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Newsweek
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
Catholic Church Wrong to Excommunicate Priests Over New Law: Bill's Sponsor
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Washington state Senator Noel Frame has rejected the Catholic Church's claim that it would have to excommunicate priests who comply with her new child abuse reporting law. During an interview with NRP's Dave Miller, she said: "There's nothing to say they cannot change their rules." Newsweek contacted state Senator Frame and the Archdiocese of Seattle for comment via online inquiry form and email respectively on Friday outside of regular office hours. Why It Matters The debate highlights the tension that can exist between what religious groups claim are theological requirements and secular legislation. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon told the New York Post that the new law "demands that Catholic Priests violate their deeply held faith in order to obey the law, a violation of the Constitution and a breach of the free exercise of religion" showing the Trump administration is placing itself firmly on the side of religious authority. What to Know Washington state Governor Bob Ferguson this month signed into law SB 5375, which from July 27 will make it a legal requirement for Catholic priests to report any suspected child abuse or neglect they hear about during confession to the relevant authorities. Catholic clergy were previously exempt as according to church doctrine the content of confession can't be shared without breaking Canon law. The move sparked an angry response from Archbishop Paul Etienne of Seattle who said: "While we remain committed to protecting minors and all vulnerable people from abuse, priests cannot comply with this law if the knowledge of abuse is obtained during the Sacrament of Reconciliation." The Archdiocese of Seattle commented: "All Catholics must know and be assured that their confessions remain sacred, secure, confidential and protected by the law of the Church." Pope Leo XIV meeting with representatives and pilgrims of the Eastern Catholic Churches at the Nervi Hall, on May 14, 2025 in Vatican City, Vatican. Pope Leo XIV meeting with representatives and pilgrims of the Eastern Catholic Churches at the Nervi Hall, on May 14, 2025 in Vatican City, Vatican. Vatican Media/Vatican Pool/GETTY Frame, one of the legislators who sponsored the bill, discussed this issue with NPR's Miller on Wednesday. Herself a survivor of childhood sexual abuse, Frame said she learned clergy were not already mandatory reporters in Washington in response to an investigation into alleged abuse within "the Jehovah's Witness community in Washington state." In response to Archbishop Etienne's comments, Frame said: "We the state of Washington have a secular legislative purpose that is to protect children from abuse and neglect and if faith communities choose through their rules not to protect children from abuse and neglect, we the state are choosing not to be complicit in that choice by their rules." Frame continued: "I am reminded that Canon law has changed many times over the years in the Catholic faith and there's nothing to say they cannot change their rules to allow the reporting of real time abuse and neglect of children. That is within their power to change and I think they should so." Canon law, the legal system governing the Catholic church, has been repeatedly modified over the years. For example, in 2015 Pope Francis streamlined the process for marriage annulments, while in 2021 he amended Canon law to allow women to be formally instituted as lectors and acolytes for the first time. On May 8, senior figures within the Catholic Church elected Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost of Chicago as the next pope, the first American to hold the role. He chose the papal title of Pope Leo XIV. What People Are Saying During the interview Frame said: "So under our current mandatory reporting law that clergy will become apart of, they will have 48 hours to report suspected or known abuse or neglect of a child. They can call law enforcement or they can call that into our department of children, youth and families. People often hear of CPS, or Child Protective Services, they have to call that in within 48 hours so that our state agency or law enforcement can go check on that child and ensure that they are safe while they seek to substantiate whether or not abuse or neglect was happening." Addressing Newsweek, Professor Anthea Butler, chair of the department of Religious Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, commented: "This is about 'the seal of the confessional' That is, the rule that when a priest hears a confession, it cannot be shared. If it is shared, it's breaking Canon Law. A priest can be excommunicated for breaking the seal of the confessional. "The situation, which the Trump administration is looking at, is interesting because there has always been this collision between the law of the local, state and national level and some aspects of canon law. Think about this not only on this level, but in issues of other types of transgressions, like murder. Terrible situation, but the for the priest, they are subject to canon law." What's Next The Trump administration is likely to continue arguing SB 5375 violates legal protections to religious liberty, potentially setting the stage for the issue to be debated in court.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘Excommunicated': WA Archdiocese pushes back against mandatory reporting law, DOJ investigating
