The Boston Globe reports:
"The Roman Catholic Church’s rite of confession must remain confidential, even if someone tells a priest that a child has been abused, the bishop who leads Vermont’s diocese testified Friday."
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"Bishop Christopher Coyne told the state Senate Judiciary Committee that the church is opposed to a bill that would remove an exemption from Vermont’s child abuse and neglect reporting laws. Clergy are currently not required to report potential evidence of such crimes if they learn of it in confidence while acting as a spiritual advisor."
An article from National Public Radio addressed the problem of the Catholic religion creating laws that protect themselves while having little or no affiliation to the teachings of the Bible.
"Among the potential victims of the Catholic clergy abuse crisis is one whose roots date to the early years of Christianity: the Catholic canon law system.
Each new revelation that a priest has molested a child and gone unpunished by his bishop has brought charges that part of the problem may be canonical procedures that fail to ensure justice for the victim.
The Roman Catholic church has long had its own legal system, incorporating a judicial framework and a complex set of laws, or canons, regulating church organization. Critics, however, say canon laws assign excessive importance to the protection of church institutions, encourage secrecy over transparency, and favor rehabilitating wayward priests rather than punishing them. While abusive priests can be defrocked for misconduct, the church cannot send anyone to prison."
