{"id":52598,"date":"2025-12-22T12:05:49","date_gmt":"2025-12-22T12:05:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/?p=52598"},"modified":"2025-12-22T12:05:49","modified_gmt":"2025-12-22T12:05:49","slug":"justice-department-sues-washington-state-over-law-forcing-priests-to-break-confession-seal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/justice-department-sues-washington-state-over-law-forcing-priests-to-break-confession-seal\/","title":{"rendered":"\u53f8\u6cd5\u7701\u3001\u544a\u89e3\u306e\u79d8\u5bc6\u3092\u7834\u308b\u3088\u3046\u5f37\u5236\u3059\u308b\u6cd5\u5f8b\u3092\u5de1\u308a\u30ef\u30b7\u30f3\u30c8\u30f3\u5dde\u3092\u63d0\u8a34"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"cppw-protected cppw-protected--overlay\"><div class=\"cppw-excerpt cppw-excerpt--overlay\"><p>Purple stole and confessional. \/ Credit: Roman023_photography\/Shutterstock CNA Staff, Jun 23, 2025 \/ 17:13 pm (CNA). The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the state of Washington over its recent law mandating that priests must violate the seal of confession if child abuse is learned about during the sacrament of reconciliation. The DOJ in a press release announcing the lawsuit filed on June 23 said the Washington law \u201cviolates the free exercise of religion for all Catholics.\u201d \u201cThe seal\u2026<\/p>\n<\/div>\t\t<div class=\"cppw-paywall paywp-paywall\" data-required-level=\"25\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"cppw-lock-mark\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/span>\n\t\t\t<h2>Continue reading with a subscription<\/h2>\n\t\t\t<p>Get unlimited access to all our premium content and exclusive features.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"cppw-paywall__actions\">\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"cppw-button\" href=\"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/become-a-member\/\">Subscribe Now<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"cppw-login-link\" href=\"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/login\/\">Already a subscriber? Sign in<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t<p class=\"cppw-paywall__microcopy\">Enjoy unlimited access, cancel anytime.<\/p>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Purple stole and confessional. \/ Credit: Roman023_photography\/Shutterstock CNA Staff, Jun 23, 2025 \/ 17:13 pm (CNA). The Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the state of Washington over its recent law mandating that priests must violate the seal of confession if child abuse is learned about during the sacrament of reconciliation. The DOJ in a press release announcing the lawsuit filed on June 23 said the Washington law \u201cviolates the free exercise of religion for all Catholics.\u201d \u201cThe seal\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":72502,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[100],"tags":[],"series":[],"class_list":["post-52598","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-christian-news"],"mb":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":54141,"url":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/confraternity-of-catholic-clergy-defends-inviolable-seal-of-confession\/","url_meta":{"origin":52598,"position":0},"title":"Confraternity of Catholic Clergy defends inviolable seal of confession","author":"Christian Pure Team","date":"7\u6708 18, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Confessional. \/ Credit: AS photo studio\/Shutterstock CNA Staff, Jul 1, 2025 \/ 13:17 pm (CNA). The Confraternity of Catholic Clergy, representing over 500 Roman Catholic priests and deacons from the U.S., Australia, and the United Kingdom, has issued a statement defending the inviolability of the seal of confession. The statement was released on June 27, the solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The declaration comes in response to civil laws, the most recent one in Washington state, that seek\u2026","rel":"","context":"Christian News","block_context":{"text":"Christian News","link":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/category\/christian-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Confraternity of Catholic Clergy defends inviolable seal of confession","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Confraternity-of-Catholic-Clergy-defends-inviolable-seal-of-confession.webp?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Confraternity-of-Catholic-Clergy-defends-inviolable-seal-of-confession.webp?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Confraternity-of-Catholic-Clergy-defends-inviolable-seal-of-confession.webp?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Confraternity-of-Catholic-Clergy-defends-inviolable-seal-of-confession.webp?