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A new Washington law making all clergy mandatory reporters, signed into law by Gov. Bob Ferguson last week, is facing pushback after the Archdiocese of Seattle released a statement that they would excommunicate any Catholic clergy who follow the new law. Beginning as Senate Bill 5375, the law requires clergy members to report any child abuse or neglect, even information shared with a priest during confession. The initial bill was passed through the Senate and House over the last several months and was officially signed into law last Friday. However, in response, Archbishop Paul D. Etienne released a statement from the Archdiocese of Seattle pushing back against the law, which has led to the Washington Department of Justice opening a civil rights investigation into the law's constitutionality. Multnomah County overpaid more than $78K for recruiting services, report finds According to the Archdiocese, the new law requires clergy to 'violate the Seal of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, better known as confession.' In response, Archbishop Etienne cited Acts 5:29, 'We must obey God rather than men,' saying, 'this is our stance now in the face of this new law. Catholic clergy may not violate the seal of confession – or they will be excommunicated from the Church. All Catholics must know and be assured that their confessions remain sacred, secure, confidential and protected by the law of the Church.' The Archbishop added that the church agrees with protecting children and preventing child abuse, noting the Archdiocese of Seattle already has mandatory reporter policies for priests. However, those rules don't apply to information received during confession. On Monday, the announced they are investigating the law, which 'appears on its face to violate the First Amendment.' In a statement, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon called the law a violation of the constitutional right of the free exercise of religion. He also added the law 'singles out' clergy as the only people who can't rely on legal privileges as a defense of mandatory reporting. 'SB 5375 demands that Catholic Priests violate their deeply held faith in order to obey the law, a violation of the Constitution and a breach of the free exercise of religion cannot stand under our Constitutional system of government,' said Dhillon. 'Worse, the law appears to single out clergy as not entitled to assert applicable privileges, as compared to other reporting professionals. We take this matter very seriously and look forward to Washington State's cooperation with our investigation.' Portland archbishop 'stunned' at unprecedented selection of new pope from U.S. The Archdiocese of Seattle cited the text of the First Amendment in their rebuke, specifically where it reads, 'Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.' Furthermore, fearing further incursion into their constitutional rights, they asked the question: With this new law, where is the line drawn between church and state? 'This new law singles out religion and is clearly both government overreach and a double standard,' Archbishop Etienne concluded. 'The line between Church and state has been crossed and needs to be walked back. People of every religion in the State of Washington and beyond should be alarmed by this overreach of our Legislature and Governor.' Although the bill was signed into law by the governor, the new law is not set to take effect until July 2025. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Feds call abuse reporting law "anti-Catholic" as church vows excommunication
The Catholic Church and federal government reacted vehemently to new legislation in Washington state that requires priests to report child abuse or neglect to law enforcement after learning about the crime through confessions. Gov. Mike Ferguson signed the controversial bill into law last week, making it mandatory for all clergy to report child abuse, without exemptions for information disclosed during confession. Confessions were previously considered privileged. The Archdiocese of Seattle — which was made up of 160 priests and 90 permanent deacons as of 2024 — said it will excommunicate priests who comply with the legislation. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice called the law "anti-Catholic" in a statement announcing a probe into the policy, just days before the Vatican selected the first pope from the United States. The Seattle Archdiocese in a statement, warned that breaking the confidence of confession is grounds for a priest to be kicked out of the church, essentially reiterating the rules already established for Catholic clergy. "Catholic clergy may not violate the seal of confession — or they will be excommunicated from the Church," the Archdiocese said. "All Catholics must know and be assured that their confessions remain sacred, secure, confidential and protected by the law of the Church." Too many victims The U.S. Department of Justice said it had opened a civil rights investigation into Washington's law, focusing on how it was developed and eventually passed. It suggested the legislation could be at odds with the First Amendment, with Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon saying the legislation "demands that Catholic Priests violate their deeply held faith in order to obey the law." In the text of Washington's reporting law, "clergy" refers collectively to everyone ordained for religious duties in any religion, but confession as a practice is singled out because of the secrecy around it. Ferguson's office addressed the federal probe in a statement to CBS News. "We look forward to protecting Washington kids from sexual abuse in the face of this 'investigation' from the Trump Administration," the statement said. Washington lawmakers are not the first to try to mandate clergy members to report child abuse, especially as the Catholic Church has increasingly faced public reckonings over sex crimes since the turn of the century. Although a majority of U.S. states already have abuse reporting mandates in place for religious leaders, each of those laws includes a provision exempting information learned through confession. California tried in 2019 to propose a bill that would have required