Folia Theologica et Canonica 11. 33/25 (2022)
Ius canonicum
MANDATORY REPORTING LEGISLATION AND THE SEAL OF CONFESSION... 131 mortale Dei that the Church is a perfect society and that the Church is not in any way subject to the civil power: The Church, according to her nature and her rights, is a perfect society, as she possesses in herself and by herself, by the will and the goodness of her Founder, everything that is necessary for her existence and her efficacy. As the aim which the Church pursues is the most sublime, so also her power is the most eminent, and it cannot be considered as being less that the civil power or in any way subject to the civil power.22 Pope Leo XIII teaches on the relation of the Church to the civil power that “each of them is in its nature supreme. Each has definite limits, within which it must remain, limits which are determined by its nature and its immediate purpose.”23 Pope Pius IX rejected in the Syllabus (1864) the subordination of the Church power to the power of the State.24 Pope Paul VI gave a good summary of this concept in the legislation reorganizing the papal legates, Sollicitudo omnium Ecclesiarum25 (1969): It is indisputable that the ends of Church and State belong to different orders, and that both are perfect societies, that is to say, they are independent in their respective spheres of action, and have proper means to achieve those ends. They possess their proper jurisdiction and all necessary means to achieve their ends. On the other hand, it must not be overlooked that they are both aiming at a similar welfare, namely that the people of God is to obtain eternal salvation (...). Therefore, it seems that there are other ways to achieve a safe environment for minors26 in the Church than mandating the priests to violate the seal of confession. A more effective prevention of abuse can be achieved by screening candidates for priesthood, adopting policies, and suitably training priests for the confessional. This will help priests to make wise decisions, when victims and perpetrators approach them in the confessional. It will be the topic of the article after this one. It is very surprising that there are even a few voices in the Church who are suggesting the abolishment of clergy-penitent privilege in cases of abuse, such 22 Leo XIII, Immortale Dei, 161-180. 23 DS 186. 24 DS 1719-1741, 1749; cf. CIC (1917) Can. 2333. 25 See the original text in Latin in AAS 61 (1969) 473-484, and here: https://www.vatican.va/content/paul-vi/la/motu_proprio/documents/hf_p-vi_motu-proprio_19690624_sollicitudo-omnium-ecclesiarum.html (consulted: 1/31/2023). 26 See Foster, M. S., The Promotion of the Canonical Rights of Children, in CLSA Proceedings 59(1997) 163-203.
