Crown and Crozier
In Crown and Crozier, we invite leading thinkers to explore how the human experience is shaped by the interplay between Church and State, and what this means for tackling the great challenges of today. Join us as we examine what’s at stake for us as citizens and as a society in the dynamic engagement between civil and religious authority. The common good, basic freedoms, dignity of the person, administration of justice, self-government, the preservation of truth, goodness and beauty - all this and more hangs in the balance.
Crown and Crozier
U.S. States Take Aim at the Seal of Confession ~ Eric Kniffin
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Season 3
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Episode 17
Does protecting kids mean we have to turn priests into government informants?
It might sound like a far-fetched question. But during their recent legislative sessions, a few U.S. state legislatures found themselves wrestling with this exact question.
Under the guise of seeking to strengthen measures to safeguard children, several legislative proposals would have required priests to violate the seal of confession if information regarding incidents of abuse came to their attention in the confessional.
Joining us to discuss the profound implications of these bills is someone who had a front-row seat during the debates in the state legislatures which were recently examining this issue.
Eric Kniffin is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and has been an attorney focused on religious liberty for almost 20 years. He worked in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice during the George W. Bush Administration. In private practice, Eric has defended hundreds of religious employers from federal mandates regarding contraception, abortifacients and gender transition.
Resources & References
@ekniffin (Twitter)
Eric Kniffin (biography)
Eric Kniffin, “Attacks on the Seal of the Confessional”, First Things (March 30, 2023)
Ethics and Public Policy Center, “EPPC Scholar Urges Washington State Not to Pressure Clergy to Violate Seal of the Confessional” (March 21, 2023)
Jason Dearen and Michael Rezendes, “Churches defend clergy loophole in child sex abuse reporting”, Associated Press (September 28, 2022)
It might sound like a far-fetched question. But during their recent legislative sessions, a few U.S. state legislatures found themselves wrestling with this exact question.
Under the guise of seeking to strengthen measures to safeguard children, several legislative proposals would have required priests to violate the seal of confession if information regarding incidents of abuse came to their attention in the confessional.
Joining us to discuss the profound implications of these bills is someone who had a front-row seat during the debates in the state legislatures which were recently examining this issue.
Eric Kniffin is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and has been an attorney focused on religious liberty for almost 20 years. He worked in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice during the George W. Bush Administration. In private practice, Eric has defended hundreds of religious employers from federal mandates regarding contraception, abortifacients and gender transition.
Resources & References
@ekniffin (Twitter)
Eric Kniffin (biography)
Eric Kniffin, “Attacks on the Seal of the Confessional”, First Things (March 30, 2023)
Ethics and Public Policy Center, “EPPC Scholar Urges Washington State Not to Pressure Clergy to Violate Seal of the Confessional” (March 21, 2023)
Jason Dearen and Michael Rezendes, “Churches defend clergy loophole in child sex abuse reporting”, Associated Press (September 28, 2022)
podcast@crownandcrozier.com
www.crownandcrozier.com
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Please note that this podcast has been edited for length and clarity.