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":51808,"url":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/orthodox-churches-join-catholic-bishops-in-suing-washington-state-over-confession-law\/","url_meta":{"origin":52598,"position":1},"title":"Orthodox churches join Catholic bishops in suing Washington state over confession law","author":"Christian Pure Team","date":"7\u6708 10, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Credit: Quisquilia\/Shutterstock CNA Staff, Jun 17, 2025 \/ 11:16 am (CNA). A group of Orthodox churches has joined the Catholic bishops of Washington state in suing the government over its requirement that clergy either violate the seal of confession or face jail time. The Orthodox Church in America, the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America, and numerous other Orthodox jurisdictions on Monday sued dozens of public officials in the state challenging the constitutionality of its mandatory reporter law. Signed\u2026","rel":"","context":"Christian News","block_context":{"text":"Christian News","link":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/category\/christian-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Orthodox churches join Catholic bishops in suing Washington state over confession law","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Orthodox-churches-join-Catholic-bishops-in-suing-Washington-state-over-confession-law.webp?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Orthodox-churches-join-Catholic-bishops-in-suing-Washington-state-over-confession-law.webp?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Orthodox-churches-join-Catholic-bishops-in-suing-Washington-state-over-confession-law.webp?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Orthodox-churches-join-Catholic-bishops-in-suing-Washington-state-over-confession-law.webp?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":54940,"url":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/bishop-barron-urges-court-to-strike-down-washington-law-that-targets-seal-of-confession\/","url_meta":{"origin":52598,"position":2},"title":"Bishop Barron urges court to strike down Washington law that targets seal of confession","author":"Christian Pure Team","date":"3\u6708 1, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Bishop Robert Barron is the founder of Word on Fire, a media apostolate focused on evangelization. \/ Credit: Word on Fire CNA Newsroom, Jul 4, 2025 \/ 15:29 pm (CNA). Bishop Robert Barron on July 4 urged a federal court to strike down a Washington state law that would force priests to violate the seal of confession, telling the court that the law is \"manifestly\" disrespectful of the ancient and vital Church practice. Barron, the bishop of Winona-Rochester and a\u2026","rel":"","context":"Christian News","block_context":{"text":"Christian News","link":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/category\/christian-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Bishop Barron urges court to strike down Washington law that targets seal of confession","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Bishop-Barron-urges-court-to-strike-down-Washington-law-that-targets-seal-of-confession.png?fit=1200%2C335&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Bishop-Barron-urges-court-to-strike-down-Washington-law-that-targets-seal-of-confession.png?fit=1200%2C335&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Bishop-Barron-urges-court-to-strike-down-Washington-law-that-targets-seal-of-confession.png?fit=1200%2C335&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Bishop-Barron-urges-court-to-strike-down-Washington-law-that-targets-seal-of-confession.png?fit=1200%2C335&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Bishop-Barron-urges-court-to-strike-down-Washington-law-that-targets-seal-of-confession.png?fit=1200%2C335&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":57486,"url":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/federal-court-blocks-washington-law-that-would-force-priests-to-violate-seal-of-confession\/","url_meta":{"origin":52598,"position":3},"title":"Federal court blocks Washington law that would force priests to violate seal of confession","author":"Christian Pure Team","date":"7\u6708 25, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"null \/ Credit: Brian A Jackson\/Shutterstock CNA Staff, Jul 18, 2025 \/ 12:30 pm (CNA). A federal court on July 18 blocked a controversial Washington state reporting law that would require priests to violate the seal of confession, siding with the state\u2019s Catholic bishops who brought suit against the measure earlier this year. The law, passed by the state Legislature earlier this year and signed by Gov. Robert Ferguson, added clergy to the list of mandatory abuse reporters in the\u2026","rel":"","context":"Christian News","block_context":{"text":"Christian News","link":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/category\/christian-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Federal court blocks Washington law that would force priests to violate seal of