Brady defends seal of confession in abuse case

CARDINAL Seán Brady has strongly defended the seal of
confession and reiterated the Church’s opposition to abortion and
euthanasia.

In a homily at the Marian Shrine at Knock in Mayo, the
Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland stressed the
inviolability of the "sacred and treasured" rite.

"Freedom to
participate in worship and to enjoy the long-established rites of the
Church is so fundamental that any intrusion upon it is a challenge to
very basis of a free society," he said.

"For example, the
inviolability of the seal of confession is so fundamental to the very
nature of the sacrament that any proposal that undermines that
inviolability is a challenge to the right of every Catholic to freedom
of religion and conscience," he said.

The remarks come just
one month after the Government said it would introduce legislation
making it mandatory for priests to reveal details of child abuse, even
if they become known in confession. Non-compliance would be punishable
with up to five years in jail.

Cardinal Brady has himself been
in the headlines in the recent past. He was pressed to explain why he
had initially backed Bishop John Magee when claims surrounding Cloyne,
in particular one against the cleric himself, emerged in 2008 and 2009.


It also emerged last year that he was at a meeting in the 1970s where
two young victims of notorious paedophile priest Brendan Smyth signed
vows of secrecy.

The civil authorities were not informed.

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