Milwaukee Archbishop Jerome Listecki sanctioned retired Father James Connell for publicly supporting a proposed Delaware bill forcing priests to break the seal of confession and to report "child abuse" and "neglect" (sic) while upholding the client-attorney privilege.
Connell is a former Vice Chancellor for Milwaukee Archdiocese. He considers an alleged "protection of children" a greater good than free exercise of religion.
Listecki forbids Connell to make public statements about the confessional seal and removed his faculties to hear confession [because it is possible that Connell would betray his penitents].
Wilmington Diocese, Delaware, condemned the proposal saying that "no Catholic priest or bishop would ever break the seal of confession under any circumstances” adding that confession is almost always anonymous what makes it nearly impossible to meet such a law.
A similar bill failed recently in Utah but is still in process in Vermont, Kansas and Washington. Spokane Bishop Thomas …More