clergy to report abuse without that exemption, but the church fought its passage and the legislature eventually put it on hold. The legislation was originally proposed by Washington State Senator Noel Frame, whose jurisdiction includes Seattle. After two earlier attempts to pass this bill failed because of disagreements about whether confessions should be exempt from reporting mandates, the final version passed during the legislative session this spring. "Far too many children have been victims of abuse," said Frame in a statement once the latest bill had passed in the state Senate. "The Legislature has a duty to act and end the cycles of abuse that can repeat generation after generation. When kids ask for help, we need to be sure that they get help. It's time to pass this bill once and for all." The seal of confession Thomas Plante, a psychologist and professor who has worked with the church for decades and written extensively about child sexual abuse among clerics, said removing exemptions for confession could have unintentionally adverse effects. Plante told CBS News that the "absolute" confidentiality understood to apply in church confessions has, in his experience, encouraged people who have committed crimes to come clean to a priest who has then referred them to a psychologist such as himself. He said multiple patients were referred to him this way over his career, and he then reported the situation to authorities as a medical professional. "The seal of confession, which is sort of a global thing that's been going on for several thousand years, is basically that anything you say under the seal is in complete confidence, and it gives people a place to talk about stuff they can't talk about anywhere else," Plante said. "That's one advantage. People that are involved in a crime or abuse or anything else, they do have a place in the Catholic Church to talk about it with 100% confidentiality." Without that assurance, Plante said he suspects priests in Washington will stop offering confession and instead direct people to seek that service at churches in nearby states. "And I think that would be a terrible tragedy," he said. Confession is a core principle in Catholicism. It calls for private conversations where congregants or laypeople divulge their wrongdoings to a priest, and, in turn, receive forgiveness on behalf of God. Anything said during the exchanges is kept secret. Technically, priests, through their religious oaths, are bound to a seal of confidentiality after hearing confessions, and the church forbids them from sharing the information learned in those sessions with others. Catholic doctrine explicitly prohibits them from notifying authorities even after someone has confessed to a crime. The Seattle Archdiocese said they agree "with the goal of protecting children and preventing child abuse" and are committed to reporting it, as long as the information is acquired in a setting outside of confession. It also accused the state of Washington of violating constitutional protections for religious establishment and free exercise of religion. "With this law, the State of Washington is specifically targeting religious conduct by inserting the government into the Catholic tradition, namely, the highly defined ritual of the Sacrament of Reconciliation," the Archdiocese said."The state is now requiring priests to violate an essential element of the rite, the confidential communication between the priest and penitent in which the absolution of sin is offered." Washington's new law requires priests to share information from confession only if the person confessing admits to abusing a child. Last year, while Washington's current governor, Ferguson, was still the state's attorney general, he pushed to investigate Catholic church leadership in Seattle, Spokane and Yakima for allegedly using charitable funds to cover up allegations of child sex abuse by clergy. But the probe faced challenges as the church refused to cooperate, arguing it did not need to obey subpoenas for its records. Here are some of the front-runners to be the next pope Sneak peek: The Depraved Heart Murder Fraud | Sunday on 60 Minutes
Yahoo
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Catholic Church to excommunicate priests for following WA law requiring child abuse confessions to be reported
Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Yahoo is using AI to generate takeaways from this article. This means the info may not always match what's in the article. Reporting mistakes helps us improve the experience. Generate Key Takeaways The Catholic Church announced that priests will be excommunicated if they follow a new Washington state law requiring clergy to report confessions about child abuse to law enforcement. "Catholic clergy may not violate the seal of confession — or they will be excommunicated from the Church," the Archdiocese of Seattle said in a statement. "All Catholics must know and be assured that their confessions remain sacred, secure, confidential and protected by the law of the Church." "The Catholic Church agrees with the goal of protecting children and preventing child abuse," the statement added, noting that it "remains committed to reporting child sexual abuse, working with victim survivors towards healing and protecting all minors and vulnerable people." The new law — signed by Democrat Gov. Bob Ferguson last week — added "members of the clergy" to a list of professionals who are required to report information that relates to child abuse or neglect to law enforcement, and the measure does not provide an exception for information offered at a confession booth. Doj Investigating 'Anti-catholic' Washington State Law Requiring Clergy To Report Child Abuse The Catholic Church announced that priests will be excommunicated if they follow a new Washington state law requiring clergy to report confessions about child abuse to law enforcement. Priests in the Catholic Church have been bound by the