confession","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Federal-court-blocks-Washington-law-that-would-force-priests-to-violate-seal-of-confession.webp?fit=800%2C444&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Federal-court-blocks-Washington-law-that-would-force-priests-to-violate-seal-of-confession.webp?fit=800%2C444&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Federal-court-blocks-Washington-law-that-would-force-priests-to-violate-seal-of-confession.webp?fit=800%2C444&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Federal-court-blocks-Washington-law-that-would-force-priests-to-violate-seal-of-confession.webp?fit=800%2C444&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":66202,"url":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/washington-state-drops-effort-to-make-priests-violate-seal-of-confession-in-reporting-law\/","url_meta":{"origin":52598,"position":4},"title":"Washington state drops effort to make priests violate seal of confession in reporting law","author":"Christian Pure Team","date":"10\u6708 16, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"null \/ Credit: Brian A Jackson\/Shutterstock CNA Staff, Oct 10, 2025 \/ 14:37 pm (CNA). Officials in Washington state have agreed to back off a controversial effort to force priests there to violate the seal of confession as part of a mandatory abuse reporting law. A motion filed in federal district court on Oct. 10 affirmed that state and local governments would stop attempting to require priests to report child abuse learned during the sacrament of reconciliation.The state attorney general\u2019s\u2026","rel":"","context":"Christian News","block_context":{"text":"Christian News","link":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/category\/christian-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Washington state drops effort to make priests violate seal of confession in reporting law","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Washington-state-drops-effort-to-make-priests-violate-seal-of-confession-in-reporting-law.webp?fit=800%2C444&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Washington-state-drops-effort-to-make-priests-violate-seal-of-confession-in-reporting-law.webp?fit=800%2C444&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Washington-state-drops-effort-to-make-priests-violate-seal-of-confession-in-reporting-law.webp?fit=800%2C444&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Washington-state-drops-effort-to-make-priests-violate-seal-of-confession-in-reporting-law.webp?fit=800%2C444&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":70345,"url":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/archdiocese-of-chicago-kept-known-serial-predators-in-ministry-for-years-lawsuits-say\/","url_meta":{"origin":52598,"position":5},"title":"Archdiocese of Chicago kept \u2018known serial predators\u2019 in ministry for years, lawsuits say","author":"Christian Pure Team","date":"12\u6708 17, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Holy Name Cathedral, the seat of the Archdiocese of Chicago. \/ Credit: Photo courtesy of Maddy Johnson\/Church Properties Initiative CNA Staff, Nov 25, 2025 \/ 16:31 pm (CNA). Multiple lawsuits allege that the Archdiocese of Chicago kept two priests in active ministry in spite of years of \u201cmounting complaints\u201d of child sexual abuse leveled against them.The suits, filed by the Chicago-based law firm Gould, Grieco, &amp; Hensley, allege that archdiocesan officials allowed Father Daniel Holihan and Father John Curran to\u2026","rel":"","context":"Christian News","block_context":{"text":"Christian News","link":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/learn\/category\/christian-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Archdiocese of Chicago kept \u2018known serial predators\u2019 in ministry for years, lawsuits say","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Archdiocese-of-Chicago-kept-%E2%80%98known-serial-predators-in-ministry-for-years-lawsuits-say.webp?fit=800%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Archdiocese-of-Chicago-kept-%E2%80%98known-serial-predators-in-ministry-for-years-lawsuits-say.webp?fit=800%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Archdiocese-of-Chicago-kept-%E2%80%98known-serial-predators-in-ministry-for-years-lawsuits-say.webp?fit=800%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Archdiocese-of-Chicago-kept-%E2%80%98known-serial-predators-in-ministry-for-years-lawsuits-say.webp?fit=800%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/christianpure.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Justice-Department-sues-Washington-state-over-law-forcing-priests-to-break-confession-seal.webp?fit=800%2C533&ssl=1","mfb_rest_fields":["title","jetpack_publicize_connections","jetpack-related-posts","jetpack_sharing_enabled","jetpack_featured_media_url"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52598","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52598"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52598\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72502"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52598"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52598"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52598"},{"taxonomy":"series","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianpure.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/series?post=52598"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}