State supreme court rules in case of two bishops who were silent about three children abused by Mormon parents

Clergy members in Arizona who learn of child abuse in the context of religious confession are not required to report it, the state’s supreme court has said in a ruling that protects what church leaders call the “seal of the confessional”.

The panel’s ruling ends a long-running case in which three children who were sexually abused by their parents sued the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), also known as the Mormon church, and two bishops who became aware of the crimes but remained silent.

The case has parallels in a short-lived 2025 law in Washington state that would have compelled clergy members there to report sexual abuse. That proposal was permanently withdrawn in October after legal action by the Catholic church.

In a statement, the LDS welcomed the unanimous ruling by the state supreme court on Thursday that exempts clergy members as “mandated reporters” if they learned of the abuse of minors in the confession booth or through other “confidential” methods.

  • root@lemmy.wtf
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    20 hours ago

    Hey so, maybe we cant comprehend an omniponent God because we are not omnipotent?

    • SnoopSqueak@lemmy.today
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      20 hours ago

      Hey so, maybe it doesn’t exist.

      Given all available information, that is much more likely.

      You keep using “we can’t understand” to reinforce your assumptions. But “we can’t understand” means the one thing that you picked is almost certainly not true, because there are endless other possibilities and we have no way to test any of them.

      Omnipotence would mean no suffering, if he loves us. You lack imagination if you can’t see that. There is no inherent need for our universe to be the way it is.