http://us24h.org/catholic-archbishop-id-rather-go-to-prison-than-report-child-abuse-to-police/
Australia’s most powerful clergy, Archbishop of Melbourne Denis Hart, says he’s prepared to be jailed for failing to report child sex abuse by pedophile priests.
He made the shocking statement in response to the Australian Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse saying there should be “no excuse, protection nor privilege” for clergy who failed to alert police of abuse.
Hart insisted that sexual abuse was “a spiritual encounter with God through the priest” and was “of a higher order” than criminal law.
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cutelobster ago
"Hart insisted that sexual abuse was “a spiritual encounter with God through the priest” and was “of a higher order” than criminal law." This sentence makes no sense - it is not what he is arguing. What he is saying is that the sacrament of confession is "a spiritual encounter" etc. The argument is that disclosures made during confession should be privileged. You may disagree with that, but there is no point in misrepresenting him.