Oh no, imagine the horror of pedophiles not feeling safe in Catholic churches.
Back in the 1930s, there was a catholic priest in the USA, Charles Coughlin, who collaborated with the German Nazis and gave anti-Semitic speeches written by Hitler on the radio to millions of people, and even organized a paramilitary army to overthrow the American government (which was stopped by the FBI) because, among other things, he considered President Roosevelt to be a Jew - and the Catholic Church did NOT excommunicate him, but they will excommunicate any priest who reports a pedophile to the police.
Quote:Catholic bishops sue Washington over law requiring priests to break secrecy on child abuse
A group of Catholic bishops and priests in Washington state filed a federal lawsuit Thursday, challenging a new Washington law requiring priests to report suspected child abuse or neglect shared during confessionals.
This law requires reporting abuse even if it is disclosed during the Catholic sacrament of confession.
Other mandatory reporters include school personnel, nurses, social service counselors, and psychologists.
Earlier in May, Bishop Thomas Daly of Spokane expressed opposition to the law, speaking for other Catholic bishops and priests that they are “prepared to face jail rather than violate the rules of the church.”
Violating the law can result in up to 364 days in jail and a $5,000 fine.
The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court in Tacoma, arguing that the law violates parts of the First Amendment by forcing priests to either go against their church’s law or face criminal charges.
Any priest who discloses information given in confession is automatically excommunicated, according to canon law.
“Washington’s law isn’t about protecting kids — it’s about jailing priests for following the Church’s ancient faith practices,” said Mark Rienzi, who serves as president and CEO of Becket, the religious liberty law firm representing the bishops.
“We’re asking the court to step in and stop the state from turning a sanctuary for the soul into a tool of surveillance,” he added.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/...ild-abuse/
Back in the 1930s, there was a catholic priest in the USA, Charles Coughlin, who collaborated with the German Nazis and gave anti-Semitic speeches written by Hitler on the radio to millions of people, and even organized a paramilitary army to overthrow the American government (which was stopped by the FBI) because, among other things, he considered President Roosevelt to be a Jew - and the Catholic Church did NOT excommunicate him, but they will excommunicate any priest who reports a pedophile to the police.
teachings of the Bible are so muddled and self-contradictory that it was possible for Christians to happily burn heretics alive for five long centuries. It was even possible for the most venerated patriarchs of the Church, like St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas, to conclude that heretics should be tortured (Augustine) or killed outright (Aquinas). Martin Luther and John Calvin advocated the wholesale murder of heretics, apostates, Jews, and witches. - Sam Harris, "Letter To A Christian Nation"