absolute seal of confidentiality, an obligation that requires them to keep anything learned in confession a secret. Read On The Fox News App The Archdiocese of Seattle said its policies already require priests to be mandatory reporters unless the information is received during confession. "While we remain committed to protecting minors and all vulnerable people from abuse, priests cannot comply with this law if the knowledge of abuse is obtained during the Sacrament of Reconciliation," its statement said. Utah Bill Would Protect Clergy Members When Reporting Child Abuse To Police Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson signed the bill into law last week. The U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division has opened an investigation into the law for possible violations of the First Amendment's religious protections. "SB 5375 demands that Catholic Priests violate their deeply held faith in order to obey the law, a violation of the Constitution and a breach of the free exercise of religion cannot stand under our Constitutional system of government," Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the DOJ's Civil Rights Division said. "Worse, the law appears to single out clergy as not entitled to assert applicable privileges, as compared to other reporting professionals," she continued. "We take this matter very seriously and look forward to Washington State's cooperation with our investigation." The U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division has opened an investigation into the law for possible violations of the First Amendment. The bill will go into effect on July 26. Washington is one of just five states that does not explicitly or implicitly require clergy to report suspected child abuse or neglect, a federal report shows, according to Fox 13. Most states exempt information obtained through confession from mandatory reporting, but Washington now joins just a handful of states that do not provide such exemptions. "This new law singles out religion and is clearly both government overreach and a double standard," the Archdiocese of Seattle said. "The line between Church and state has been crossed and needs to be walked back. People of every religion in the State of Washington and beyond should be alarmed by this overreach of our Legislature and Governor." Original article source: Catholic Church to excommunicate priests for following WA law requiring child abuse confessions to be reported
Fox News
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Catholic Church to excommunicate priests for following WA law requiring child abuse confessions to be reported
The Catholic Church announced that priests will be excommunicated if they follow a new Washington state law requiring clergy to report confessions about child abuse to law enforcement. "Catholic clergy may not violate the seal of confession — or they will be excommunicated from the Church," the Archdiocese of Seattle said in a statement. "All Catholics must know and be assured that their confessions remain sacred, secure, confidential and protected by the law of the Church." "The Catholic Church agrees with the goal of protecting children and preventing child abuse," the statement added, noting that it "remains committed to reporting child sexual abuse, working with victim survivors towards healing and protecting all minors and vulnerable people." The new law — signed by Democrat Gov. Bob Ferguson last week — added "members of the clergy" to a list of professionals who are required to report information that relates to child abuse or neglect to law enforcement, and the measure does not provide an exception for information offered at a confession booth. DOJ INVESTIGATING 'ANTI-CATHOLIC' WASHINGTON STATE LAW REQUIRING CLERGY TO REPORT CHILD ABUSE Priests in the Catholic Church have been bound by the absolute seal of confidentiality, an obligation that requires them to keep anything learned in confession a secret. The Archdiocese of Seattle said its policies already require priests to be mandatory reporters unless the information is received during confession. "While we remain committed to protecting minors and all vulnerable people from abuse, priests cannot comply with this law if the knowledge of abuse is obtained during the Sacrament of Reconciliation," its statement said. UTAH BILL WOULD PROTECT CLERGY MEMBERS WHEN REPORTING CHILD ABUSE TO POLICE The U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division has opened an investigation into the law for possible violations of the First Amendment's religious protections. "SB 5375 demands that Catholic Priests violate their deeply held faith in order to obey the law, a violation of the Constitution and a breach of the free exercise of religion cannot stand under our Constitutional system of government," Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the DOJ's Civil Rights Division said. "Worse, the law appears to single out clergy as not entitled to assert applicable privileges, as compared to other reporting professionals," she continued. "We take this matter very seriously and look forward to Washington State's cooperation with our investigation." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The bill will go into effect on July 26. Washington is one of just five states that does not explicitly or implicitly require clergy to report suspected child abuse or neglect, a federal report shows, according to Fox 13. Most states exempt information obtained through confession from mandatory reporting, but Washington now joins just a handful of states that do not provide such exemptions. "This new law singles out religion and is clearly both government overreach and a double standard," the Archdiocese of Seattle said. "The line between Church and state has been crossed and needs to be walked back. People of every religion in the State of Washington and beyond should be alarmed by this overreach of our Legislature and Governor."
