of their crimes, wouldn't it be morally right to contact the police or would they keep quiet for church rules? Follow rules or let a killer continue? How does the church decide? How can a priest have this on their conscience?
2006-08-06 09:44:22 · 26 answers · asked by ? 3 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Remember the episode of Jesus's crucifixion? There was a criminal beside Him, and asked Him to be remembered. Jesus said, 'today you will be with Me in paradise'. But do you remember what happened then? The man was not removed from his cross nor cared for. He died. When God offers us forgiveness, He doesn't take away our punishment, but the opposite, He wants us to see that we've done something wrong and we deserve to be punished. What He gives us is forgiveness, that is different. He sets us free from a pain that will not heal, much worse than any kind of pain we can have in this world. He shows us that there is hope, and that even being these wretched creatures that we are, he still loves us in a way we'll never be able to comprehend. So to finish this, if a serial killer really wanted to confess his crimes to someone religious, if he had repented truly, he wouldn't mind being caught by the police. To be true, I think he would ask for the police. But if he wanted the priest to keep his secret, his intention was not to confess, it was only to tell someone something he could not keep hidden anymore. Anyway, if he didn't want the priest to tell the police, he (the priest) would have to brake this church rule, for other lives' sakes. Do you think this makes sense?
2006-08-06 14:34:59 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
When a man becomes a priest he takes a vow to uphold God's law. The church has made the confessional sacred, so anything told the priest can not be repeated by him to anyone. In order for the person making the confession to the priest to be forgiven he must make amends, and in the case of a killer he has to turn him self into the proper authorities.
2006-08-06 17:00:12 · answer #2 · answered by miki 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well in the views of the church, confession is a sacrament to absolve ones sins but only if the sinner is truely asking for his sins to be removed. Priests see people who come into confession as those who want to better themselves and hope that these sinners will do their best not to sin again or to sin less.
Also, the Sacrament of confession is based on priests being a vessel of God who transfers the sins to him, not to keep the sins on their mind and heart.
So, in the views of the church and the priest, they would believe the sinner is trying to better himself and never sin like that again, that would be the only reasonable explaination.
Usually the sinners who go to confession wouldn't do it again because it would be meaningless and difficult to confess your sins to a priest and turn around and do the same thing again.
The matter of moral and justice, the church believes that confession is when a sinner is redeemed and closer to God. It would be morally wrong (in the viewpoint of the church) to turn this person over since this person is already trying to better himself.
Obviously, if the sinner continues to sin, it is unfortunate, but there is nothing the church can do nor can they be accused of being unjust/morally wrong by not turning them in because the church does not view anyone as horrible, but those who are lost and looking for a leader.
2006-08-06 17:00:59 · answer #3 · answered by Tony Jaa Fan 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Priest would make the absolution of their sins conditional on them going to the police and confessing to them as well.
No matter WHAT someone says in confession the Priest is absolutely forbidden from ever speaking of it outside confession. Any Priest who did so would be excommunicated immediately. It is also a crime to do so in most states and would lead to the arrest of the Priest.
2006-08-06 16:56:11 · answer #4 · answered by Dysthymia 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
What if the killer confessed that the priest was to be his next victim ?
No priest would allow such killer to get away
He'd report that to police
If not he's a true-christian but somewhat less than human
2006-08-06 16:55:23 · answer #5 · answered by Kind_light 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In accordance with the rules of the Church, the minister cannot divulge any of the content of the confession. This ruling has been upheld by the Supreme Court. However, he/she can report having suspicions/reason to believe that the individual will likely commit further atrocities.
2006-08-06 16:59:54 · answer #6 · answered by pagan_priests 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I know a priest and I asked him that! he says it is fiction that they cannot contact the police when something really serious like that is confessed and they must report it as it would be totally morally wrong not to!
2006-08-06 16:49:21 · answer #7 · answered by camshy0078 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the priests can't tell anybody but if that person confessed then they probably wouldn't be killing people in the first place
the priest doesn't really hear the confession...he's just a vessel for god...and the priest is busy forgetting the sins and praying for the confessor's forgiveness to remember the sins anyway
2006-08-06 16:54:12 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I should think that if this person CONTINUED to kill after they had confessed, then it would be in the church's best interest to report them to the police. If said killer came to the church and then stopped killing altogether after he left it, then I don't think it would be as much of an issue if the church decided to keep quiet.
2006-08-06 16:49:29 · answer #9 · answered by Qchan05 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Don't know about priests, but counsellors always put a 'get out clause' into the bit about confidentiality, something along the lines of, 'If anything you tell me leads me to believe you could harm yourself or another person ...' maybe priests have the same thing.
2006-08-06 16:59:32 · answer #10 · answered by Jude 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