional on behalf of the state to use it to a way of reporting crimes retrospective or prospective,' he told the child sex abuse royal commission.

Commission chair Justice Peter McClellan said two paedophiles confessed to each other and felt able to then move on and continue to offend.

'Outsiders to the church would see that as a blatant abuse of the process,' he told the Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide archbishops.

The commission's 15th and final hearing into the Catholic Church, which ended on Friday, included debate about whether the seal effectively protects everything said in the confessional, including if a child reveals they are being abused.

Commissioner Andrew Murray challenged the five metropolitan archbishops on whether they had the courage and fortitude to take the matter to the Pope and push for changes to canon law and general instructions to bishops and priests.

Adelaide Archbishop Philip Wilson said Australia's bishops would take the confession questions and other matters raised by the royal commission to the Holy See after their plenary meeting in May.

'There's no reason why we, the bishops of Australia, can't get together and prepare material about this with these questions that have been raised and actually send a delegation ... to Rome to see the Pope,' he said.

'The crucial thing would be to go to Pope Francis and just explain our dilemma to him and I'm sure that in the spirit of his ministry, he would get something done about it quickly.'

The Australian church is setting up a new professional standards body to ensure child protection standards are set.

It will name and shame those who don't comply but the commission has also heard the board members have broad powers not to disclose audits.

'Clearly what we don't want is any risk of returning to the era of cover-ups and excuses and avoiding scrutiny.'

I was at a Mass in high school when everyone obtained a general absolution as the Priest made a public confession.

Unless the people at mass were in immediate danger of death, the priest was wrong to give general absolution. I'm assuming he didn't hear individual confessions before giving absolution. Also the way you worded the statement made it sound like the priest was confessing instead of the individuals at mass. This is an abuse which some priests are known for. Note that even when a general absolution is given in the correct circumstances (e.g. we are boarding life boats on the Titanic), the penitent if he survives is obligated to go to individual confession asap. Now this is different than some masses or lenten services where multiple priests will be available before and/or after mass to hear confessions. I agree this is laudible, and may help bring people back to the sacrament. Finally, if you did receive a general absolution when the priest shouldn't have, and one is honestly ignorant of the need to go to confession asap afterwards, the sacrament is still valid and the sins are forgiven. Now If you will forgive me as I get up on my soapbox, and this is bot directed at you personally. The church requires that everyone go to confession once a year. But realistically, the vast majority of us sinners need confession between once a week and once a month. That's not from me but a general guideline from most good priests. Ask your confessor how often if he is a good confessor. If he is a bad or lazy confessor- try to get another confessor. If you are stuck with only having access to a bad/lazy confessor, then pray hard and listen to God about how often you should go. If you don't know if you have a good confessor I will give one indicator I go by- if they only offer unscheduled confession one day a week for an hour or less I would be wary (assuming it is not an overstretched priest who is covering 4 different parishes). Of course if during confession they teach contrary to the faith then that is another obvious red flag (e.g. stating that viewing pornography or other violations of the sixth commandment is not a sin.)

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