The Catholic Church has issued a warning to its clergy in Washington state: Any priest who complies with a new law requiring the reporting of child abuse confessions to authorities will be excommunicated.
https://www.newsweek.com/catholic-church-excommunicate-priests-following-new-us-state-law-2069039
Yes, we all know that. This entire story is the church stating publicly they don’t consider compelled by law to be sufficient justification.
I’m talking about the punishment for breaking the church law is basically “take a time out for a bit” while the punishment for following church law is “child gets a lifetime of pain and trauma.” Priests are choosing their own personal connection to their friends rather than helping to prevent child abuse.