When the Victorian government announced in April 2012 a public inquiry into the processes for handling alleged criminal abuse by members of the Catholic Church and other organisations, it was only a matter of time before people and organisations began to campaign for the privileged seal of confession to be overturned. This has been tried before, for example, when the IRA were bombing pubs in England. People were saying that if a bomber confessed to an act of violence to a priest that the priest must, by law, give this evidence to the police. Similarly today, people say any confessed act of abuse must be reported to the police.
People have always been intrigued by the seal of confession; it is generally accepted, certainly among Catholics that a priest will never "tell" what he has heard in confession even if he has to suffer or even die to maintain the integrity of the seal of confession. Sixty nine years ago last month a young New Zealand Columban priest, Fr Francis Vernon Douglas, was caught up in events that cost him his life. The Second World War was raging in the Philippines and Fr Douglas was declared a neutral party which meant that as a missionary priest he could devote himself to the spiritual needs of the Filipino people in his parish but not take sides.
Unfortunately, his neutrality was compromised when he received an aid call from a guerrilla camp in the mountains which turned out, not to be an aid call for the sick, but a request from three young Americans soldiers in the company of the guerrillas. Fr Douglas was furious. This had nothing to do with confession and spies were everywhere. Fr Douglas was arrested, tortured for three days and then executed. Unfortunately his body has never been recovered.
He could have spoken about the clandestine journey to the Japanese military police but chose not to. The seal of confession did not require him to be silent about those matters but he was. Other reports say that members of the guerrilla forces would sneak down from the mountains and go to confession with him. That information was a different matter and he could not reveal it. His decision to remain silent covered all the bases. Patricia Brooks has written a short history of his life, With No Regrets which gives us an insight into the harrowing days of Japanese occupation in the Philippines and his death amidst the deaths of thousands of people. He was faithful to what he believed and received from the Church. Patricia Brooks' book and an article based upon it were published in the July issue of The Far East magazine.
The seal of confession is an important part of our Catholic tradition and even though many people do not frequent confession (reconciliation) these days they know the sacrament guarantees confidentiality. A priest who deliberately breaks the confidentiality of the sacrament of penance is automatically excommunicated and has to apply to the Holy See for re-instatement.
To break trust is a serious issue in the life of the Church and the mistrust that follows takes time and effort to counter; we are experiencing this in the life of the Church at present. It is a singularly humbling experience to be a confessor; I try not to take for granted the extraordinary trust that people put in me, not personally but as a priest. Sometimes we need the martyrs who stand for what is precious and non-negotiable, actions always speak louder than words.
Fr Gary Walker
director@columban.org.au
Read more from The Far East, August 2012
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LISTEN TO: From the Director - To break trust is a serious issue |