French Church and state at odds over sex abuse confessions

FAN Editor

France’s government has summoned the head of the French Catholic bishops’ conference after he said that secrets shared in the confessional are above the law

PARIS — France’s government has summoned the head of the French bishops’ conference after he said that secrets shared in the confessional are above the law, as the country reels from new revelations of large-scale child sex abuse within the Catholic Church.

The comments came in response to recommendations in a study released Tuesday estimating that some 330,000 children were sexually abused over 70 years by priests or other church-related figures.

The report describes “systemic” coverup of abuses by the Catholic Church, and urged the church to respect the rule of law in France. The church should send clear instructions to clergy receiving confession that they are legally obliged to report any cases of sexual violence against a child or vulnerable person to judicial authorities, the report stated in its recommendations.

France is a traditionally Roman Catholic country, but adheres to a strict form of secularism in public life based on a 1905 law separating church and state.

French government spokesman Gabriel Attal insisted Thursday that “nothing is stronger than the laws of the republic.”

The bishop has been summoned for a meeting next week with Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, Attal said.

According to Catholic doctrine, the confessional seal is inviolable, and the Catholic Church has refused similar demands to force priests to report sex crimes that they learn about in confession to police.

Free America Network Articles

Leave a Reply

Next Post

Senate is getting closer to reaching a deal on the nation's debt limit

Senate is getting closer to reaching a deal on the nation’s debt limit – CBS News Watch CBSN Live Congress has less than two weeks before the October 18 deadline to pass raising the nation’s debt limit. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he would allow Democrats to pass a short-term […]